Eniola Bolaji has etched her name in history as the first African athlete to win a medal in Para-Badminton, earning a bronze medal for Nigeria in the Women’s Singles SL3 category at the 2024 Paralympics.
On Monday morning, Bolaji delivered a stellar performance, defeating her Ukrainian opponent, Oksana Kozyna, in straight sets with scores of 21-9, 21-9. This victory marks Nigeria’s first Paralympics medal in Paris.
Despite aiming for the gold, Bolaji narrowly missed out on the final after a hard-fought semi-final match on Sunday, where she lost 2-0 (16-21, 17-21) to China’s Zuxian Xiao. However, she showed resilience and determination by securing the bronze medal in her subsequent match.
Bolaji’s triumph brings a much-needed boost to Nigerian sports, ending a medal drought following disappointing results at the Olympic Games and the recently concluded World U-20 Athletics Championship.
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By Ebubedike Ochu
