Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
competed at the
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
, from 13 to 29 August 2004. This was the nation's thirteenth appearance at the Olympics, except the
1976 Summer Olympics
Events January
* January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...
in Montreal, because of the African boycott.
Nigerian Olympic Committee sent a total of 72 athletes, 24 men and 48 women, to the Games to compete in 10 sports. For the first time in its Olympic history, Nigeria was represented by more female than male athletes.
Women's basketball
Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It began being played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large part via women's college compet ...
and
women's football were the only team-based sports in which Nigeria had its representation at these Games. There was only a single competitor in men's freestyle wrestling.
Fifteen athletes from the Nigerian team had previously competed in Sydney, including five football players from the women's squad and Olympic silver medalist
Enefiok Udo-Obong
Enefiok Udo-Obong (born 22 May 1982), also known as Enee, is a Nigerian sprinter and accomplished athlete. He is the only Nigerian to win two Olympic medals, winning a gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics, and a bronze medal at the 2004 Su ...
in the men's 4 × 400 m relay. At age 36, sprinter
Mary Onyali-Omagbemi
Nkemdilim “Mary” Onyali-Omagbemi (née Onyali, born 3 February 1968) is a Nigerian former sprinter, she was a 5x Olympian 1988 - 2004. She had won the bronze medal in the 4 × 100 m relay at the 1992 Olympic Games and in the 200 m at th ...
became the first Nigerian athlete to compete in fifth Olympic Games, while table tennis players
Segun Toriola
Segun Moses Toriola (born 18 September 1974 in Ilorin, Kwara, Nigeria) is a retired Nigeria professional table tennis player.
He is the youngest of nine brothers.
Since 1995 he has been ranked as the best Nigerian player. He has been amongst t ...
and
Bose Kaffo followed Onyali's footsteps to fulfill their fourth Olympic bid in Athens. For being the oldest and most experienced athlete of the team, Onyali reprised her role to carry the
Nigerian flag in the opening ceremony for the second time since 1996.
Nigeria left Athens with only two Olympic bronze medals, all from the men's 4 × 100 m relay (led by
Deji Aliu
Deji Aliu (born 22 November 1975 in Lagos) is a Nigerian sprinter. He won the 100 metres event at the 2003 All-Africa Games. He also took fourth place in the event at the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
Aliu formed part of the Nigerian relay team w ...
) and 4 × 400 m relay teams (led by Udo-Obong).
Medalists
Athletics
Nigerian athletes have so far achieved qualifying standards in the following athletics events (up to a maximum of 3 athletes in each event at the 'A' Standard, and 1 at the 'B' Standard).
;Men
;Women
Basketball
Women's tournament
;Roster
;Group play
----
----
----
----
;Classification match (11th–12th place)
Boxing
Nigeria sent seven boxers to Athens. Five lost their first matches, while the other two made it to the quarterfinals (one with two wins, the other with a bye and a win) before being defeated.
Football
Women's tournament
The
Nigerian team qualified for the Olympics after defeating
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
on penalties and edging
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
in a two-leg playoff.
;Roster
;Group play
----
;Quarterfinals
Judo
Two Nigerian judoka (one man and one woman) qualified for the 2004 Summer Olympics.
Swimming
;Men
;Women
Table tennis
Eight Nigerian table tennis players qualified for the following events.
;Men
;Women
Taekwondo
Three Nigerian taekwondo jin qualified for the following events.
Weightlifting
Two Nigerian weightlifters qualified for the following events:
Wrestling
;Men's freestyle
See also
*
Nigeria at the 2004 Summer Paralympics
Nigeria competed at the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Greece. The team included 14 athletes, 6 men and 8 women. Competitors from Nigeria won 12 medals, including 5 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze.
In many parts of Black Africa, people who have ...
References
External links
Official Report of the XXVIII OlympiadNigerian Olympic Committee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nigeria At The 2004 Summer Olympics
Nations at the 2004 Summer Olympics
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
Olympics
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...