Nigerian women’s freestyle wrestler Odunayo Adekuoroye has decried the burden of learning the new national anthem and practicing new techniques while preparing for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
The 30-year-old shared her thoughts on Instagram on Saturday, joining the elongating list of Nigerian athletes who have expressed reservations about the reintroduction of the old anthem that was discarded for the second time long before they were born.
“I no fit dey practice new techniques still dey learn new anthem,” stated the newlywed, who became the country’s first grappler to qualify for the Olympic Games after she defeated Turkey’s Elvira Kamaloglu 9-5 to win the bronze medal in women’s 57 kg at the World Championships in Belgrade.
Paris 2024 will be Adekuoroye’s third Olympics, and she will be gunning for the elusive medal after disappointments in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, being defeated by Sweden’s Sofia Mattsson in the quarterfinal at the former.
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