Peter Obi criticizes Nigeria’s Paris 2024 Olympic spending after medal-less outing

Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 General Election in Nigeria, Mr. Peter Obi has criticized Nigeria’s performance at the Paris 2024 Olympics, where the country failed to secure any medals despite a significant financial investment.

Obi expressed his displeasure on X.com (formerly Twitter), highlighting that Nigeria spent approximately 12 billion naira (about $85,000 per athlete) on the Games. In contrast, Jamaica, with a much smaller budget of around $2,300 per athlete, won six medals, including one gold. Obi questioned, “How can one explain that a country like Jamaica spent less than 5% of what we spent on our contingents for the Paris Olympics 2024 and won as many as 6 medals? Yet with our huge financial investments and large contingent, we could not win even a single medal?”

Obi also criticized the exclusion of Nigerian sprinter Favour Ofili from the 100m event, calling it a “reckless and wrongful” decision. He pointed out that former Nigerian hammer thrower Annette Echikunwoke, who switched her allegiance to the United States, went on to win a medal.

The former presidential candidate accused Nigerian sports officials of “rascality and recklessness,” alleging that some injured athletes and unnecessary officials were in Paris, “living large and feeding fat on the estacodes (allowances)” while athletes faced challenges.

Obi highlighted the case of Ese Ukpeseraye, who reportedly had to borrow a bicycle for her event, describing the situation as a “shame” and demanding an investigation into the “gross misconduct.”

Obi’s comments have intensified the debate on the need for better management and investment in Nigerian sports, as the government faces criticism over the disappointing performance.