Nigeria’s only boxer to Rio Olympics vows to break 20-year laurel jinx

It’s barely 10 days to the opening of the 2016 Olympics and

optimism about Nigeria winning any shade of medal in Rio is

quite low.

However, in all of the pessimism, Nigeria’s sole boxer to Rio,

Efe Ajagba, is talking tough. He says his mission to Brazil is to

end the 20-year jinx that has seen Nigeria not winning any

boxing medal since the Atlanta 1996 Olympics.

In this interview with PREMIUM TIMES’ Tunde Eludini, the 91+

Kg fighters said he is ready to shock the world even though

many are not giving him any chance to make impact.

PT: How does it feel to be the only boxer that will be going to

Rio to represent Nigeria?

Ajagba: I must confess I am not too happy because I am the

only one who qualified for the Olympics games. You know that

to have a lot of boxers qualify would have been better and it

would have been an encouragement.

However, this would be an opportunity to shine and encourage

other boxers that were unable to qualify because it would be

like I am raising the hopes of other boxers that were not able

to make the cut. If I win gold it would benefit all the others

and encourage them as we celebrate that medal that we win.

PT: Why did you choose to go into boxing and not any other

sports?

Ajagba: I actually started sports by playing football when I was

in secondary school but I discovered that it was not the best

for me as it would not give me the opportunity to stand out

and there was no income. I was playing in a football club in

Delta state at the time when a guy in my area challenged me

to a fight. The guy was bigger and looked heavier than me and

people thought I would be floored but I brought him down with

just a punch. That was when friends encouraged me to take up boxing but

at that time, I did not think boxing was for me. A couple of

years later, I just decided not to continue in football. That day,

I went to the stadium at Ughelli, to look for a boxing coach;

that was in November 2011. Though I started training in

boxing, I did not leave football completely. However, I got into

boxing fully after I won silver at the National Sports Festival.

That was when the national coaches saw me and invited me

to join the national team to represent Nigeria at the

Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

PT: What was your family’s reaction to your choice of boxing?

Ajagba: My father was Ajagba Samuel and he used to be a

boxer. Though he was a good boxer, he did not gain income

from it but he encouraged me after I told him I wanted to get

involved in boxing. He told me I had the physical strength to

be in the profession and that encouraged me to continue.

Right now, they are very happy with my progress so far. I have

always won medals in any competition I participate and they

appreciate that. My dad is so happy about that.

PT: Have you enjoyed the best of preparations for the Rio

Olympics?

Ajagba: I have been training for the past two months. My

coaches have given me the best training and right now I am

focused on going to Rio to give my best. I want to concentrate

on my energies for that. So no thought for training tours

because this is late into preparations. The boxers I am going

to meet are going to be the best of the best, but I am not

going there to just watch and be intimidated. It is the same

training they have received I have also received here so I am

going there to try my possible best.

PT: Which boxers challenge you the most?

Ajagba: Countries like Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Cuba and

England. They have countries with very good boxers especially

Toni and from England are very tough and I think I am the only

one that can give them a tough time. I have the talent and i

have the power to overcome them.

PT: What is your target in Rio?

Ajagba: The target is simple I want to be the first Nigerian to

win a medal in boxing since 1996, I want to break that 20-year

jinx and let the world know that Africa and Nigeria have a new

boxer that is ready to rule the world. I can confidently say

Ajagba will make history and bring home a medal. I will

surprise the world even though many people are not giving me

any chance of doing well in Rio.

In every competition I have gone, I have always won

something, In 2016 I won the gold medal in the super

heavyweight event at the African Boxing Olympic Qualification

Tournament held in Yaoundé, Cameroon. By doing so I

qualified to represent Nigeria at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

At the at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow, I

won Bronze even though I was robbed of getting into the finals

at the 2015 African Games held in Brazzaville, Republic of the

Congo I won gold. The records are there for all to see, by the

grace God I will make it to the podium in Rio and we will all

celebrate.