Athlete Sade Olatoye Speaks Out, Says Nigeria’s Olympic Team Received No Government Support For Preparations
This disclosure comes after the government expressed disappointment at Nigeria’s poor performance at the Olympics, labelling it a “disaster.
Nigerian shotput athlete, Sade Olatoye, has revealed that she and her fellow athletes received no financial support from President Bola Tinubu’s administration during their preparations for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
This disclosure comes after the government expressed disappointment at Nigeria’s poor performance at the Olympics, labelling it a “disaster”.
Nigeria failed to win any medal at the Olympics.
The team’s underwhelming performance also sparked widespread criticism from Nigerians, who are holding the government accountable for the failure, citing lack of adequate support as a major factor.
The country’s disappointment with the Olympic performance is compounded by the perceived lack of government support for the team.
Olatoye revealed in an interview with NewsCentral that the team had to self-fund their entire journey, including training, coaching, medical expenses, and competition fees.
Olatoye noted that it wasn’t until they reached the championship stage that they were informed about potential grants, which only covered a mere 2% of their total expenses accumulated over four years of training.
She said, “Pretty much every year, me and my teammates, everything is out of pocket. We pay for our own training, coaches, medical, competition, so everything is out of pocket.
“It is not until we get to the championship that we start hearing about potential grants. I have been training for four years, being given the grant at the competition which doesn’t pay for 2% of what I pay out of my pocket for four years of training.”
