By Uzor Odigbo
The Nigeria Olympics Committee (NOC) announced that Nigeria will be sending a contingent of over 358 athletes participating in 25 different sports to the 13th African Games.
In a statement issued on Monday in Lagos, Tony Nezianya, the Public Relations Officer of NOC, disclosed that the games are scheduled to take place from March 8 to 23 in Accra, Kumasi, and Cape Coast.
“Nigeria is competing in 25 sports at the event. Nigerian athletes were accredited at the delegation registration meeting conducted on March 4,” he said.
In terms of individual sports athletes, Team Taekwondo, Wrestling, and Karate lead the pack with 14 athletes each, while Arm Wrestling boasts 15 athletes.
Weightlifting and badminton each field a 12-member team, boxing has 11 pugilists, judo is represented by 10 athletes, and Scrabble has eight members.
They are as follows:
Arm Wrestling –15 athletes
Athletics – 50
Badminton – 12
Basketball 3 x 3 – 4 female
Beach Volleyball – 4
Boxing – 11
Chess – 4
Cricket – 15
Cycling – 12
Hockey – 32
Football – 40
Handball – 14
Judo – 10
Karate – 14
Mixed Marrial Arts – 4
Rugby – 16
Scrabble – 8
Swimming – 4
Table Tennis – 10
Taekwondo – 14
Tennis – 8
Triathlon – 4
Volleyball – 24
Weightlifting – 12
Wrestling – 14