A Nigerian Athlete, Mariam Usman has said that Nigeria never prepared for the just concluded Olympic in Rio, Brazil as other serious nations did.
Mariam, who competed in the +75 category, amassed 265 kg and finished 8th in her group, said: “it is painful to come to the Olympics and see people who are your contemporaries perform better than you; not because you lack the ability but because you were not prepared like them.
“For me, it is not just about jumping into the plane every four years to go to the Olympics. Every athlete you see here wants to step on the podium. If you can’t aim to climb up there, you have no business coming to the Olympics. I can only consider going to another Olympics if things change for the better. But if the status quo is maintained, I don’t think I will go to another Olympics again.
She felt bad about what she called lack of preparation for the Olympics while other Olympians from other countries were preparing for between and four years.
“Olympic gold medal doesn’t come cheap. It is painful that one has to suffer and when competition comes they expect you to win a medal with your blood.
“The people you have to compete with had everything they needed: training grants, competitions and are exposed to the most modern equipment. I had nothing. You don’t expect such people who have invested so much to lose to one who don’t even train adequately.” [myad]
