Ruth Nyong from Rivers State and African Champion Omolola Onome Didih from Lagos State were the standout performers on Day 2 of the Weightlifting event at the 2024 National Sports Festival, aptly named the Gateway Games 2024.
Both weightlifters delivered outstanding performances, collectively securing four gold medals and two silvers for their respective states in the women’s 49kg and 55kg categories.
In the Women’s 49kg class, Nyong excelled by winning two gold medals and one silver. She achieved a remarkable lift of 75kg to secure gold in the snatch and followed that with a total lift of 167kg for her second gold. Originally hailing from Akwa Ibom State, Nyong added a silver medal for Rivers State with her 92kg lift in the Clean & Jerk.
Ebele Chukwu Vanessa Agbah from Delta State also shone in the same category, clinching gold in the Clean & Jerk with an impressive lift of 93kg and a silver medal with a total lift of 164kg.
In the snatch competition, Quadri Zainab from Lagos claimed silver with her lift of 72kg, while Adamma Dorcas Anyimba from Kano secured bronze with a lift of 71kg. Anyimba also won bronze for her total lift of 157kg. Monica Uweh from Ogun State rounded off the medallists with a bronze in the Clean & Jerk, lifting 88kg.
In the Women’s 55kg category, African Games gold medallist Omolola Onome Didih from Lagos won gold medals in both the snatch and total with lifts of 93kg and 205kg, respectively. However, she was edged out in the Clean & Jerk by a determined Theresa Daniel Okon from Akwa Ibom, who lifted 113kg to claim gold. Didih finished just a kilogram behind, securing her third medal of the day.
Temidayo Jegede from Kano contributed to her state’s medal tally with two silver and one bronze medal, achieving lifts of 77kg in the snatch and 175kg in total, before obtaining bronze in the Clean & Jerk with a lift of 98kg. Joy Chima from Lagos added two bronze medals to her collection with lifts of 71kg and a total of 168kg.
In the Men’s 55kg category, Cross River State’s King Kalu and Esther Amarachi Chijoke of the Invited Junior Athletes (IJA) combined to win five gold medals. Kalu achieved three golds for Cross River, boasting a total lift of 215kg, which included a 94kg snatch and a 121kg Clean & Jerk.
Elechi Nnadozie Elvis from Bayelsa State won a silver medal in the snatch with a lift of 93kg, while Abayomi Adeleye from Ekiti State secured bronze in the same event with a lift of 92kg. Tobi Ishola from Oyo earned a silver in the Clean & Jerk with a lift of 118kg and also claimed bronze for a total lift of 206kg. Another Bayelsa competitor, John Solomon, won bronze in the Clean & Jerk with a lift of 117kg and added silver in the total with 207kg.
In the Women’s 45kg class, Esther Amarachi Chijoke from IJA bagged gold medals in the Clean & Jerk and total with lifts of 82kg and 146kg, respectively, alongside a silver medal in the snatch with a lift of 64kg.
Ronke Olarinoye from Lagos was a close second in the Women’s 45kg, taking gold in the snatch with a lift of 65kg and bronze in the total with 140kg. Christiana Alloma from Rivers State also made her mark, winning two silver medals in the Clean & Jerk (81kg) and total (142kg), in addition to a bronze medal in the snatch with a lift of 61kg.