Blessing Okagbare, banned by NSC from Rio 2016 Olympic games.

100 and 200 metres champion of Africa and Common Wealth games, Blessing Okagbare, has been banned by the National Sports Commission, from the Rio 2016 Olympic games. The ban, is as a result of her refusal to represent the country in the 200metres event at the just concluded IAAF championship in Beijing, China. As well as excluding herself from the ongoing All Africa Games taking place in Congo.

In an interaction with Guardian, the Director General of the NSC, Al Hassan Yakmut, said Blessing Okagbare, had disrespected the country, in so many ways.

This is as a result of her appearance in the Diamond League in Zurich, Switzerland, last Thursday, a few days after she failed to show up for the 200m event in Beijing, despite appearing in the warm up area. She claimed she was injured.

Hassan who was in great anger, said: “I was shocked when I saw Okagbare competing in the Diamond League in Zurich last Thursday,”

“I was wondering if it was the same Okagbare who refused to compete for Nigeria in the 200m event at the IAAF World Championship in Beijing, China. She even opted out of Team Nigeria for the All Africa Games in Congo. Why?

“I have said it times without number that any athlete who feels too big to compete for Nigeria in the All Africa Games should not bother about the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. No athlete is bigger than Nigeria. I played volleyball for this country, so there is nothing an athlete will tell me about sports.

“Tell me what countries like Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda and South Africa is doing for their athletes that Nigeria is not doing? If there is a problem, we should sit down to iron it out, instead of rubbishing our country before the international community. We have to take a stand to save our nation from athletes who feel they are untouchable,”.

It can be noted that Okagbare, who was one of the only hope of team Nigeria getting a medal at the IAAF championship in Beijing, finished last in the 100metres event, and also failed to show up at the All Africa Games in Congo. With the pretext of nursing an Injury.

On Thursday, she ran at the Diamond League, finishing 2nd with 10.98s behind Jamaica Fraser-Pryce, who finished first with 10.93s

Source: The Guardian.