By Daily Sports Nigeria on December 20, 2023

Nigeria female wrestling coach, Purity Akuh, talks about how he has been leading Nigerian female wrestlers to glory for a decade, in this interview with ABIODUN ADEWALE

It’s been over a decade since you started coaching. How did your career begin in wrestling?

Yes, it’s been a while since I started coaching, and I don’t often look back. I was a wrestler myself and because of so many factors, I couldn’t do well. So, I made up my mind that in my coaching career, I will develop people who will win most of the things I couldn’t win and I set out to look for talents, and train them to make sure they win African titles, Commonwealth, Grand Prix and the Olympics. I must say I am a fulfilled coach because God has helped me to achieve a lot with my wrestlers.

How did you fare as a wrestler before becoming a coach?

In 2004, I won the first ever gold medal for Ondo State in wrestling. I repeated it at the Gateway Games in 2006 and from there I became a national champion for eight years and represented Nigeria on the continent

While growing up, which sports did you do? And would you have ended up with one of those sports as a professional if not for wrestling?

Growing up, it was just natural to do sports and I played basketball, football, handball, table-tennis, volleyball and even karate. And I realised I was strong, so, I felt combat sports would be good for me when I chose wrestling professionally. Aside from wrestling, I would have loved to play football.

So far, what are the biggest accomplishments can you point to in your coaching career?

By the grace of God, I have achieved a lot in wrestling. I led the team to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland in 2014 and we won gold medals, also in 2018 in Australia and recently at Birmingham 2022. The biggest of my achievements is the silver medal we won at the Olympics in 2021. I can also count many Grand Prix in Germany, Azerbaijan and different Ranking Series in Italy, Turkey and so many others. I won’t forget the World Championship as well, in 2015, Las Vegas, we won a bronze. In 2019 we won silver, which is the highest we have won and we added another bronze medal in 2019.

Many wrestlers have developed under your tutelage, the likes of Blessing Oborududu, Adekuoroye Odunayo, Aminat Adeniyi and some up and coming ones. Can you recall how you discovered these stars?

I have developed a lot of high-performance athletes like Odunayo, whom we picked from the streets. She wanted to travel by all means, she wanted to leave Akure to any other part of the world and I told her ‘if you can wrestle and perform well, you will travel a lot.’ There was a school competition in Abeokuta and eventually she joined wrestling, we trained for a few days and we took her to Abeokuta where she won gold. Aminat was also discovered in school, same as the young ones who are currently training with me in Akure. And so it is for others in different states where we have our wrestlers.

You are noted for screaming instructions in Yoruba to your wrestlers. Does it make it easy for you or is it part of the tricks of winning?

This is really funny, I must say. Yes, I scream a lot in Yoruba during our fights. It’s easier for me that way. In training I do it in English and Yoruba but I kind of feel it’s easier and faster during competitions. Our opponents don’t even understand it, so, it’s like running commentary for me and the girls can know what to do at every moment. Yes, it’s part of my strategy. I use Yoruba language mostly when I need to psyche the girls. Things like “ori e pe” (you are doing well). I also use it when I foresee the opponent’s move so my wrestler can adjust. That is when you hear me say “gbe” (carry her), “diimu” (hold her) among others. It’s a winning strategy for me.

As a male coach for female wrestlers, how do you manage your girls in terms of discipline?

Some of the wrestlers live with me because of the challenges, backgrounds and even the distance they have to cover to be at the training ground. I feel I could help their families take care of some financial burdens in terms of payment of their school fees and saving them from hawking on the streets, so, they can spend quality time in training. Also, I watch their weight and diet a lot. So, it’s easier when they are with me because I monitor them.

How did you handle the disappointments despite winning the first and only wrestling silver medal for Nigeria in over 40 years at the last Olympics?

The last Olympics was a big shock because there were high expectations, especially in the 57kg where Odunayo was competing. I personally believe losing is part of the job and part of winning. You lose and strategise. However, we managed the situation and we got more than consolation with the silver medal Blessing Oborududu won. It was a win for everyone because it was the first Olympic medal for Nigeria in wrestling in over 40 years. Altogether, it was an eyeopener for us to prepare for the next Olympics.

Nigeria maintained its dominance in women’s freestyle wrestling in Africa and also did well at the World Championships. How did the team perform in terms of where they want to be in 2024?

In terms of performance, we are always striving to maintain our dominance and win everything possible. Right now we have a blend of experienced wrestlers and younger ones, so, we have a mix of results, depending on the competition we are attending. For example, at the African Championships, we won the women’s freestyle event as we used to do. At the world level, the likes of Odunayo, who also returned to the mat after missing the African Championships, clinched her 2024 Olympics ticket. It was the least we expected from her and the younger ones also showed the kind of potential that we love to see. So, in the outgoing year, we are very up there and working on the areas that need improvement ahead of 2024. More importantly, we will have competitions that will serve as Olympics qualifiers, so, some other wrestlers will also hope to pick their tickets to Paris 2024.

What’s the plan as we approach another busy year, which includes the Olympics?

After the last Olympics, we started grooming another set of wrestlers for Paris 2024. We have taken them to different international competitions for exposure. They’ve been to the Paris Ranking Series, Egypt Ranking Series and the Grand Prix in Spain and Hungary. Periodically, we have been going to our Olympic training centre in Yenagoa and by the grace of God, this time around, we hope to win multiple medals and the target is to get gold too. Oborududu is still active, Oduanyo is still raring to go and we have young ones like Blessing Genesis, Esther Kolwawole and Christiana Ogunsayna and even the younger sister of Odunayo, Mercy Adekuoroye. We are optimistic of a good outing in 2024.

Akure has been home to you, and you have produced some wrestlers there. How has it been in the Sunshine State?

I’m from Delta State and I was born and bred in Ibadan. I came to Ondo State to visit a brother who played badminton for Ondo State, and I spent time at the sports complex in Akure and was comfortable with everything about Akure. So, I decided to stay and began to wrestle. I ended up living in Akure and I decided to spread my tent in the city that has blessed me.

There has been so much progress in the last 10 years. In another 10 years, where do you see Nigerian wrestling?

By the grace of God, we are still progressing and, in the future, I see Nigerian wrestling dominating the world. There is a plan for the future and we have young wrestlers that have been marked for the 2028 Olympic Games. The federation has a blueprint for the present and the future and everyone is

Source Punch Ng

Posted December 20, 2023

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