For the very first time ever, Nigeria’s flag will be hoisted at a winter Olympic Games. As a team of three women – Seun Adigun; an Olympic hurdler in 2012, Ngozi Onwumere and Akuoma Omeoga qualified for bobsled at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in February.
Nigeria became the first-ever African bobsled team to qualify for the Olympics after the team finished their required fifth qualifying race in Calgary this week. The Olympic dream started on the snow-less grounds of Houston, Texas, in a wooden sled they nicknamed ‘The Maeflower.’ Once the team set their sights on the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, they established a crowd funding website hoping to raise the much-needed funds to get to PyeongChang. Upon discovering the page, Visa was inspired by their story and determination to carve out a place in history and pledged to help solidify the team’s trip to the Olympic Winter Games.
Visa on Wednesday announced the addition of the Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team to Team Visa. “When we first heard their story we recognized the collective spirit of these athletes as a perfect fit for Team Visa,” said Chris Curtin, chief brand and innovation marketing officer at Visa. “By joining Team Visa, we hope to provide this group of determined athletes with a global stage to tell their story and inspire athletes all over the world to follow their dreams and never give up.”
The Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team joins Team Visa’s diverse roster of athletes, which includes:Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), Chloe Kim (USA), Gus Kenworthy (USA), Hilary Knight (USA), Oksana Masters (USA),Mark McMorris (Canada), Lee Sang-Hwa (South Korea), KamilStoch (Poland) and others.
These three women may not be Nigeria’s only Olympians in 2018. Simidele Adeagbo is still in the hunt to qualify in the skeleton.
