Nigeria’s Paralympians confirm payment of allowances, cash rewards

Two members of Nigeria’s 24-man contingent to the 2024 Summer Paralympic Games which ended recently in Paris have confirmed the full payment of their camp allowances and cash rewards promised the team by the Federal Government.

Before the Games, the Minister of Sports, Senator John Enoh, had pledged monetary incentives to athletes who excelled as he promised to give equal treatment to paralympics and Olympics athletes.

Speaking to our correspondent yesterday, Sunday Odebode, President of the Paralympic Committee Nigeria (PCN), said that all athletes received their payments before they left Paris.

He reiterated that there was no single problem with the payment of the athletes’ entitlements.

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“The athletes were fully paid all dues. From the PCN, gold medalists received $1,500, silver medalists $1,000, and bronze medalists $500.

Those who did not win medals, along with their officials, received $100 each. In addition, the technical crew was rewarded with $1,000 for their efforts,” Odebode stated.

He also noted that the federal government, through the Ministry of Sports, granted additional cash rewards—$15,000 for gold medalists, $10,000 for silver, and $5,000 for bronze.

Speaking to Daily Trust, Folashade Oluwafemiayo, Nigeria’s Para-athletes captain, who broke two world records in powerlifting, confirmed that all payments were completed before they left Paris.

She became the first para-athlete to lift 166kg, surpassing her previous world record of 165kg.

“We were fully paid by the government and the committee before we left Paris. This is a positive shift from the past, and we hope the momentum continues,” Oluwafemiayo said.

Isaac Ogunkunle, who won bronze in the men’s class 4 table tennis event, echoed her sentiments: “Yes, they paid everything in the Games Village in Paris. I won bronze and received $5,000 from the government and $500 from the committee.”

While Onyinyechi Mark and Folashade Oluwafemiayo won gold in powerlifting, Bose Omolayo, Flora Ugwunwa, and Esther Nworgu picked silver medals just as the duo of Isau Ogunkunle and Eniola Bolaji won bronze medals for Team Nigeria Paralympics.

Although the Paralympians came to the rescue of Team Nigeria once again, their performance in Paris was a slight drop from their 10-medal haul at the Tokyo 2020 Games.