Team Nigeria is aiming to improve on its sixth position at the ongoing Islamic Solidarity Games, which begins its final week today. The sixth Islamic Solidarity Games is holding in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with Nigeria among the 58 countries on the medals table.

With 14 medals comprising six gold, five silver and three bronze medals, most of them coming from weightlifting and one silver medal from boxing, Team Nigeria believes that it is in a position to climb up the ladder with action starting in track and field, as well as para sports today.

Nigeria’s Taekwondo sensation, Elizabeth Anyanacho was expected to begin her quest for a gold medal yesterday, when she fights the winner of an earlier bout between a Mauritanian and a Mozambican fighter in the quarterfinals round.

The Africa number one broke a 20-year-old record in the -67kg when she won bronze at the World Championship in China last month and will be hoping to finish the year with a gold medal in Riyadh.

With a total of 43 gold medals up for grabs in track and field, Nigeria’s contingent of exciting mix of young home-based and foreign-based athletes, are hoping to make a huge statement at the Prince Faisal bin Fahad Sports City when hostilities begin today.

Nigeria’s wrestling contingent under the new leadership of the Comptroller-General (CG) of Nigeria Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, will start their competition tomorrow, at the Boulevard Riyadh City.

Team Nigeria medals haul is also expected to further swell when the country’s para athletes begin their competitions in both powerllifting and para-athletics.

The Nigerian para-powerlifting team is still fresh from finishing second at the World Championships in Egypt, and will hope to be in that form when their competition starts on Friday, in Riyadh. The para-athletes will start their competition tomorrow.