Oborududu appeals for individual, corporate support ahead of Tokyo 2020 Olympics

African champion, Blessing Oborududu says she still awaits sponsorship deals in the form of the adopt-an-athlete initiative of the Ministry of Sports and Development to enable her qualify for the Olympics in the forthcoming Africa/Oceania qualifiers holding between March 13 and 19 in Morocco.

Oborududu, who currently ranks number two in the world in the 68kg freestyle wrestling, achieved her latest feat through the points she acquired in the ranking series tournaments in Rome and Algeria. She hopes any offer of assistance would help her gain qualification to represent the country in Japan.

Speaking to The Guardian yesterday, Oborududu, who is still basking in the euphoria of her latest ranking as released by the United World Wrestling (UWW), says all she thinks of now is how to be part of the Olympics in Japan.“I feel so excited being ranked number two in the world, but I still have to go for the Olympic qualification tournament in Morocco. And I am hoping to do well, especially after being ranked number two by the UWW.

“This ranking has been my highest point in the 2020 and hopefully, I believe what God has started in my life. He will surely perfect it for greater things ahead of me,” she said, while appealing to individuals and corporate bodies to come to help her train well for the Tokyo 2020 qualifiers in Morocco.

“We will be going for the qualification tournament in Morocco and we have about three weeks to go. And If I can train well enough in the camp, that will really be helpful.

“And if God helps me to qualify for the Olympics, then I will need all the assistance I can muscle going into the proper training for the Olympics. But this assistance will much be needed after I must have gained qualification. It is only then I can now start talking about going outside the country for more tournaments in my preparation to achieve success at the Olympics and not training camping in Nigeria,” she stated.