LAGOS – A long distance athlete, Aderonke Olumudi, on Saturday appealed to the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) to give long distance athletes the same attention like others in short distance events.
Olumudi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the lack of equal attention spurred her to strive to win a laurel in long distance race.
“It has not been easy for me but I took my fate into my hands.
“Long distance athletes should be encouraged and not assumed to be failures before being tested because so far, the country has not proven itself in that aspect.
[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
“In as much as I appreciate the fact that where we have strength like the short distance races should be improved upon, other events in athletics should not be ignored.
“I believe that we have abundant talents who can make the country proud in long distance races,’’ she told NAN on telephone.
She noted that another reason why long distance races were not being encouraged was because of the superiority of countries like Kenya in the sport.
NAN reports that Olumudi won gold medal in the 10km women’s category of the third GE Irving marathon in the U.S. on April 4. (NAN)
you may also like: