Olympics: Oborududu wins a silver medal for Nigeria

Nigerian wrestler Blessing Oborududu has won the first silver medal for Nigeria in the ongoing Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Oborududu lost 4-1 to her opponent USA’s Tamyra Mensah-Stock in the final of the women’s freestyle 68kg on Tuesday. She is the first Nigerian wrestler ever to win a silver medal at the Games.

The duo had fought at the 2019 World Championships in Kazakhstan, with the American getting the better of Oborududu on her way to the title.

Oborududu, who is also the first-ever Nigerian to win an Olympics medal in wrestling, qualified for the final after defeating Mongolia’s Soronzonboldyn Battsetseg 7-2 in the semi-finals.

Oborodudu secured a 7-2 win against Soronzobold of Mongolia to reach the final. She will contest the final with America’s Tamyra Mensah-Stock who defeated Ukraine’s Alla Cherkasova in the other semi-final.

Before the win over Soronzobold, Oborodudu had defeated Meerim Zhumanazarova in the quarter-final in the wrestling 68kg event after a hard-fought 3-2 win.

After a cagey opening moment in her semi-final bout against the 2015 World champion Soronzonbold, the energetic Oborududu burst into action, taking down the 31-year-old Mongolian thrice to eventually win the first round 7-0.

Oborodudu won a gold medal at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games in the 68 kg women’s freestyle wrestling event, defeating Canada’s Danielle Lappage.