Dike Chukwumereije appeals for funds for Anyanacho

As a boy, one of my dreams was to win Gold at the Olympics. This dream was inspired by my elder brother, Kwame, who missed out on the 1992 Barcelona Olympics by a whisker. I think they said he was too young, or something. And he died in a car crash before the next Olympics came round. I thought I would live his dream, but my own talent took me only as far as a Silver at the 2000 National Sports Festival. And there, I let the dream go. But it did not die. My younger brothers – Ucheruaka and Yagazie – took it up, conquering the National and Continental stages. The youngest, Yaga, went on, carrying the over 30 years our father had invested in Taekwondo through his children, to clinch a bronze at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

But that is not what this post is about. This post is about Elizabeth Anyanacho. 6 years ago, she was a gangly teenager at Government Secondary School Lugbe, with no inkling of what Taekwondo was. That was the year Yaga – resolved to turn his own personal pain at not winning a gold at the 2012 Athens Olympics into something positive, and knowing he was past his prime and had to let the dream go – decided to kick it forward. He headhunted a bunch of teenagers from public schools all over the FCT, and took on the challenge of transforming them into elite athletes. He fed them, housed them, kitted them, paid their school fees, taught them life skills – and, above all, trained them. To me, it was – is – nothing short of a miracle. Every time I see what those kids have become in 6 years, I marvel. They who used to slouch, walk tall. Those who saw no future beyond public secondary schools, undergraduates today with a spark in their eyes, and a spring in their steps… But that is not what this post is about.

This post is about Elizabeth Anyanacho. She was one of those teenagers. In 3 years in Yaga’s program, she had become good enough, not just to compete in elite taekwondo competitions, but to win. She won gold at the Dakar and Ghana Opens in 2017. In 2018, she won a silver at the West African University Games, and clinched the gold in the under 67kg category at the National Sports Festival to become the current national champion in that weight. In 2019, she won the Nigerian Opens, and got the bronze at the All-Africa Games. And in 2020, exactly a year ago to this very day, at Rabat Morocco, she qualified for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. For this reason, whenever I see my baby brother, Yaga, I bow in respect to him. Because until I too have successfully reproduced myself, I am in his shadow. But that is not what this post is about.

This post is about Elizabeth Anyanacho. You see all those competitions I just reeled out, all those towns, all those places, all those countries, all those travels? The money came out of Yaga’s pocket. For this was also how he hustled his way from a Taekwondo obsessed undergraduate at FUTO, always training and sneaking out to local competitions, all the way to 3 Olympics. Because, when it comes to sports, Nigeria has a way of waiting till you win to show up. But right now the other ladies Elizabeth will be competing against in Tokyo already have more competitive experience. Right now, they are entering themselves into preparatory tournaments – like the Sophia Opens in Bulgaria on March 6 – 7 (4 of her opponents have registered already), the Turkish Opens on March 10 – 16 (2 of her opponents have registered already) and the Beirut Opens on April 24 – 26 (one of her opponents has registered already). But Elizabeth, cash strapped, is here, hoping to win.

So, I’m asking for help – to raise money to get this young girl to Tokyo as prepared as the funds will allow. With your support – N5000 or more to GTB Acc No: 0567472923 – we can invest a lot more in the preparation and build-up she needs to arrive in Tokyo nearer par with her rivals. I can assure you that every kobo you give to the Chika Chukwumerije Sports Foundation (CCSF) in pursuit of this dream will be ruthlessly used for one purpose.  Because, ultimately, that is what this post is about, a young girl – the second woman in Nigerian history to qualify for the Olympics in the Taekwondo event – and the deep-rooted, time-weathered, sweat-and-blood-encrusted dream she bears. Please, help me live this dream through her, of a talent honed and rooted in this black soil – from here, from here – to conquer the world.

By Dike Chukwumerije

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