The Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh, and the President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina, have both commended D’Tigress for their remarkable performance at the Paris 2024 Olympics, particularly during their quarter-final game against the defending champions, the U.S. women’s basketball team.
On Wednesday night, Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, faced a challenging match and were defeated 74-88 by the U.S. women’s team. Despite the loss, D’Tigress made history as the first African basketball team, male or female, to reach the quarter-finals of the Olympic Games.
The sports minister praised the resilience of Rena Wakama’s D’Tigress team in a post on his X account. “Our athletes are giving their all and making us proud. D’Tigress represented the nation with pride, and there’s no shame in losing to the world’s top-ranked team,” Enoh stated.
“They played with determination and made a significant impact in the quarter-final with a 74-88 score. As the first African team to reach the quarter-finals, they’ve moved up four places in the power rankings. We are proud of them. Their performance has been outstanding.”
Senator Enoh also celebrated Favour Ofili and Uchenna Ogazi for reaching the finals in the women’s 200m race and men’s 400m race, respectively.
“Ese Ukpeseraye was the only African cyclist among 30 competitors at the Olympics. Uchenna Ogazi made history by reaching the men’s 400m finals after 36 years, and Favour Ofili impressed with her strong performance. Let’s continue to support our athletes,” he added.
Adesina, the former Minister of Agriculture, also shared his admiration on his X account, saying, “Nigeria’s women’s basketball team played an excellent quarter-final match at the Olympics against the USA. They made history as the first African team to reach the quarter-finals. They earned global respect and made Nigeria and Africa proud! I am proud of you! Well done, D’Tigress.”
Source: businessday.ng
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