Badminton: Oyedipo eyes future Youth Olympic Games
By Femi Atolagbe
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Ondo State born National School Racket Games Badminton double gold medalist, Damilola Oyedipo has expressed the desire to represent Nigeria at the future Youth Olympic Games.
Oyedipo who won gold in single and girls double at the just concluded National School Sports Games held in Lagos told Sporting hope that she will strive hard to make her Olympics dream come true.
She thanked God and her coaches for the feat she achieved at the school games added that her aim was to defend the title at the forthcoming National Youth Games slated for Ilorin in the next couple of weeks.
The elated Fiwasaye Girls Grammar School student said she was happy to have defeated the same opponent she defeated in Ilorin two years ago for the second time at the National Racket School Sports Games.
She promised to continue flying the state’s flag high at any competition, “God on my side, people of the state should expect a good from me and the entire team at forthcoming National Youth Games,” she said.
Coach Tunmise Olalehin who led the Ondo State contingent to the school games revealed that the success recorded at the competition was as result of hard working, fervent prayer and discipline from the coaches to the players.
He added that “we went to the competition with five players and we won four gold medals, which was a morale booster for the athletes for future competitions.”
He said the National school games afforded the opportunity to be more fortified and it would enable us to correct some lapses observed at the competition ahead of the next Youth Games in Ilorin.
According to him, “we are not going to be complacent with the success of the National Racket school games, we will continue with our training to ensure we didn’t give chance to other states to dialog us as the number one junior cadre Badminton in the country.
“We are going to Ilorin with all enthusiasm, because government has started paying athletes as a when due, the era of protest and gate locking which always down the morale of athletes as become things of the past.”