Top Nigerian Sporting Moment in 2022: Joys and heartbreaks

Image: Channels Television

The year 2022 has been such an eventful year in Nigerian sports; maybe not be the best, but there are some brilliance and heartbreak moments. 2022 is a World Cup year, and the first time an Arab Nation would be hosting the world cup, the Super Eagles were not there to fly the nation’s flag. The Eagles shattered the hearts of millions who follow the most popular sports in Nigeria after losing the ticket to the West African rivals, Ghana.

Other heartbreak moments include the defeat of our own boxing Champ Anthony Joshua, UFC Kamaru Usman, and Israel Adesanya. The three-combat sports champions all lost their most important fights.

While Joshua, who has Nigerian parents but fights for Britain, failed to reclaim WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles from Ukraine’s Alexander Usyk, Usman surprisingly lost their UFC belts to Leon Edwards and Alex Pereira dethroned Adesanya as King of the Middleweight.

However, the heartbreaks came at different points within the year but the year too brought in some exciting and cheery moments. Nigeria recorded happy moments in athletics this year, making it one of the best years in athletics for the nation.

Let’s dive into the heartbreaks and the best moments of 2022, which will remain fresh in our memories and even in the annals of the country’s history and the world: 

1. Birmingham Victories

The 2022 Commonwealth Games stands today as the best sporting outing for Nigeria in recent years.

Nigerian athletes amassed 35 medals (Gold 12, Silver 9, Bronze 14) to finish 12 and Africa’s best. All 12 gold medallists were women, a feat that elicited wide applause.

One of the highlights of the brilliant Birmingham performance was the 4×100 metres relay. The quartet of Tobi Amusan, Favour Ofili, Rosemary Chukwuma, and Grace Nwokocha produced a stunning run to win the gold and set a new African record with a time of 42.10 seconds.

While Amusan recorded 12.30 seconds in the final of the women’s 100 metres hurdles to set a CWG record, Ese Brume leapt seven metres to set a record in the long jump.  Weightlifters Alice Oluwafemilayo, Adijat Olarinoye, and Rafiatu Lawal also set new CWG records in their respective categories.

2. Amusan’s Golden Moments

This year, her name stands out at different times in hurdles; she is no other but the Hurdles Queen herself, Tobi Amusan. She shone the brightest among Nigeria’s sports personalities this year.

Apart from her Commonwealth Games exploits, she set a world record in the semi-final of the women’s 100 metres hurdle. The 25-year-old ran 12.12 seconds to defeat Kendra Harrison, who had set the world record with a time of 12.20 seconds in 2016, at the London Müller Anniversary Games.

The Nigerian clocked 12.06 seconds to clinch the gold. That was supposed to be the new world record, but the time won’t be recognized due to a tailwind of +2.5 m/s.

Her 2022 performance earned her nomination for the World Female Athlete of the Year, which she lost to Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. She, however, emerged as the best female athlete on the continent, according to the Confederation of African Athletics (CAA).

3. Barcelona Star Asisat Oshoala Shines

Asisat Oshoala did not disappoint this year, and she made brilliant improvements in her game. The FC Barcelona Femene star striker upped her game this year, making 2022 one of her most successful years.

She helped Barcelona retain the league and reached the UEFA Women’s Champions League final, which they lost to Lyon. Her 20 goals haul in the league earned her the Pichichi award in the Spanish Liga F.

The Nigerian striker was also 16th in the 20-person shortlist for the 2022 Women’s Ballon d’Or award, the first African to be nominated for the prize.

Also, Oshoala bagged the African Player of the Year for a record fifth time, adding to her previous wins in 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2019.

4. Omo Ologo, Victor Osimhen dazzle the in Italy

Though missing out on the nation’s cup, Victor Osimhen still managed to have a great year with Napoli, leading the club’s charge to clinch the Serie A with nine goals despite being injured for some period. This season, he has also scored once for the Italian side in the Champions League.

Osimhen’s impressive run in 2022 earned him the Emerging Player of the Year at the 2022 Globe Soccer awards. He beat other promising stars like Barcelona’s duo of Gavi and Pedri, Real Madrid’s Fede Valverde, Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, and Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala, among others, to scoop the award.

5. Flamingos Break World Cup Jinx

The female U-17 team this year, for the first time, had the best run in the FIFA World Cup in 2022. They reached the semi-finals and won bronze after defeating Germany. Before October’s feat in India, the Flamingos have failed to go past the quarter-finals on eight occasions.

6. Highly-Rated Aruna Quadri 

And on an individual note, the table tennis star became the first African to be ranked among the world’s top 10 table tennis players. He reached that feat in May and placed tenth with 1565 points.

Aruna, 34, was in great form at the 2022 World Table Tennis (WTT) Star Contender championship in Qatar in March. There, he became the first African to reach the event’s semi-final, beating two Chinese on the way.

Later in September, Quadri won his second continental title in the men’s singles of the 2022 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) African championship after beating Egypt’s Omar Assar.

7. Super Eagles World Cup disappointment 

In football, it was a heartbreaking moment for Nigerian football fans in March when the Super Eagles played a 1-1 draw with Ghana in Abuja after a barren draw in Kumas.

The draw meant the 2013 African champions did not participate in the Qatar 2022 World Cup as the Black Stars qualified on the away goals rule.

It shattered Nigeria’s hopes of a seventh appearance in eight attempts since debuting at the 1994 World Cup.

8. D’Tigress World Cup Disappointment 

Away from the Super Eagles, Nigeria’s national female basketball team was served a bitter pill in 2022 after they were stopped from featuring in the FIBA World Cup.

The D’Tigress was disqualified after the Federal Government suspended the country from all international competitions and activities for two years.

All photo credit to Channels Television

Source: channelstv.com

#2022 Nigeria Sports