Nigeria’s medal haul at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow was boosted today with the addition of another gold medal.
The gold medal, which came in for Nigeria from the snatch and clean and jerk events of weightlifting, was decided at about 6pm Nigerian time.
The latest gold medallist is Maryam Usman, who defeated American Samoa’s Ole Opeloge in a contest that went to the wire in the Scotland city of Glasgow.
The 23-year-old Usman registered an overall score of 280 kilogrammes thanks to 125kg in the snatch and 155kg in the clean and jerk. Opeloge finished in second place with 271kg, whilst New Zealand’s Tracey Lambrechs took the bronze with 237kg.
“I feel really excited about winning. I’ve had my mind on gold ever since the very beginning. I believed I would get it and I did,” said a delighted Usman.
There was disappointment for Opeloge as she lost her Commonwealth title, but silver was still a major achievement coming just six months after the birth of her second child.
“I lost the competition on the last lift, my arms were too relaxed. Mistakes happen but I’m still happy,” she said. “I had a baby six months ago and my other child had a birthday yesterday, so I’m happy.”
And Lambrechs had a particularly Scottish celebration in mind after claiming her bronze medal by just one kilogram ahead of Australia’s Deborah Acason in fourth.
“It is amazing; it means the world to me. Training has been off and on, and I left everything I had out there on the bar. I will celebrate with my coaches and probably a good quality glass of whisky,” she said.
