Nigerian team make history with PyeongChang qualification
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Updated 17/11/2017 at 09:15 GMT
History will be made at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics with the news that Nigeria have qualified their first ever athletes – the first ever African team to contest the bobsleigh.
Nigerian bobsleigh team
Image credit: Eurosport
Nigeria have secured a place at the Games for their women’s bobsleigh team of Seun Adigun, Ngozi Onwumere and Akuoma Omeoga.
The three-person team completed five qualifying races, with the final one coming in Calgary this week, to earn a spot at the PyeongChang Games, which start on February 9.
No Nigerian athlete has ever taken part in a Winter Olympics before, and no African team has ever contested the bobsleigh.
"This is a huge milestone for sports in Nigeria," Adigun told KweseESPN. "Nothing makes me prouder than to know that I can play a small role in creating opportunities for winter sports to take place in Nigeria.
"Our objective now is to be the best representation of Africa that the Winter Olympics have ever witnessed."
No African country has ever won a medal at the Winter Games.
Adigun has prior Olympic experience having competed at the 100m hurdles in London 2012.
Her team launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise $75,000 to help fund their Olympic dream.
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