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Nigeria’s Teen Cyclist Osarenti Is Pedaling Toward Olympic Greatness
By Prince Adeyemi Shonibare
Annaba, Algeria
August 04, 2025
In the heat of Algeria’s Annaba sun, a slender, fair-complexioned Nigerian teenager named Osarenti mounted her bike at the edge of the velodrome, leaned into the wind, and—with a thunderbolt sprint—wrote her name into Africa’s cycling history.
The 16-year-old, hailing from the red-earth roads of Edo State, clinched gold in the Girls’ Sprint Final at the inaugural African School Sports Championship, a photo-finish victory that sent shockwaves through the African youth sports scene—from the classrooms of Benin City to the grandstands of Annaba. It wasn’t just a win. It was a bold statement of intent.
“I’ve trained every day thinking of this moment,” Osarenti said, wrapped in the Nigerian flag and breathless from her final lap. “Now I’m thinking of the Olympics.”
What the world may be witnessing is the rise of a once-in-a-generation athlete—one whose determination, confidence, and timing align with a reinvigorated national sports movement.
Blazing Tracks from Abeokuta to Annaba
This victory in Algeria is not Osarenti’s first taste of gold. Just a few months earlier, she stunned Nigerian sports fans when she upset Olympic cyclist Ese Ukpeseraye at the 22nd National Sports Festival in Abeokuta, claiming gold in the women’s 200-meter cycling sprint. The moment was dubbed the “passing of the crown,” as the teenager’s backstretch acceleration left no doubt—Nigeria had a new queen of cycling speed.
“She didn’t blink,” said one official after the Abeokuta final. “A teenager beat an Olympian and did it with cold precision.”
Now, in Algeria, on a bigger stage and under heavier pressure, Osarenti has done it again. And this time, the whole continent is watching.
The Girl Behind the Grit
Known among teammates simply as “Osa,” Osarenti comes from humble beginnings in Benin City, where her first bicycle was borrowed and her earliest training track was a dusty school playground. Friends recall her racing buses down the street and coming home with bruises—and victories.
Scouts discovered her during state-level school trials, and by 2023, she was already a standout at the National Youth Games, scooping medals in both time trials and sprints. But it wasn’t just talent that fueled her rise. It was hunger.
“I watch Olympic races on my phone before I sleep,” she said. “I imagine it’s me.”
That imagination has become inspiration—for young girls across Nigeria who now see in Osarenti a reflection of themselves and a roadmap to international greatness.
Nigeria’s New Flag-bearer
Her victory in Annaba wasn’t just a personal triumph. It was a defining moment in Nigeria’s renewed sporting narrative—one driven by policy, planning, and presidential commitment. Osarenti’s gold glistened not only as a symbol of her brilliance, but also of a national shift.
For the first time in years, sports is no longer an afterthought in Nigeria’s budget. Under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the Nigerian Sports Commission has received direct backing to fund athletes’ training, travel, equipment, and welfare.
“Every sport in Nigeria will get the attention it deserves,” says Dr. Sheu Dikko, Director General of the Nigerian Sports Commission. His words are echoed by Mr. Bukola Olopade, the Commission’s Managing Director, who adds, “We are done with excuses. If the president is giving us what we need, when we need them, why should we fail?”
This new approach is already producing results. Coaches are being hired, trained, and paid. Sports federations are being held accountable. And support no longer stops at football.
“Every sport. Every needed attention. That is our new motto.”
Just recently, President Tinubu rewarded the Super Falcons with $100,000 each for the winning players and their officials, including houses at the Renewed Hope Estate and another round of national honors.
What Comes Next
Osarenti is now being lined up for the 2026 African Youth Games, with eyes firmly on Paris 2028 and Los Angeles 2032. The Nigeria Cycling Federation is developing a bespoke training and sponsorship plan for her—one that protects her education while accelerating her performance.
She may soon become Nigeria’s first female Olympic medalist in cycling. But more importantly, she is the face of a future where no talent is wasted and no dream is too big.
The Women Are Leading
From athletics tracks to basketball courts, Nigerian female athletes have been the country’s brightest lights in recent years. The Super Falcons continue to dominate African women’s football and reached the Round of 16 at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, finishing unbeaten in regular time. Tobi Amusan remains Africa’s queen of hurdles, a World Record holder and Commonwealth Games gold medalist.
In boxing, Elizabeth Oshoba and Cynthia Ogunsemilore made headlines at the 2023 African Games, bringing home medals. Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, have just made history by winning their fifth consecutive FIBA AfroBasket Women’s Championship title—defeating Mali 78–64 in the final. The victory marks their seventh overall AfroBasket title and extends their unbeaten run to 29 matches since 2015.
And now, Osarenti has added cycling to that growing list of excellence—proving that Nigerian women are not just participants, but champions.
Time for the Men to Rise Again
While the women have carried the nation on their shoulders in recent years, questions remain about Nigeria’s male athletes—especially in athletics, wrestling, and team sports. The call is growing louder: it’s time for Nigeria’s male stars to reclaim their legacy.
As the women continue to break barriers and bring glory, the challenge is clear: the men must rise again, match the passion, and join in restoring Nigeria’s dominance across every field of play.
Still, Many Rivers to Cross
Despite the successes, there are still many rivers for Nigerian sports to cross. The journey toward greatness has only just begun. It must start with a focus on building and supporting young talents across the country. Talents discovered at the grassroots—like Osarenti, and others uncovered during the NUGA Games, school sports festivals, and community competitions—must never be allowed to go to waste again.
These young stars need more than praise. They need consistent support, training equipment, qualified coaches, proper allowances, and periodical camping programs that test and sharpen their potential.
Just as important, they must be protected from academic neglect and other forms of abuse. Every policy must ensure that athletes are developed holistically—physically, mentally, and educationally.
But this is not a call to the federal government alone. Sports development must begin from the bottom up. It is not the primary assignment of the federal government to scout for talent. That role belongs to local governments and state structures, who must actively search, nurture, and promote athletes long before they enter the national radar.
The federal government’s role is to build on that foundation—by developing elite systems and preparing athletes for international engagements.
If Nigeria is to build a truly sustainable sporting legacy, then we must go back to basics. Back to the streets, the schools, the local clubs. That is where champions like Osarenti are born. And that is where the future must be secured.
From the red sands of Edo to the podiums of Africa, Osarenti is pedaling toward greatness. If this golden era is to endure, it will be on the wheels of rising stars like her—and on the shoulders of those ready to match her fire.
And this time, the world is not just watching. It’s cheering.
More than ₦3 billion was targeted, but about ₦677 million reached the culprits, with recovery and prosecutions underway, reflecting how banks are responding to more sophisticated fraud risks.
Nigeria’s expanding digital banking sector is facing increasingly sophisticated fraud attempts, as financial institutions adapt to faster transactions and broader online services.
A recent case involving First City Monument Bank (FCMB), linked to fraudulent activity detected in December 2025, has drawn attention to how banks are responding to such incidents, with a focus on limiting exposure, recovering funds and working with law enforcement.
According to findings referenced in proceedings before the Lagos State Special Offences Court, the incident involved unauthorised transactions tied to a digital product. Early reports erroneously suggested more than ₦3 billion was lost. Subsequent clarification shows that over ₦3 billion was targeted, ₦2.4 billion was blocked and recovered, while ₦677 million got into the possession of the culprits. This outcome reflects the bank’s cyber security and monitoring capabilities, as well as improved collaboration among regulated financial institutions and with law enforcement agencies. Several suspects and beneficiaries have been apprehended, while recovery and prosecution efforts are ongoing, led by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Proceedings at the Lagos State Special Offences Court have resulted in convictions, including that of a repeat offender, with restitution orders issued. Related matters are also being handled at the Federal High Court in Lagos, where additional suspects are being tried in connection with the scheme. This process is aimed at ensuring that bad actors are identified and permanently blacklisted from the financial system.
Authorities say recovery efforts are continuing as additional funds are traced.
Analysts note that the pace of legal action reflects closer coordination between financial institutions and enforcement agencies in addressing cyber-related financial crime.
The case comes as banks contend with more complex fraud methods, including social engineering and automated exploitation of system processes.
As digital products and platforms expand, so too does the risk associated with cyber-crime and related fraud.
“The scale of digital banking means risks are evolving alongside the systems,” said a Lagos-based financial analyst. “Institutions are now judged by how they manage these events.”
Observers say the sector is moving toward a stronger focus on response and recovery, rather than prevention alone.
This includes improving monitoring capabilities, strengthening transaction controls and enhancing collaboration with regulators and law enforcement. The FCMB case, with limited exposure relative to the amount targeted and ongoing recovery, reflects that shift.
For customers, the primary concern is the safety of their funds. In this case, there has been no indication of losses affecting customer deposits. Maintaining that level of protection remains central to sustaining trust in the financial system.
Nigeria’s financial sector continues to grow, supported by digital innovation and expanding access to banking services.
However, analysts say fraud attempts are likely to persist as systems become more complex and interconnected.
They say institutions will increasingly be judged not only on their ability to prevent incidents, but on how effectively they respond and recover when they occur.
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Ex-APC Deputy Guber flag bearer, Joshua MacIver backs Tinubu, express fears over implosion in Bayelsa APC
….congratulates new State Party Chairman, Warman Ogoriba
APC Deputy Governorship Candidate in the 2023 general elections in Bayelsa State, Great Joshua MacIver has declared his total commitment to the re-election of President Bola Tinubu come 2027, declaring that the Tinubu re-election project is non-negotiable.
Great Joshua MacIver, in his statement titled ” BAYELSA APC CONGRESSES: GOING FORWARD, A CALL TO LOOK INWARDS” and made available to newsmen in Yenagoa, warned APC leaders in the state to look Inward and take note of certain factors which may hinder or cut short our victory.
According to Great Joshua MacIver, such noticeable pitfalls include the imbalance in the united front being put up by the State Governor,Senator Douye Diri among various political blocs in the state.
In the statement issued at the weekend. Great Joshua MacIver stated that “First, before His Excellency, Senator Douye Diri, joined the APC in the state, there were clearly two political blocs that made up the party, with the approximate population ratios of the blocs standing at 95% to 5%.”
“After the entrance of His Excellency, Senator Douye Diri, ONLY THE SMALLER BLOC IS BEING CARRIED ALONG IN THE AFFAIRS OF THE PARTY, leaving the greater percentage to their fate, and this situation has the potential to build anger and dissatisfaction in our dear party.”
” The consequence of this has been the high level defection we have witnessed in the party recently and we believe more may likely follow, if we do not put our house in order.”
” If we do not pull together as a party, we may witness a situation where we will lose key stakeholders, especially after the State and National Assembly Primaries as well the Gubernatorial Primaries.”
“Finally, while it is very clear that we are the party to beat in the 2027 elections and that our loyalty to Mr. President IS NON-NEGOTIABLE, we must make haste to say that we cannot afford to create situations or loopholes in our unity which will be exploited by other political interests in the state. We cannot afford to under-rate anyone.”
“Our core interest remains the re-election of Mr. President, a project to which we have committed our all. We also pledge our total loyalty to the party as we have no alternative to the APC. However, our concern is that we must, as a party, look inwards and ensure that we do not create loopholes that can impede our common goal.”
Great Joshua MacIver, however congratulated the newly elected State Executives of the APC in Bayelsà State led by Hon. Warman Ogoriba, saying their emergence is welcomed at this critical time in our national history.
At least 23 people were killed in a series of suspected suicide bombings, police in Nigeria’s northeastern city of Maiduguri said on Tuesday.
https://www.stanbicibtcbank.com/nigeriabank/personal/products-and-services/all-loans/stanbic-ibtc-mreif-home-loans
More than 100 other people were injured in the blasts that took place on Monday evening in the capital of Nigeria’s restive Borno state.
No group has claimed responsibility for the suspected attacks.
The deadly blasts come after a military post was attacked overnight Sunday to Monday, which authorities blamed on suspected Islamist militants.
This sad incident is coming barely two weeks after Primate Elijah Ayodele, the Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church specifically warned against attacks in some states. He mentioned these states while calling on security operatives to pay close attention to them.
These were his words:
“Another attack is coming up in these following states where the military must watch carefully and intelligently; Kano, Kaduna, Zamfara, Kebbi, Niger, Borno, Kwara and Kogi state. They want to do a deadly attack, it’s preventable but it depends on how they will handle it. I have told you about the danger coming up.”
@primateayodele
Unfortunately, some of our military agencies don’t believe spiritual intelligence can save the country from so much danger hence, their neglect of this prophetic warning but now, it has been fulfilled with the miliary losing credibility by the day while Primate Ayodele continues to gain momentum.
Likewise, At least 26 passengers and crew sustained varying degrees of injuries on Monday following an accident involving the Kaduna–Abuja train, according to the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC).
Opeifa explained that the train departed Rigasa in Kaduna at 7:15 a.m. and was approaching Asham station around 9:16 a.m. when a loud bang was heard after the power car and trailing locomotive collided with one of the passenger coaches.
In July 2025, Primate Ayodele asked nigerians to pray not to see train mishap on the Kaduna-Abuja route.
@primateayodele #nigeriantiktok🇳🇬 #fulfillment #train #abuja #primateayodele
“Let’s pray not to see train mishap in Abuja-Kaduna, Kaduna-Abuja route.”
This has also been fulfilled.
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