Two junior athletes, Amarachi Chijioke and Scholastical Tekumbur, delivered stunning performances at the 22nd National Sports Festival (NSF) in Ogun State, outperforming elite competitors in the 45kg women’s weightlifting event, Modzero Sports reports.
Competing under the Invited Junior Athletes (IJA) banner—referred to as the “38th state”—the duo secured two gold, one silver, and one bronze on Sunday during the opening day of competitions at the NYSC Orientation Camp in Sagamu.
Chijioke dominated the clean and jerk category, lifting 82kg to claim two gold medals, and finishing with a total haul of 146kg to top the podium.
Her teammate Tekumbur clinched the bronze medal in clean and jerk with a 78kg lift, narrowly behind Christina Allorima of Rivers State, who took silver with 81kg.
The IJA program, created by the National Sports Commission, features over 100 teenage athletes from across Nigeria. Designed to foster talent development, it offers young prospects a unique opportunity to compete at a national level across nine different sports.
The weightlifting success of Chijioke and Tekumbur was one of the early highlights as other sports like kung fu, deaf badminton, and badminton also commenced across venues in Ikenne and Abeokuta.
