Politics
Nigeria leads Africa at Commonwealth Games with 12 medals
TEAM Nigeria continued its impressive outing at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, adding more medals across weightlifting and athletics to consolidate its position as Africa’s highest-ranked nation as the competition entered its final stretch.
As of Wednesday, July 29, Nigeria had won 12 medals – six gold, four silver and two bronze – placing among the leading countries on the medals table, including the traditional sporting powerhouses such as Australia, England and Canada.
The latest medals came on Tuesday, July 28, when sprinter Kanyinsola Ajayi claimed bronze in the men’s 100 metres, while high jumper Temitope Adeshina secured another bronze in the women’s high jump to boost the country’s athletics campaign.
Ajayi claimed bronze in the men’s 100 metres after clocking 9.90 seconds, becoming the first Nigerian to win a Commonwealth Games medal in the event since Olusoji Fasuba won silver at the 2006 Games in Melbourne.
Adeshina also reached the podium after clearing 1.90 metres to finish third in the women’s high jump, improving significantly on her 10th-place finish at the previous Commonwealth Games.
The performances followed Nigeria’s dominant showing in para powerlifting and weightlifting, where the country won six gold medals and four silver medals within the opening days of the Games.
Nigeria’s gold medalists include Esther Nworgu, Folashade Oluwafemiayo and Riluwan Idris in para powerlifting, while Edidiong Umoafia, Onome Didih and Rafiatu Lawal delivered three additional gold medals in weightlifting.
Silver medals have come through Roland Ezuruike, Esther Oyema and Rita Ferdinand in para powerlifting, alongside Ruth Asuquo Nyong in weightlifting.
The ICIR reports that Nigeria’s para powerlifters set the tone on the opening day of competition, winning six medals, including three golds, with Oluwafemiayo emerging as one of the standout performers after breaking her own world record twice before producing a remarkable 175kg lift to retain her title.
Rita Ferdinand also set a world record during her silver-medal performance.
The country’s weightlifting team maintained the momentum, with Umoafia winning the men’s 71kg event after recording a combined lift of 319kg. Didih claimed gold in the women’s 53kg category with a Commonwealth Games record total of 203kg, while Lawal successfully defended the women’s 58kg title she won at the previous Games.
Athletics has also produced encouraging results for Team Nigeria.
Earlier on Tuesday, quarter-milers Patience Okon-George and Esther Elo Joseph qualified for the women’s 400 metres semi-finals after impressive performances in their respective heats.
Okon-George advanced from Heat Two after clocking 53.27 seconds, while Joseph followed by finishing third in Heat Three in 52.82 seconds.
Nigeria also qualified multiple athletes for the semi-finals of the men’s and women’s 100 metres, with Rosemary Chukwuma, Blessing Ogundiran, Miracle Ezechukwu, Favour Ashe, Kanyinsola Ajayi, and Nicholas Fakorede all progressing through the opening rounds.
Beyond athletics and weightlifting, Team Nigeria has continued competing across several disciplines.
The men’s 3×3 basketball team opened its campaign with a 21–17 victory over the Cayman Islands before suffering defeats to Australia and New Zealand.
In boxing, Patricia Mbata progressed to the women’s 75kg quarterfinals, although Ayomide Foly Hassan exited in the Round of 32 earlier in the competition.
Nigeria’s swimmers also featured in Glasgow, with Collins Ebingha, Abduljabar Adama, Dorcas Oka and Clinton Opute representing the country, though none had advanced to medal contention as of Wednesday.
The women’s 3×3 wheelchair basketball team also remained in contention after reaching the knockout stage, adding to Nigeria’s broad participation across the Games.
The 2026 Commonwealth Games, which began on July 24, have attracted about 3,000 athletes from 74 Commonwealth nations and territories competing across 10 sports.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M
