Nigeria Wrestling Federation teams collected medals across Africa and beyond while also sending the country’s biggest-ever squad to a World Wrestling Championships during the first year of Bashir Adewale Adeniyi’s presidency.
Key takeaways
- Nigeria’s women swept all 10 medals on offer at the 2026 African Wrestling Championships in Alexandria.
- The women’s team secured the country’s 15th African title in the category.
- A six-athlete Nigerian squad earned 11 medals at the first West Africa Wrestling Championship in Benin.
- Four Nigerians claimed one silver and two bronze medals at the 2026 UWW Ranking Series in Mongolia.
- Mapsin Elias Mika became Nigeria’s first medallist at the UWW Veterans World Championships.
- Nigeria entered 11 wrestlers for the World Wrestling Championships, its largest delegation to the event.
African success under Adeniyi
Adeniyi, who also serves as Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, was elected without opposition on October 25, 2025, during the federation’s elective congress at Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja. He took over from Daniel Igali and said after his election that wrestling could promote peaceful living among people of different races and cultures.
Nigeria’s female wrestlers won eight gold medals and two silvers at the 2026 African Wrestling Championships in Alexandria, Egypt. Their haul accounted for each of the 10 medals available in the women’s competition and delivered what the federation listed as Nigeria’s 15th continental women’s crown.
President Bola Tinubu congratulated the team publicly, in what the federation described as the first time a serving Nigerian president had paid such a tribute to the country’s wrestlers. On their return, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu welcomed the squad at the National Stadium in Abuja. Referees, technical personnel and sports journalists were also part of the delegation.
At the maiden West Africa Wrestling Championship in Benin, Nigeria took nine golds, one silver and one bronze for an 11-medal return. The travelling party consisted of six wrestlers and eight officials and was headed by the NWF vice president. United World Wrestling development director Deqa Niamkey oversaw sessions for coaches, officials and administrators staged during the championship.
Nigeria added five gold medals and one silver at the Central African Wrestling Championships in Brazzaville, Congo, competing in freestyle, beach wrestling and women’s events. NWF assistant secretary and coach Oyinbrakemi Tangi led the team, while the coaches also underwent technical instruction.
World events and domestic support
In Mongolia, four Nigerian competitors secured one silver and two bronze medals at the 2026 UWW Ranking Series. The federation viewed the competition as an important measuring point in preparation for upcoming World Championships and the Olympic Games.
Former national champion Mapsin Elias Mika won bronze in the 70kg Greco-Roman division at the UWW Veterans World Championships in Jordan. The federation said he was the first Nigerian veteran wrestler to reach the podium at that tournament. Coach Babatunde James, widely known as Tunde King, travelled with the team.
Nigeria also selected 11 athletes for the World Wrestling Championships, a group the federation identified as its largest contingent ever sent to the event.
Within Nigeria, competitors at the 2025 Governor Douye Diri National Wrestling Classics stayed in a games village and received meals at no charge. Cash awards were paid to gold medallists and other podium finishers, while states, clubs, military sides and paramilitary teams received financial support. The federation also stated that it has financed coaching and referee education, as well as overseas exposure.
The NWF said Adeniyi’s leadership has maintained the systems established during Igali’s tenure. It did not reveal how much it spent on the trips it supported.
