THE dismal performance of Nigerian athletes in the concluded Olympic Games in London should not come as a surprise to Nigerians. First, it is a product of the unserious, shoddy preparation that has characterised sports in the country over the past few years. And second, it is yet another manifestation of the rapid degeneration of political, economic and social fabrics of the nation. There can be no short-cut to success, but a complete break from the lackadaisical past, and a purposeful change of attitude to global competitions.By its disastrous flop in London, not only did our representatives disappoint Nigerians, the country lost a golden opportunity to showcase its nationalism through positive branding. The country also lost the chance to reap from the big business resources offered by sports, which many countries are feasting upon. Sports nonetheless remain the fastest and greatest unifying factor in the country. President Goodluck Jonathan should go beyond expressing concern for the decline in sports and hold administrators in that sector accountable for their performance.For 17 agonizing days, Nigerians, at home and in the Diaspora, painfully waited for an Olympic medal to come the way of their darling Team Nigeria. Alas! Nothing of such happened. Those who hold that 'a goal without a plan is only a wish,' make plenty of sense after all. The teams reaped what they sowed.London 2012 proved to be a thorough embarrassment for the 51-man Team Nigeria contingent, complete with a traditionally larger assemblage of officials, that boasted of bringing more laurels than any of the contingents in the past 16 previous participations, dating back to the country's maiden Olympic representation at the 1952 Games in Helsinki, Finland. After expending more than N2 billion of public funds to participate in London, the team could merely equal its feat at the 1952 Games in Helsinki. That was 60 years ago.Nigeria's best showing in London 2012 was a fourth place finish in the Women's 4 x 100 relay, the same feat recorded by the 10-man team to the 1952 Helsinki Games.Nigeria did not earn any Olympic medal in athletics until the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, where Innocent Egbunike-led 4 x 400 metres relay quartet won the bronze. In that particular competition, Peter Konyegwachie won the silver medal in featherweight boxing, to improve on Nojeem Maiyegun's light middle weight boxing bronze medal at the 1964 Games in Tokyo, Japan, and light heavyweight Isaac Ikhuoria's bronze in boxing at the 1972 Munich Games.The country was back to its lethargic and fruitless participation at the 1988 Games in Seoul, South Korea, where its record large contingent could not win any medal, but only made news with its excessive shopping so much that the Air Bus chartered to convey it could not get off the ground until much of the excess luggage was wisely offloaded.There was relative success at the 1992 Games in Barcelona, where the women won a bronze medal in 4 x 100 metres relay; better still, silver medals in men's 4 x 100 metres relay, men's boxing heavyweight (David Izonritei), and boxing heavyweight class (Richard Igbineghu).The country's best-ever showing was at Atlanta 1996 Games, where policewoman Chioma Ajunwa secured Nigeria's first Olympic Gold medal by leaping 7.12 metres in the Long Jump. The Nwankwo Kanu-inspired U-23 National Football Team won football's gold, followed by Falilat Ogunkoya's bronze in the Women's 400 metres, silver in the Women's 4 x 400 relay, bronze in the 200 metres (Mary Onyali), and another bronze in boxing's Super-Heavyweight (Duncan Dokiwari).Sydney 2000 Games recorded a slide with silver (recently upgraded to gold) in the men's 4 x 100 relay, and Ruth Ogbeifo's silver in the 75kg weightlifting class. The slide continued in Athens 2004, where Nigeria could only win a bronze medal each in both the men's 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 relays.In the 2008 Games in Beijing, the country rode on its 'lucky' bronze medal in the women's 4 x 100 relay, after two powerhouse countries were either disqualified or their baton dropped in transit. This was followed by bronze medal finishes in the men's +80KG in Taekwondo (Chika Chukwumerije), Blessing Okagbare's bronze in women's long jump, capped by a painful loss to Argentina in the gold medal match in football.The sum total of the country's medals in 15 expeditions to the Olympic Games (the boycotted 1980 Moscow Games not included) are 3 gold, 8 silver and 12 bronze (total 23 medals) won in only five events ' Athletics (13), Boxing (6), Football (2), Weightlifting (1), and Taekwondo (1). American superstar, Michael Phelps, in three Olympic Games won a total of 22 medals (18 of them gold) in swimming, considered in these parts as 'lesser-known sports.'Before Nigeria goes back to the proverbial drawing board, government should hold the relevant sports officials, including the Minister of Sports, accountable for the wastage of more than N2 billion of tax-payers money.In serious-minded countries, officials facing a similar disgraceful situation would have resigned honourably. In the absence of such voluntary actions, government should sack them as appropriate.'Wars' are nowadays seldom fought on the battlefield between nations, but on the sporting arena.It is no longer acceptable that the 'spirit of the Olympic movement is to take part, and not necessarily to win.' Winning does not hurt. Instead, it lifts the psyche or spirit of a populace. Nigeria should not be an exception. Why would the government invest so much money in the Olympic Games, if not to help the youths to be the best they can be on the international games field' Often, they go from this premise to fend for themselves and their families, in an enterprise, which is no longer strictly amateurish, according to the original dictates of the Olympic movement, but which has turned nearly-completely professional.With sports (particularly football in these parts), being the singular unifying factor that cuts across all Nigerians, government should scrutinise those who (often dubiously) find their way into high offices of sports administration. Perhaps the past sports heroes should be given a chance to proffer solutions to the dearth of sports development.Nigeria needs sweeping changes in sports administration, and a total revolution of sports participation, to be led by the country's president. The time is now, not six months before the next Olympic Games at Rio de Janeiro. There is no running away from School Sports. That is where the biggest success stories begin.Nigerians did not deserve the colossal failure and embarrassment of London 2012. And it must never happen again. Never again!
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