The President,Paralympic Committee Nigeria, Sunday Odebode, has stated that he desires to surpass the Tokyo Paralympic Games performance of Team Nigeria.
Odebode called for support and prayers as the team departed Nigeria with 24 athletes on a training tour of Germany.
Team Nigeria will participate in four sports: Badminton, Athletics, Table Tennis and Powerlifting.
Speaking on Monday at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos state while bidding the contingent farewell, Odebode said: “I will not promise certain number of medals because anything can happen in sport, but all that I know is that with the level of our preparation and the determination of our athletes, Nigeria shall excel at the Games.
“The athletes have been in camp for almost three months with serious training and now they are embarking on a foreign training tour which will further boost their morale and knowledge.
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“So with this, I hope and believe we shall come back home with medals.
“I will use this medium to call for support and prayers from all Nigerians for us to excel.
“We need this because there is nothing that does not need prayers.
“We are carrying the burden of all Nigerians and as such we need their support and prayers.”
Onye Lauretta, a shot put thrower, expressed optimism that Team Nigeria will bring smiles to the faces of all Nigerians going by the preparation they went through, but will not say categorically the number of medals to be expected.
In her words: “It is not an easy task to be at the Olympics and win medals (gold), but we all are aspiring to make the country proud and no matter the colour, medal is medal, and we are bringing medals home.”