Nigeria Army Taekwondo athlete, Benjamin Okuomose said he hopes to fulfil his dream of representing Nigeria at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Benjamin Okuomose knocked out Nigerian Police Force athlete Ofe Mordicia, in the men’s -87kg final (heavyweight) to retain his title at the recently concluded 11th Korea Ambassador Taekwondo Cup in Abuja.
Okuomose told www.aclsports.com that attending more International Championships starting from the African Championship in Cote d’Ivoire and other qualifiers will give him a better chance of making it to the Olympics.
He promised to train hard and work more on his fitness level in order to be at the same level with his international opponents.
The Nigerian Army Officer said, “My dream is to represent Nigeria at the forthcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games. There is still little time for me to make it to Paris depending on the availability of funds and Nigeria attending ranked International Championships.
“I will train more throughout this year, get better in every ramification and improve on myself drastically. It is my innermost desire for Nigeria to attend the African Championship so that I can make an announcement there. I lost to Ayoub Bassei (Morocco) in the final at the 2022 Africa Taekwondo G-4 championship in Kigali, Rwanda and I hope to reignite the rivalry”.
Benjamin Okuomose said retaining his Korea Ambassador Cup title means he is still a force to reckon with in his weight class in Nigeria.
He said, “I feel excited, great and wonderful to win gold at the 11th Korea Ambassador Cup in Abuja. I won the 10th edition held at the same venue and I am happy to defend the title.
“The Korea Cup will help me check my fitness level and there is an African Championship coming up in Cote d’Ivoire; hopefully Nigeria attends. This will also help Nigeria know its rightful place on the continent”.