Ajunwa leads another path

FOR Chioma Ajunwa, the first Nigerian athlete to win an Olympic gold medal, there is life after track and field. After a ban for life by the International Associations of Athletic Federations (IAAF) for using performance enhancing drug, many thought it was over for the golden girl.

But last May, Ajunwa surfaced at the Abuja 2004 National Sports Festival. She came to represent Rivers State in the game of chess.

Shortly after, Ajunwa got married, just when many thought the last had been heard of her. The golden girl has now resurfaced at the University of Lagos, Akoka.

Ajunwa is pursuing a degree programme in Physical and Health Education. The police officer, currently ASP, is doing everything possible to be a golden fish with a hiding place in the University of Lagos.

She wants to keep her head to read her book and graduate without making any fuss. She will not grant interview nor talk about life on campus, she generally wanted to live a low-profile life.

Since her drug ban, Ajunwa has avoided the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos. Save for a brief appearance during the Omeruah's panel, the body set up by the Federal Government to find out why the country failed at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.

Ajunwa's punishment for testing positive to drug has been described by many athletic buffs as being destructive instead of being corrective.

Elsewhere, legends like her are accommodated one way or the other. She could be made the head of a federation counselling unit, to educate the athletes on the bad effect of using performance enhancing drugs.

The current African and national record holder in women long jump (7.12m) and women 100m (10.84 sec), Ajunwa is also the African athlete ever to win a gold medal in the field event at the Olympic Games.

Born in 1971 at Umuihiokwu-Ogbe, Ajunwa is a later-day convert to track and field. She was a footballer and made the Nigerian team to the first edition of the female World Cup.

When she came into athletics, she came in full force.

Apart from winning the nation's first Olympic gold medal, Ajunwa also won many other global honours including a world indoor silver medal at the Paris '97 World Indoor Championship.

On the continent and the national stage, apart from jumping over 7.00m and running inside 11.00 seconds in the 100m, Ajunwa had done a sub-23.00 second in the 200m.
She was an asset to the nation's 4 x 100m quartet while she was on the track.

Kayode Thomas, The Guardian