Team Nigeria wins first gold medal at Paris Paralympics as Onyinyechi Mark sets new record

TEAM Nigeria has won its first gold medal at the ongoing Paris Paralympic Games after Onyinyechi Mark made history by breaking the tournament record in the women’s 61kg powerlifting category with a lift of 147kg.

Her performance surpassed the previous record held by fellow Nigerian Lucy Ejike, marking an iconic achievement for Team Nigeria. Mark, 23, defeated China’s Cui Jianjin, who claimed silver with a lift of 140kg and Mexico’s Amelia Perez, who took the bronze medal with a lift of 130kg.

Historically, Team Nigeria has long been a powerhouse in Paralympic powerlifting and athletics. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics the Nigerian contingent returned home with  an impressive 10 medals, of which four of them were gold.

Over the years, Nigerian Paralympic athletes such as Lucy Ejike and Bose Omolayo have set global benchmarks, with Ejike holding multiple world records and gold medals in powerlifting. With this gold, Nigeria now has three medals at the Paris games after Esther Nworgu won silver in the women's 41kg category powerlifting and Eniola Bolaji won a bronze in badminton.