Rivers Coach Carpets IOC Over Wrestling Ban

Chief coach of Rivers State Wrestling Association, Eli Oyonomunude, has descibed the banning of wrestling from Olympic games as extremely disappointing.

Coach Oyonomunude who made this remark in a telephone interview with Tidesport in Port Harcourt yesterday while reacting on the ban said that the decision of the international Olympic committee executive board to ban wrestling from the games was wrong.

He insisted that the news from the IOC is extremely disappointing and embarrassing to the coaching crew as well as the practitioners, pointing out that wrestling has been in every game since the history of the event.

The Rivers State wrestling coach also told Tidesports that the news of the ban had impacted negatively on the wrestlers in the state.

He however, disclosed that the body incharge of wrestling worldwide had taken necessary steps to register their displeasure over the IOC decision.

“We will be hopeful that IOC may give wrestling another chance to remain part of the games”, Oyonomunude expressed.

He urged wrestlers in the state to remain clam while the issue was being addressed, adding that it was  not individual or state fight but worldwide issue.

It would be recalled that international Olympic Committee Executive board recently announced the banning of wrestling from Olympics games after assessing the performance of all the 26 sports at the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Isaac Nwankwo

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