The Minister of Sports Development, John Enoh, has clarified the circumstances that led Nigerian athlete Ese Ukpeseraye to borrow a bicycle from the German team during the ongoing 2024 Paris Olympics.
Ukpeseraye revealed on Thursday via social media platform X that due to short notice, she was unable to secure a bicycle in time for her event, nearly causing her to miss the competition. Fortunately, the German track team stepped in, lending her a bike to compete.
“Due to the short notice of me competing at the Keirin & Sprint, #teamNigeria I had no bicycle to race with on the tracks. In the spirit of sportsmanship, the German team @bunddeutscherradfahr came to my rescue by offering me a bicycle. Thank you,” Ukpeseraye wrote.
Responding to the situation, Minister Enoh explained in a statement, also published on X, that Team Nigeria's participation in the track race was reallocated after another team was disqualified. This unexpected opportunity required special equipment that would typically take months to procure if ordered.
“My attention has been called to a post on social media by Ese Ukpeseraye. After reading the post and some follow-up comments, I swung into action. Ese’s post seems to have been grossly misunderstood perhaps also because it didn’t seem to give proper context to the matter in perspective. It is important that I make some clarifications,” Enoh stated.
The Minister emphasized that the sudden opportunity and the logistical challenges in obtaining the necessary equipment on such short notice led to the extraordinary circumstances where Ukpeseraye had to rely on the generosity of the German team.