Nigeria’s women’s wheelchair basketball team has made history as the nation’s first side to qualify for the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.
The squad clinched Africa’s sole qualifying slot after a hard-fought 8-3 victory over South Africa in a high-stakes final held in Angola.
Captain Ijigbamigbe Gbemisola Olubisi rallied her teammates for a stirring comeback after the Nigerians had fallen 7-3 to the same opponents during the group phase.
“As a President I feel very fulfilled that we have been able to write history in Nigeria wheelchair basketball,” said Seyi Johnson, President of the Nigeria Wheelchair Basketball Federation on Thursday.
“Everyone associated with Nigeria Wheelchair basketball presently and even before, have every reason to share in this credit because this is a result of many years of dedication and hardwork,” Persecondnews quotes Johnson as saying.
Johnson hailed the qualification as a landmark success, predicting it will trigger a surge in the popularity and development of wheelchair basketball nationwide.
He credited the National Sports Commission (NSC) for creating the supportive framework that paved the way for the team’s historic performance.
“I must specially thank the leadership of the National Sports Commission under the Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko and the Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade for the kind of leadership direction they brought into Nigerian sports which is making every sport to thrive, regardless of whether they are bigger Sport or not,” he added.
Conversely, the Nigerian men’s wheelchair basketball team fell just short of a double victory, losing 13-8 to South Africa in their respective final.
Persecondnews reports that as the qualifying window closes, Nigeria and South Africa will each represent the continent at the 2026 Commonwealth Games—Nigeria in the women’s category and South Africa in the men’s.
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