2025 NYG: Team Edo Dominates Podium Finish

Posted : 01 September 2025

Team Edo stamped their authority in weightlifting at the ongoing 9th National Youth Games in Asaba, Delta State, finishing well ahead of the competition to emerge overall champions.

With an impressive haul of 9 gold, 1 silver, and 2 bronze medals (12 in total), Edo outclassed their rivals. Team Akwa Ibom finished second with 5 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze medals (9 total), while Team Abia followed in third with 3 gold medals. Team Niger secured fourth place with 1 gold and 2 silver medals.

Teams Enugu, Oyo, and the FCT shared fifth position with three silver medals each, Lagos finished eighth with three medals (2 silver, 1 bronze), and Imo claimed ninth spot with 1 silver and 2 bronze medals. Plateau, Delta, and Osun completed the top 12.

Edo’s dominance was most evident in the women’s weight classes, where they swept all nine gold medals on offer. Favour Cornelius (44kg), Esther Amarachi Chijoke (48kg), and Beauty Akpore (53kg) each claimed three gold medals to power Edo to the top.

In the men’s division, Akwa Ibom demonstrated their strength, winning five of the nine gold medals available. Destiny Okon Bassey (56kg) secured two gold medals, while Goodness Samuel Okon (65kg) grabbed three to highlight their dominance.

Team Abia also impressed, with Vitalis Nnaji Chiemerie sweeping three gold medals in the men’s 60kg category. Niger’s Abdulsalam Kamaldeen claimed gold in the men’s 56kg clean and jerk with a lift of 91kg.

Other standout performances included Oyo’s Fathia Toluwalase Owoyele, who earned three silver medals in the women’s 48kg category, Enugu’s Aguji Michael Chiemerie (65kg), and FCT’s Esther Chidalu Ezenwa (44kg), each taking home three silver medals. Ezenwa’s younger sister, Chinaza Cecilia Ezenwa (Lagos, 53kg), added two silver and one bronze medal, ensuring Lagos featured on the medal table.

For Team Imo, Victory Maduabuchi Iwuoha contributed 1 silver and 2 bronze medals in the men’s 60kg category, while Plateau’s Dach Veirat Dachoaaom secured 1 silver and 1 bronze in the women’s 53kg division. Delta and Osun each claimed five bronze medals through spirited performances from their lifters.

In total, 12 states appeared on the medal table, but Edo’s remarkable clean sweep in the women’s division underlined their supremacy.

At the close of the weightlifting event, President of the Nigeria Weightlifting Federation (NWF), Dr. Ibrahim Abdul Aladi, commended the outstanding performances of the athletes, assuring that newly discovered talents would be given more opportunities to develop and excel in the sport.

Dr. Aladi reaffirmed the Federation’s commitment to building a strong pool of weightlifters capable of representing Nigeria at both national and international levels.

Also speaking, NWF Technical Official Sefiya Onubaye Ahuozia praised the quality of competition at the National Youth Games in Asaba, expressing confidence that, with the level of talent on display, Nigeria’s future in weightlifting remains bright.

2025 NYG: Team Edo Dominates Podium Finish

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