The Secretary of the Nigerian Aquatics Federation (NAqF), Mr. Taiwo Oriss, has expressed optimism that with the increasing number of women swimmers, the country is on the right path.
Oriss who spoke at the just concluded 2025 National Junior Swimming Championship, themed “Swim For Life,” said the essence of the grassroots competition was in line with the directive of the National Sports Commission (NSC) to ensure encouragement of women’s participation in the sport.
He said, “We don’t have as many girls as we wish to have in competitive swimming, but this time around, with what we’re doing, we feel very fulfilled and excited because the girls are coming in and showing interest, ready to take their place in swimming in Nigeria.”
Oriss emphasised the federation’s commitment to nurturing young talents to stardom.
“What we have today is quality talents that we can nurture to stardom. Looking at the records, we have seen a lot of record-breakers at the world swimming championships and even the Olympics, we have seen 13-year-olds breaking records,” he said.
The outstanding federation scribe said NAqF is working hard to produce swimmers who will earn automatic qualification ticket, not wildcard to 2028 Olympic Games.
“We’re trying to enter the Olympics in a better form so that we can take all the opportunities we have the chance to take at the Olympics,” Oriss said
The competition which held between April 22 and 25, 2025 ended with young athletes aged 8-14 showcasing their talents in various categories inside Package B Swimming Complex, MKO Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.
The event featured young athletes representing states, clubs, and academies.
At the end, Ikoyi Club Marlins dominated the medals table with 73 medals out of 198, followed by Lagos with 44 medals. Kano, FCT, and Eben Swimming Club each secured one medal.
The top performers in each category included Oluwatomi Adebayo and Rayan Muhammed from Lagos, who won the highest individual medals in the under-8 boys category.
In the under-11-12 category, Jaden Owen and Majed Semaan of Ikoyi Club led the boys’ medal chart, while Maryam Muhammed of Lagos topped the female chart.
Other notable winners included Joshua Okereke and Tendai Shindznadyz of Ikoyi Club Martins in the under-9-10 boys category, and Imran Adenusi of Ikoyi Club Martins and Daniel Udoh of YY Swim Club in the under-13-14 boys category.
The competition featured teams from various states and academies, including FCT, Lagos state, Kaduna state, Delta state, Edo state, Anambra state, MakoSail Swimming Academy, Laurel Swimming Academy, Danaquaswim Academy, DE_BEBE Swimming Academy, Easy Swim Academy, Swim Dolphin, ICARE Ace Academy, Even Swim Academy, Bokun Aquatics, ALLFOI Swimmers, Swimkay Academy, Just Swim Academy Ltd, Lakeland School Abuja, and Hydroracers.
The National Junior Swimming Championship provides a platform for young athletes to showcase their talents and compete against their peers, and the federation’s efforts to promote swimming are yielding positive results, with more young athletes taking up the sport.
NAqF is equally confident that with continued support and development, Nigerian swimming will achieve great things.