Team Nigeria Arrive Cairo Ahead of 2025 World Karate Championship

Team Nigeria Arrive Cairo Ahead of 2025 World Karate Championship

By Admin 

Team Nigeria who departed Lagos on Monday, by Tuesday would have arrived in Cairo, Egypt, where they will compete at the 2025 World Karate Championship scheduled for November 27–30.

The country will be represented by five athletes who have distinguished themselves through discipline, consistency, and impressive performances in the build-up to the global event.

The squad includes:

Loveth Ngozi Okoro – Kumite -50kg

Godfirst Orie Ukoha-Sampson – Kumite -55kg

Constance Tamunodiepreye Abode – Kumite -61kg

Ujunwa Caroline Nwankwo – Kumite +68kg

Oluwaseun Olorunbe – Male Kata.

The team will be coached by Efezino Akpotu, with Olusegun Abode serving as the head of delegation.

Four of the athletes; Ngozi, Godfirst, Constance, and Ujunwa are established competitors on the domestic karate circuit and regular standouts at the Zainab Saleh International Female Open Karate Championship. The annual event, founded by Karate Federation of Nigeria (KFN) Board Member Hajiya Zainab Saleh, has played a significant role in developing and empowering female karatekas nationwide.

Ahead of the world championship, the KFN Board expressed confidence in the team’s potential to deliver strong performances but appealed to the National Sports Commission (NSC) for urgent financial support. The federation disclosed that it incurred debts to secure the team’s participation and emphasized that the championship falls under the NSC’s mandate.

The KFN urged swift intervention from the Commission to stabilise the federation’s operations and ensure smooth execution of future programmes.

Team Nigeria will now turn their attention to competing against the world’s elite karatekas as the tournament gets underway later this week in Cairo.