Mariam Eniola Bolaji has etched her name in history as the first African to win a badminton medal at either the Olympic or Paralympic Games.
In the recent women’s Para badminton SL3 competition at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, the 18-year-old Nigerian defeated Oksana Kozyna, a player from Ukraine, and garnered the bronze medal.
She excitedly told the International Paralympic Committee, “I feel so good, so nice. I’ve been breaking records since 2021 and I’m continuing to do that for Africans in Para badminton. I played very well. I really trained for it, and I’m happy that I can make my dreams come true. I wanted the gold medal, but I still thank God for making me make history.”
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Bolaji’s most recent triumph is a full-circle moment since she lost to Kozyna in the group stage in 2021 before winning the championship match. “Since then, I’ve been able to beat her,” she declared.
Given that there were only two African badminton players, the trailblazer expressed that she received unwavering support during the competition.
Bolaji’s late coach Bello Rafiu Oyebanji persuaded her to try badminton, even though she was originally a table tennis player.
However, Oyebanji died in a traffic accident in 2021 when Bolaji was preparing for the postponed Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Despite this, his death has served as a key source of inspiration for Bolaji’s career in subsequent years.
She recounted, “My late coach was the one that brought me through, he trained me and encouraged me. The medal is dedicated to him. He would be very, very happy and would be saying ‘I’m proud of you’. I started Para badminton in 2018. I was playing table tennis and Bello introduced Para badminton to me. It was a new sport in Nigeria and I enjoyed it straight away.”
“I’ve been thinking about these Paralympics since Tokyo 2020. Para badminton gives us slots to come to the Paralympics, so my coach was always planning this for me.”
She now hopes that her exploits will inspire a new generation of African athletes to participate in the sport and succeed at the Paralympic level.
For now, though, she will cheer on her Nigerian peers in various competitions before returning home.
While there, she will be treated for a problematic ankle illness that, while uncomfortable, did not interfere with her historic feat.
She explained, “I need to take a break and have a rest because exactly a month before the Paralympics I had an ankle injury.
“I’ve been training and playing with it. Now I need to get treatment for it and come back strong. It’s been very, very painful—but worth it.”
