Nigeria Storms African Taekwondo Championships With Seven Medal Haul In Bamako

Posted by Chinenye on Wed 03rd Jun, 2026 - tori.ng

Nigeria has enjoyed a strong outing at the African Taekwondo Championships in Mali, with athletes delivering a steady flow of podium finishes that pushed the country’s medal count higher as the competition progressed.

(The Nigerian Taekwondo team. Photo by Punch News)

Nigeria's medal tally at the 2026 African Taekwondo Championships in Bamako, Mali, has risen to seven, comprising three gold medals, one silver, and three bronze at the World Taekwondo-sanctioned G-4 tournament held at the Palais des Sports Salamatou Maiga, according to reports making the rounds online.

The most recent additions came from the Poomsae event on Tuesday. Aderibigbe Faridah secured gold in the Freestyle Poomsae category, and later paired with Salawudeen Abdulafeez to claim silver in the Pair Poomsae event.

Prior to those performances, Haruna Usman had picked up Nigeria's second gold in the Poomsae U-40 Male category, while Para-Taekwondo athlete Mathew Udom had set the tone on Monday with the team's first gold medal in the -57kg Kyorugi category.

Nigeria's three bronze medals were earned by Joel Jordan in the men's +87kg Kyorugi division, Chidinma Okoko in the women's -62kg Kyorugi category who had beaten Mali's Samake Goundo in the quarterfinals before being eliminated at the semifinal stage and Salawudeen Abdulafeez in the Poomsae U-30 Male event.

Morocco put in a dominant showing in the Kyorugi event, sweeping eight gold medals to emerge as overall champions of the competition.

Nigeria Taekwondo Federation President Tayo Popoola had expressed confidence in her team's ability to deliver after their first gold, encouraging the athletes to push for more medals.

The team rose to the occasion and responded to her call, producing performances that would undoubtedly leave the federation president proud.