Nigerian taekwondo is going beyond Chika Chukuwmerije – Abdulmumin

Could you shed more light on the course you just attended in Korea?Yeah, I attended a coaching course organised by the World Taekwondo Federation in conjunction with Kyung Hee University from November 11 to 24 as a follow up to the one we attended earlier in August.Did you apply to be part of the course […]

Could you shed more light on the course you just attended in Korea?
Yeah, I attended a coaching course organised by the World Taekwondo Federation in conjunction with Kyung Hee University from November 11 to 24 as a follow up to the one we attended earlier in August.
Did you apply to be part of the course or were you selected based on recommendation?
Well, I think it was in recognition of the fact that I have been assisting in grassroots development of taekwondo and also the fact that we went for the youth camp in August. Consequently, the World Taekwondo Federation and the academy deemed it necessary that I should be invited to come and take part. I am not the only Nigerian who attended the coaching course. I went with other Nigerians.
Who are the other Nigerians who attended the course with you?
Incidentally, from Abuja we were four, myself, Mr Anthony Anafulo who is the director of technical for the FCT sports council, Mr. John Victor who is also a coach with NSCDC and Olympian Chika Chukwuwmerije. We also had two members from Lagos, Michael Igboko and Mr Kehinde Salao who is a retired Airforce officer. Six of us went from Nigeria
How did you get sponsorship to attend the coaching course?
Well I wouldn’t call it sponsorship per say but the most important thing is that I made up my mind that I was going to attend and I saved money for it. Moreover, most of the parents whose kids are in my academy supported me as well. And the Kyung Hee University knowing full well that they wanted to help us in development of the sport helped us in accommodation and feeding and other expenses with support from WTF. In fact they made life so wonderful for us. They were so hospitable. It was difficult raising the funds to attend but in the end I went and it was successful. I met so many other people all over the world.
Could you share your experience in Korea with us?
It was a wonderful experience for me. We got exposed to new and amazing intellectual and academic perspectives into taekwondo philosophy , nutrition for taekwondo  players, strategy of sparring, that is fighting, poomsae which is pattern, sparring, demonstration and self defence and taekwondo aerobic which is going to be the future sport, Korean language, Korean culture, first aids and taping and a host of others. Most importantly, we were taught how to read Olympics fights and competitions.
How are you going to utilise this knowledge and experiences that you have acquired?
Definitely it will impact a lot on what I have been trying to achieve especially with the kids. You see my main interest is to see how we are going to create future champions in marshal arts, not only for winning medals but also to create discipline. My vision is to have youths who would be filled to the brim with the full tenets of taekwondo. That is integrity, perseverance, self control and can do it spirit. I am sure with this new training it will help me to mould more future champions for the country, Africa and the rest of the world.
Apart from imparting the knowledge into your academy students, in what other ways do you intend to share the knowledge you have acquired?
Of course we are going to do a lot more than imparting the knowledge into the kids. Already we have a programme for this December where we want to organise a feast for children and some coaches here in Abuja. It will be hosted in Sunnyvalle training ground where we hope to share the knowledge we have acquired with other coaches who did not have the privilege to be in Korea. Even at the just concluded National Youth Games, I am sure the knowledge we acquired was shared greatly.
What would you say was the most memorable moment for you in Korea?
A lot but let me say the encounter with wonderful and erudite professors would linger for a long time in my memory. They came down to our level and shared their knowledge with us. It was not teacher- student kind of thing. It was highly interactive and knowledge was well shared. The second most memorable moment was when I was called upon to collect gifts on behalf of people who are supporting taekwondo in the world. I was shocked when I was chosen and all the course participants from other countries were there congratulating me. It was in recognition of the fact that we have taken our time and resources to assist taekwondo in perpetuating its culture and tenets all over the world. I am very proud and fulfilled.
You just talked about rendering selfless services to the sport using your lean resources. What material reward do you hope to get out of such commitment?
My mind is not so much on what I will get from my contributions and commitment to the sport. Taekwondo is my passion and I am going to do the best I can to support it. Already I have like 300 children between the ages of six to eight in my academy. I also have children between the ages of 11 to 12. They are eager to learn and that has been my motivation. I am hoping with the support of other taekwondo coaches across the country, we shall achieve more. We have relationship with Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, Botswana and Kenya. There are wonderful people from there. Most importantly, the Koreans themselves are always calling to encourage us. So we are going to do a lot more in future.
What can you say is the future of Nigerian taekwondo?
Oh yes, very soon we would produce world champions and we are going to dominate the world soon, both in terms of sports and world peace. You know the dream of all nations that have embraced the sport is to achieve world peace, unity and progress.
Are you therefore assuring Nigerians that soon a capable replacement for Chika Chukwumerije would be found?
For now it seems everything about taekwondo in Nigeria revolves round him.
I think the idea behind it revolving around Chukwumerije is a little bit of misconception and we ourselves are not doing enough to project our contributions to the sport. Of course, Chika is doing tremendously well but some of us are also doing our beat. The media too is not really expanding their scope to see the other talents. For example at the Olympics, there was Isah Adamu from Kano State and Chika from Abuja all representing Nigeria but publicity was focused on Chika. It is Nigerian way but I hope it will be corrected from both sides, the media and individuals. Chika as a young man, our younger brother is doing well but our media and other relevant stakeholders should expand their scope to see and appreciate that there are others who are equally committed to the development of taekwondo in Nigeria. It should not be all about Chika Chukwumerije. Without any doubt he is the poster boy of Nigerian taekwondo but other stars are also coming up and should be encouraged. He is an Olympian who has brought so much honour to the nation but Nigerian taekwondo is going beyond Chika. All of us are making invaluable contributions.