Para Dey Body! Team Nigeria Hits the Ground Running with Three Golds, Three Silvers, Breaking Multiple World Records on Day 1

Team Nigeria enjoyed a dream start to its Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games campaign on Friday, producing a remarkable opening day performance that yielded three gold medals, three silver medals and multiple world records as the nation’s para powerlifters once again underlined Nigeria’s status as a global powerhouse in the sport.

Friday’s medal rush began with Paralympian Roland Ezuruike, who opened Nigeria’s account by claiming a silver medal in the Men’s Lightweight Group A Para Powerlifting event. Ezuruike amassed 153.9 points and came agonisingly close to winning gold after narrowly missing a Commonwealth Games record lift of 190kg on his final attempt.

His podium finish earned him an instant $2,000 cash reward under the National Sports Commission’s enhanced athlete incentive programme, alongside an additional $3,000 performance bonus for his medal-winning feat.

Nigeria’s fortunes soared in the evening session as Esther Nworgu delivered the country’s first gold medal of the Games in emphatic fashion. The Paralympian lifted 123kg to score 119 points and clinched the women’s lightweight title.

In a stunning display of strength, Nworgu broke the Commonwealth Games record before returning less than 10 minutes later to improve her own mark, capping a dominant performance that left the Glasgow crowd in awe.

She earned herself an instant $5,000 cash reward and an additional $5,000 to be credited to her bank account.

The event ended in a memorable Nigerian one-two finish as veteran Esther Oyema claimed the silver medal. Oyema successfully lifted 125kg on her second attempt to finish with 115.5 points, comfortably ahead of England’s Olivia Broome, who settled for bronze.

The evening session belonged to Team Nigeria captain Folashade Oluwafemiayo, who once again demonstrated why she is regarded as the one of the greatest female para powerlifter of her generation.

The reigning Paralympic and Commonwealth champion broke her own world record with a sensational lift of 172kg on her second attempt before astonishing the crowd by returning to lift an incredible 175kg on her final attempt, rewriting the heaviest world record in women’s para powerlifting history for the second time in a single competition. Her remarkable performance earned her 134.8 points and Nigeria’s second gold medal of the Games.

There was more history for Nigeria as Rita Ferdinand also etched her name into the record books. Competing in the women’s up to 79kg category, Ferdinand lifted a stunning 158kg to eclipse the previous world record of 154kg held by China’s Han Miaoyu.

Her record-breaking lift earned her 128.2 points and the silver medal, making it a memorable evening in which two Nigerian athletes established new world records on the same day.

To close the night, Riluwan Idris won Nigeria’s third gold medal, claiming the men’s heavyweight para powerlifting title with a massive 208kg lift. Competing at a body weight of just 86kg, Idris scored 132.8 points to edge England’s Matthew Harding, who lifted 199kg to score 131.0 points and take Silver and Malaysia’s Nicodemus Moses settled for bronze.

With six medals: three gold and three silver secured on the opening day, Team Nigeria immediately announced itself as one of the standout nations of the Glasgow Games.

Away from the powerlifting arena, Nigeria’s men’s 3×3 basketball team continued to make history despite suffering its first defeat of the tournament. Following their historic 21-17 victory over the Cayman Islands, the country’s first-ever Commonwealth Games win in 3×3 basketball.

The Nigerians fell 21-15 to Australia. Ikechukwu Nwamu once again led the scoring with nine points as the team turned its attention to a decisive group-stage clash against New Zealand.

There was disappointment in boxing as Abdulramon Abdulwahab bowed out of the men’s 65kg competition after a unanimous 5-0 points defeat to Uganda’s Nuhu Batte in the Round of 32. Batte’s superior ring control and cleaner combinations proved decisive throughout the three-round contest.

Heading into the rest of the tournament, Team Nigeria will draw inspiration from the Opening Day performance as they journey through 10 days of fierce competition.