Lucy Ogechukwu Ejike

Lucy Ogechukwu Ejike
Personal information
Surname:	Lucy Ogechukwu Ejike
Nationality:	Nigeria
Date of birth:	October 16, 1977
Place of birth:	Enugu
Medal table

Lucy Ogechukwu Ejike , Lucy Ejike for short , (born October 16, 1977 in Enugu , Nigeria ) is a Nigerian Paralympic powerlifter . She represented her country in bench press competitions at five consecutive Paralympics from the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney to the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro . She won medals at all competitions, a total of three gold and two silver medals.

Life and athletic career

Lucy Ogechukwu Ejike was born in Nigeria in 1977. Due to the consequences of polio , which she contracted at the age of one, she uses a wheelchair . She graduated from the University of Nigeria and is the mother of two children.

It was not until shortly before the Summer Paralympics 2000 in Sydney that Ejike began her sporting career and started training as a powerlifter. There she competed in the 44 kg weight class and won the silver medal with a lifted weight of 102.5 kg behind the Egyptian Fatma Omar . At the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens , four years later, she competed again in the same weight class and won the gold medal, breaking the current Paralympic world record in her class twice with a lifting weight of 127.5 kilograms.

At the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing , Ejike increased her weight class by one notch to the 48 kg class and broke the current world record with a lifted weight of 125 kg and increased the weight on her second attempt to 130 kg, which she also lifted and thus won the gold medal. However, when she tried to increase her weight to 137 kilograms, she failed.

After her success in Beijing, Ejike worked to increase her weight class and set another record in a third class. As a result, she met her rival and current record holder of the 56 kg class, Fatma Omar, again at her third Paralympic Games, the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London . In the first round, Ejike was able to beat the Egyptian with a lifting weight of 135 kilograms, but was subsequently unable to increase it and was defeated by Omar, who improved her record to a final lifting weight of 142 kilograms. Omar won the gold and Ejike the silver medal with a gap of 17 kilograms over the bronze medalist Özlem Becerikli from Turkey.

Four years later, Ejike and Omar met again at the Paralympic Games, this time at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro . Here she also appeared as the flag bearer for her home country at the opening. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) had changed the weight classes for both men and women after the Games in London, so that both competed in the 61 kg class. The year before, the Mexican Amalia Perez had lifted a valid world record for the class with a lifting weight of 133 kilograms. Ejike managed to lift 135 kilograms on her first attempt. Omar didn't manage the 133 kilograms in her attempt, but lifted it on her second attempt. Ejike, however, improved to 138 kilograms in the second attempt and reached her second world record on the same day. Omar responded with a lifting weight of 140 kilograms on the third attempt, but Ejike increased it further to 142 kilograms and won the gold medal with her third world record in a row.

supporting documents

1. ↑ ^{a b} Lucy Ejike in the database of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) (English)
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Xiaohuo Cui: For Ejike, records are to break (en) . In: China Daily , September 11, 2008. Retrieved January 8, 2009. 
3. ↑ ^{a b} Nigeria aiming high at Fazaa Powerlifting Championships ( en ) In: paralympic.org . February 21, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
4. ^ Samuel Stevens: Lucy Ejike Smashes World Record Three Times to Win Gold Medal for Nigeris ( en ) In: independent.co.uk . September 12, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
5. ↑ ^{a b c} Results - Women's -61 kg Group A ( en ) In: International Paralympic Committee . September 11, 2016. Accessed February 7, 2020.

Web links

• Lucy Ejike in the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) database