BREAKING: NIGERIA’S FIRST OLYMPIC MEDALIST NOJIM MAIYEGUN PASSES AWAY
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Nigeria’s first-ever Olympic medalist, Nojim Maiyegun, has passed away.
The news was shared late Monday by an Austria-based acquaintance, Rudolfine Soultan (also known as Funmilayo), through a Facebook post.
Her post read, “My Jimylein (Jimmy) is dead. I can’t say more about this right now because it’s just horrible. By the day after tomorrow, we would have been together for 17 years.”
On August 29, 2023, Maiyegun, who was affectionately called Jimmy, Market Boxer, and Omo Oloja, shared a Facebook post featuring a picture of himself with Soultan, celebrating 16 years together.
Soultan made another post on July 14, 2024, indicating the declining health of the deceased, stating, “Happy birthday, dear Amin. Unfortunately, we celebrate without Jimmy and not much, because he was admitted to the hospital again today. I always go with the rescue and stay with him for a few more hours.”
Born on February 17, 1941, in Lagos State, Maiyegun became Nigeria’s first Olympic medalist by winning bronze in the men’s light middleweight (71kg) category at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.
He also earned a bronze medal at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica, along with several other honors while representing Nigeria.
Maiyegun relocated to Austria in 1971 to further his professional boxing career. His professional career was brief, spanning from 1971 to 1973, during which he fought 16 bouts, winning 12 (including 10 by knockout) and losing four. In 2012, he revealed that he had lost his sight.
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