Nigeria To Become First African Country To Compete At The World Curling Championships

Curling is a sport in which players slide a stone on ice towards a targeted area. It’s typically referred to as “chess on ice”. Some of us got to know about curling for the first time at the 2018 Winter Olympics where, out of the 13 countries that competed, there was none from Africa.

However, that is about to change, as Nigeria’s T.J. Cole and Susana Cole are set to appear at the World Curling Championships this year.

This will make Nigeria the first-ever African country to participate in the championships. According to Vanguard, the country will also get a shot at qualifying for the 2022 Winter Olympics, expanding Africa’s growing presence in that multi-sport event.

Granted, Nigeria has never seen a drop of snow but, like our history-making women’s bobsled team, the curlers aren’t discouraged by this. With the support of the Nigeria Curling Federation (NCF), they’re currently training in a world-class curling facility in Colorado.

Going by their experience and clear passion for the relatively obscure sport, we’ll be rooting for them to do Nigeria proud and secure a spot at the Olympics when the championships kick off in Norway from April 20 to 27.

(Photo: Nigeria Curling Federation)