Nigeria’s Suwaibidu Galadima on Tuesday told www.aclsports.com he almost died on national assignment at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Galadima won gold in the men’s T47 100m in Gold Coast, Australia. He recorded a time of 11.04 seconds to win his first prize.
Galadima limped out to collect his gold medal after he seemed to have recovered a bit from that injury he sustained in the Men’s T47 100m.
When the Bauchi born athlete dramatically collapsed after crossing the finish line, he came perilously close to death.
Galadima told aclsports.com that his mind was already on the podium singing the National anthem during the final.
He said, “I stayed down until I got assistance from my fellow athletes from other countries.”
Galadima revealed just how scary that moment was when he fell after the race.
“I fell and I heard the sound you never want to hear. When you have a brush with death, people always say you see a light.”
“It was terrifying. I couldn’t hear the crowd at the stadium, I couldn’t see my fellow contenders. That’s when I knew it was bad,” Galadima said.
He went on to list the questions and fears that went through his mind at that moment, including “Am I about to die?”
He added that the Para athletes need support from the Federal Government as well as the private sector to excel in their various fields.
