The Head Coach of South Africa Wrestling Federation, Nico Coetzee said the African Championships held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State was pretty top class. Coetzee who disclosed this to on Wednesday said the tournament brought out so much talent in Africa.
He told aclsports.com that Nigerians are hospitable, excellent and have shown commitment to the unity of Africa through the hosting of the event.
“Nigeria put up a good show during the hosting of the Africa Wrestling Championships for the first time. I think Nigeria did well, the event was well prepared and the hotel we stayed in was cool. I think it’s pretty much top class” he said.
“The tournament has brought out so much talent. I was saying to some reporters the other day that one of the things this tournament in Nigeria has done for me personally, is that it United Africa in terms of Wrestling”.
“It’s been a wonderful occasion to this climate, you guys are excellent host, very friendly people and it shows the commitment towards uniting Africa with large resources. I’m very proud of it”, Coetzee noted.
He explained that the tournament experienced more wrestlers and high level of competitiveness due to the fact that the Olympics is around the corner.
“I think this year’s competition was a bit tougher than last year because of the Olympics and Youth qualifications. The countries are sending bigger and more experienced teams”, he said.
Meanwhile, Olympic Referee, Charles Villet who hails from South Africa said the Greco-Roman teams have a long way to go. “The Greco-Roman athletes tried their best at the tournament and we as a Federation are giving them a timeline of four to five years, a standard team will be ready” Villet said.
