By Tomiwa Jagunna
Former British fencer Folayemi Akinyosoye has recently pledged his allegiance to Nigeria, leaving behind his representation of Great Britain.
Akinyosoye, who has been a prominent figure in British junior fencing for the past six years, made this decision as fencing gains momentum in Nigeria.
In an acceptance letter dated August 1, 2024, and signed by British Fencing CEO Georgina Usher, Akinyosoye was exempted from the usual three-year non-compete period.
The letter stated, “In accordance with FIE regulations 1.4.3, this letter is from the former federation (Great Britain) accepting the transfer request and agreeing to waive the 3-year non-compete period.”
It further confirmed, “On behalf of British Fencing, I write to confirm that British Fencing has no objection to the athlete (Folayemi Akinyosoye) changing their FIE nationality and that we waive any non-compete period.”
The 20-year-old fencer expressed his excitement about the switch, saying, “I would like to represent Nigeria because of my personal connections to Nigeria it’s where my family roots originate, so there is desire to contribute to the development of the sport which is in its early stages stage in Nigeria. I also hope that representing Nigeria might provide a unique platform to promote the Sabre Fencing and inspire other young Nigerians to take an interest in the sport.”
He added: “I am very excited to represent Nigeria and cannot wait to work with the Nigerian fencing federation to bring my fencing to the next level.”
Akinyosoye also shared his optimism about Nigeria’s potential to compete in the 2028 Olympic Games.
Adeyinka Samuel, President of the Nigeria Fencing Federation, welcomed Akinyosoye’s decision, highlighting the positive impact on the sport’s development in Nigeria.
“We are so excited that the work we have done in the last few years is yielding positive results with the decision by Akinyosoye to fence for Nigeria. This again shows that we are doing something right to improve the fortune of the sport, and we hope that we can have a strong team that will compete for places at the 2028 Olympic Games. We can’t wait to have him represent Nigeria in an international tournament and mix up with others already in the team,” Samuel said.
