* Narrates encounters with Gowon, Tejuoso, Beko Ransome-Kuti, Akeem Olajuwon, Peter Rufai

Mrs. Mary Towobola studied official health in Birmingham while Oba  Dapo Tejuoso and Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti were there. She also read sports medicine in Frankfurt, Germany as the first Nigerian to do the course. She was one of the key personalities involved in the setting up and maintenance of the sports medicine arm of Nigeria’s sports over four decades ago.

Mrs. Towobola, now a septuagenarian, still wears her trousers and T-shirts, exercises and swallows drugs especially vitamin  C regularly to keep fit. She remembers American’s Arthur Ashe (who she assisted when he came to Nigeria), Akeem Olajunwon  (The Dream) and  Peter Rufai.
In this  interview, she speaks on juju in sport, why sportsmen die on the field, issues around Sam Okwaraji and relationship with NTA sport reporters. Excerpts:

CAN you give us an insight into your background in nursing?
Well, I went overseas to do my SRN and SCM. After that, I just felt that since my husband, Dr. Towobola, was doing medicine, I should do something complementary. Later, my classmates, Dr. (now Kabiyesi Oba) Tejuoso, Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti and others spoke to me that I should not do any medicine again. So I did official nursing and got my diploma in that before coming home.

From London?
I had all my training in Birmingham. When  I came back, I first worked as official nurse and later general nurse. Later I was informed that they wanted to start a programme in  sports medicine and that they were aware that I had previous education in official nursing. I went for the interview and they picked me. Later, I started work there at Ogunlana Drive Football House which at that time didn’t have drugs.

So, I had to scout for drugs. My duty was to check the sports people. They gave me drugs from the hospitals and I also went to pharmaceutical companies to pick drugs. Our doctor was Dr. Alakija. He was our chairman. We had Dr. Efunkoya and many others... We later had our own sports centre. I was in charge of both Lagos State and the Federal.

Mary Towobola

After the training in Germany I came back to Nigeria and struggled to put the sport centre’s medical centre in shape as regards what I learned abroad. The Kaduna Sports Ministry chairman came down and requested that I should be allowed to work for them for three months. But our secretary said, no! I think he knew the implication, that perhaps I would not come back. We later went for this Pan American Games. The national team used to invite me to join them in any event they had outside the country. When Arthur Ashe came to Nigeria , I was the one who followed him around. When one man came from India to do seven days on the bicycle, I also stayed there to be sure he was okay throughout his stay.

During the first All African Games, I was also there to look after  the sportsmen. Well, when my husband died in 1988 and then I was a principal nursing sister and had spent 10 years on the post with no promotion, and my husband had died and he had a hospital, my in-laws came and asked me to leave and run the place. I had to leave on voluntary retirement. My children were still in secondary school then.

I am a life member of Sports Medicine Association. I still engage in sports and it has given me good health. Whenever I travelled with our sports team, I used to accompany them in my track suit. I used to join them on the field. Every morning they went out for training, I also put on my track suit. There was a country we went and the host officials began to say: “We know there is a lady with you and they told us that the lady is a witch who has come to spread juju on the field.” Then they came to interview me.

I informed them that what they were saying was not true and that I was just a medical personnel. Anyway, during the following training session, they said that I should not follow them. But the Nigerian team won the game. This got the host country angry. They stoned us. I was lucky I had my wig on that day. They stoned me on the head. But I was okay.

What country was that?
It was Tunisia. Yes, Tunisia (laughs)

I was about asking you about the issue of juju being talked about in sports?
Yes, people talk about it. There was a  country we played in Africa and as soon as we got to the field, we were warned not to take a part of the field because it was alleged the other team, the host, had put juju there. They warned the Nigerian team that a cow had been buried somewhere on the field. You know they usually toss the coin to know who takes where or plays first.

The Nigerian team was informed that if they took a particular side when they threw the coin, they would win. They threw the coin, quickly we took the side and we won. The people said it must be true that a cow was buried on the field. I was actually close to some of our footballers. I was very close to a particular goal keeper, Peter Rufai. He is a Catholic and he was always praying with his rosary and he spoke on shunning any form of juju. You know Catholics don’t believe in juju. He was always asking me questions and he was like my son. He is a very nice person. Let me tell you another story.

You know we always had our passport together with the supporters or fans and they used to give us our visas together. There was a time when we got to a country. They called all of us together since our papers were with them. Then we moved there at once. They asked us to move back again. We did. I remember it was in the same Tunisia. They asked us to answer our names one by one.  They discovered that four of us were not called. They asked,” Where are your passports? And one of them answered, “Egbe (spell) carried us to this place.” They said the spell did not work again; they wanted to send them back.

Let us go back to the story of the Indian cyclist that was on his bicycle for seven days and the so-called Indian talisman or juju we used to hear. From your experience, what can you tell us?  

  This happened in the 1970s. It was the 7up Bottling Company that brought him. He was on his bicycle for seven good days. I was with him at the Rowe Park in Yaba. I didn’t stay with him at night but others were with him. I used to return the following morning to meet him there on the bicycle.

When they opened the National Stadium, you were also with the sports men. You saw General Yakubu Gowon at close quarters?

General Gowon was a cool head of state. Whenever he came to us, he related with us just as if he was an ordinary person and he chatted freely with us in his sports wear. He played squash all the time. People were not  scared with him around.

What is the relationship between sports medicine which was your profession and sports generally?
Sports officials appreciate our role very well in sports. They know the importance of examination of sports people and knowing their level of fitness. We had to examine them. I remember we had a case in which somebody died. It was in boxing. You know they have their categories and in one of the categories, the boxer did not show up for examination. Within few minutes of boxing, he slumped and died. They called me and we had post mortem.

It dawned on us that we had a mystery to unravel it. It was later discovered that the guy had eaten eba before the tournament contrary to rules and he escaped examination. There were other cases. They was one at Ikorodu, that one too died. I had to stay during the post mortem to detect what happened.
Anyway, later Dr. Palmer was our radiologist. I used to teach them many things such as diet, how to exercise. Some sportsmen would also try to falsify their age. But they wouldn’t know that we have ways of verifying their ages through dentures or x-ray.

When we discovered such fraudulent claims, they would apologize saying they were sorry. We found some of then were babas (old men). It’s an interesting job. We worked hand in hand we athletes and we had close relationship. Some athletes used to come back to us. For example when Akeem Olajunwon (the Dream of Houston Rockets) came at a time to Nigeria, he remarked that he recognized me as the person that gave them health information and exercises.

Akeem Olajunwon recently was put in a Hall of Fame in USA. How do feel about such an honour to him if you recall how he was in the beginning until he climbed to stardom?

I feel happy, very happy about their successes when I now reflect. For example I am  impressed about what Kanu  is doing for children with heart problems. Akeem too has his own projects. I call them my children. I know Akeem has done a lot for our sportsmen in America. I thank God that these boys have had breakthroughs. The issue of Samuel Okwaraji  who died while playing football.

How do you relate that to the story of the boxers who ate before boxing?

I will tell you some things that do happen in sports. Sometimes, you tell some coaches after you have checked an athlete or footballer that they were not fit to be on the field. But the coaches would sometimes say ‘but that’s my best man.’ You have to advise them. But the sports  man himself may see it as an  opportunity  and will want to shine. Then there will be clashes between the coaches and the medical team. Then the choice will be for the sportsman to choose if he wants to die or get the medal or recognition.

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