By Morenike Taire
With just a few weeks to go in the countdown to the so-called greatest show on earth, more women than ever are going to be competing for glory and country in :London this summer. Some women in time past made this happen, and it’s time to celebrate these women who put Nigerian women on the map of global sports.

Violet Odogwu MON

She paved the way for the rest. Last month, Nigeria’s Violet Odogwu-Nwajei (Vice-president) was unanimously returned unopposed to the government of Confederation of African Athletics (CAA) for the fresh mandate that will see them rule the till 2014. Born May 15, 1942 in Asaba-Ase,

Violet Odogwu had the following podium finishes at major championships: 3rd in the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Long Jump. At the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games she finished ninth in the high jump, twelfth in the long jump, and was eliminated in the heats of the 4×110 yards relay (with the non-Olympians Esther Ogbeni, Freda Payne, and Olu Onwuchekwa). At the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Odogwu also finished eighth in the 80 metres hurdles.

Chioma Ajunwa

Born in 1972 in Ahiazu Mbaise Imo State Chioma Ajunwa gave Nigeria her first individual olympic gold medal – that was in the long jump event of the 1996 Atlanta games. The police officer was competing in only her third meet after returning from a curious four-year ban for drugs.

Ajunwa jumped 7.12 metres and clinched the gold. She joined the Nigerian police force in 1999. Joined the female football team Angels in 1990. Played football for awhile. She has won many African Games. African Championships in the years 1989, 1990 and 1998. She formerly played football.

Mary Onyali

Onyali-Omagbemi, 44, is best known for winning bronze medals for the 4×100 metre relay at the 1992 Summer Olympics and the 200 metre race at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Raised by her mother after her father died when she was very young, the talented athlete is the eldest of four children. As such, a lot of responsibility was thrust upon her at an early age.

Onyali-Omagbemi attended St John’s Primary School, Olodi-Apapa, Lagos and was said to have been actively involved in various sports from youth. In secondary school, she narrowed down her interests to track events such as Long jump, High jump and Sprinting.

Her love for sports increased but took a toll on her education, forcing her late mother to make her discontinue participating in them. With no choice but to study hard in order to get back on the field, she focused on her studies, eventually made team captain and represented her school in inter-house sports where she excelled.

After some false starts, her sports career kicked off in 1984 when she competed in Cairo, Egypt where she emerged second in the 200M race. She was later offered free admission into the Texas Southern University, where she met Mr. Tobias Igwe, who became her mentor.

In 1986, she participated in the World Junior Championship in Athens, winning a Silver medal in the 200M race.

Just six years later, in 1982, Mary Onyali and her fellow runners Beatrice Utondu, Faith Idehen, and Christy Opara-Thompson emerged third place in the 4 X 100 relay race at the Olympics.

She quit running almost a decade ago, and now works as a consultant while operating her sportswear manufacturing outfit Yali Yali Enterprises in Houston, Texas.

Perpetua Ijeoma Nkwocha

Born January 3, 1976, she  is a Nigerian female professional footballer, who currently plays for Swedish Damallsvenskan club Sunnanå SK. She is also a member and the captain of the Nigerian Women national football team .

Nkwocha was voted African Women Footballer of the Year in 2004 and 2005 by CAF.

With the Nigeria national team, she has participated in three CAF Women CAF Women’s Championship CAF Women’s Championship”s Championship (2002, 2004, and 2006), winning all three of them. At the 2004 Women Women’s African Football Championship” 2004 Women’s African Football Championship”s African Football Championship, she scored four goals in the final against Cameroon to help her country win the title. She also set a record by scoring nine overall goals during the tournament, and was named the best player of the tournament.[3]

Nkwocha has also participated in the 2003 and 2007 FIFA Women Women’s World Cup”s World Cups and the Olympic tournaments of 2000, 2004, and 2008.

In June 2008, the BBC reported that Nkwocha had announced her plans to retire in two years, and that after doing so she wants to continue to be involved in football by becoming a coach