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Badminton sensation Mariam Bolaji’s run in the 2024 Paralympic Games badminton women’s singles SL3 event came to an end after losing to China’s Xiao Zuxian in the semi-final, falling short of the gold medal target, Sports247 reports.
Bolaji, who made history as the first African to reach the semi-final of the event on Sunday when she defeated India’s Mandeep Maur in straight sets, lost in two straight sets to Xiao 21-16, 21-17.
The third-seeded Nigerian fought valiantly to rescue the situation in the second set after losing her first set at the championship to the top-seeded Chinese, but her efforts were insufficient as Xiao did the job in 40 minutes.
This defeat means that Mariam Eniola Bolaji’s dream of honouring her late coach by winning the gold medal will remain a dream, but she still found a way to honour the soul of the coach who taught her through the basics of Para Badminton.
The Nigerian created a scene after she crashed out in the semi-final early on Sunday, an emotional Mariam holding up the portrait photograph of her coach Bello Rafiu Oyebanji, who died in a road accident as Bolaji was preparing for the Tokyo Paralympics in 2021.
The 18-year-old held up Oyebanji’s photo to the crowd at La Chapelle Arena, who roared their support and applauded the gesture.
Moments after leaving the pitch, Bolaji told RFI: “He was my main coach and he was the one who brought me into the game, I am just trying to honour his soul in some way.”
Holding back tears, she added: “That’s what I showed him in his photo.”
Mariam, who competed in the mixed event in Tokyo, said her loss taught her a big lesson and vowed to come back stronger.
“I was weak at the end, but I learned a lot and I will come back stronger,” Bolaji said.
Bolaji will now focus on winning bronze as she will play Kozyna in the bronze medal match on Monday, and a win for her will mean she will be the first African to win a medal in the event.
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