Enku Ekuta achieved her greatest success yet early in 2021 when she qualified for the Tokyo Olympics

True to her name ‘Enku Ewa Ekuta’ which means ‘God will open the way of success’, Enku Ekuta achieved her greatest success yet early in 2021 when she qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, becoming the first Nigerian female judoka to do so in 17 years since the last Nigerian woman, Catherine Ekuta her mother, qualified for and competed at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens! She’s currently the only Nigerian (male or female) to have qualified in Judo for the Tokyo Olympics.

Hailing from a rich bloodline of judokas, Ekuta didn’t need to wait until she was old enough to take a decision on her choice of sport because she literally took her first step at eight months old at a Judo event during the 1998 National Sports Festival in Imo where her parents, Ewa and Catherine, were competing.

Ekuta’s father, Ewa, is a former judoka who excelled at the National League level. He won laurels representing his university at the Nigerian University Games Association (NUGA). Ewa is now a National Institute of Sports (NIS) certified coach and an International Judo Federation (IJF) Referee with experience spanning over 10 years. He is also the current Technical Director of the Nigeria Judo Federation.