Itanyi, the queen of firsts, inducted in to WVU Hall of Fame

With her petite size, you can pass by her and don’t know she was the former Africa’s heptathlon champion and current Nigeria’s record holder. She is Patience Itanyi. She was inducted into the sports Hall of Fame of her alma mater, the University of West Virginia (WVU) in the United States of America. She became the second Nigerian to enter the WVU sports Hall of Fame. The first was Joe Okhaku, a soccer player who died in 2001.

Itanyi is the first female track and field athlete to be listed into the WVU achievers’ roaster. Also, she is the third woman to be inducted into the Hall of Fame after Georgeann Wells and Cathy Parson both who played basketball making her the first in athletics.

On the 8^th October, 2011, Itanyi and five others were honoured. Itanyi distinguished herself as an athlete and now a coach in same university. Speaking on phone on the event with a deeply emotional tone, she said: “I feel real happy to be in the Hall of Fame. It’s a big thing here in America. It is quite a thrill, a great recognition and a great honour. I feel that I have been rewarded for something that I love to do. I give thanks to God. Someone paid for me to come to America to study. This was something my parents couldn’t have afforded.

“I feel so honoured going into the Hall of fame. To be included in the same category with famous athletes like Jerry West makes me feel so good. West was a famous basketball player and coach with LA Lakers.”

Asked to undertake a review of how she got to the point of stardom, she obliged: “This is why I tell the kids coming behind that education is the most important thing they can have. If sports presents to you this kind of opportunity you have to take full advantage of it. Get the education while you do your sports. It is good to have options when you are longer active in sports. Sports has a short life span but education will be there for you at all times. Take the advantage that sports provides. If you have education, you can continue with sports at even a higher level. If you can’t, there will be option for you as an educated athlete. I wish that more Nigerians could take to sports.”

ITANYI THE ATHLETE:

Itanyi was a gladiator in the track and field when she ruled her world. She was the first ever female track and field national champion at WVU. She established six schools records (four of which are still standing to date) between 1995 and 1997. In 1998 Itanyi won the African championships in Dakar-Senegal. This was after coming back from injury, which denied her an appearance at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta’ USA.

In 1999, Itanyi narrowly missed the gold at the All Africa Games in Johannesburg. She settled for silver as home girl, Maralize Fouché clinched the gold with 5,631 to Itanyi’s 5,565 points. She came back strong when she qualified for the Olympics in 2000 with her 5,730 points haul in Arles, France (this record remains the Nigerian national record till date). Itanyi became the first WVU female track and field athlete to go to the Olympics.

After Itanyi reached the full cycle of her competitive athletics career she took to coaching and has been helpful in the grooming of young Nigerian athletes most especially those based in the United States of America.

Itanyi recruited for Nigeria US born Nigerian athletes like Toyin Augustus, Seun Adigun, Selim Nurudeen, Jessica Ohajana, Gloria Asumnu and a long list of others. She was the liaison officer for the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) in the USA during the era of Violet Odogwu Nwajei.

ITANYI THE GADFLY COACH:

The non-sense, very frank and outspoken Itanyi is regarded as a gadfly by those in the administration of Nigerian athletics. This was what cost her appearance as a coach in the 2011 All African Games in Maputo-Mozambique.

Responding on that charge, she laughed and added, “This is because of my principle. We must do things the right way. Nigeria was a power house of athletics not only in Africa but even in the world scene. We rubbed shoulders with the rest of the world, we lined up against America, Jamaica, Canada and Britain. But this is not so anymore. This is because we have people who are not well informed on modern management of track and field running it today. They may mean well but they just can’t get it right.

“Nobody thinks of the athlete. In my estimation, every official is there because of the athlete. Without the athletes, there will be no federation and no National Sports Commission (NSC). So why can’t we take the athletes seriously and make them our great ambassadors?

“We’ve had a lot of Nigerians who passed through the American system. America is the athletics capital of the world. We have been here and seen how things are done, but the question is why can’t we take such lessons back to Nigeria?

“Of course, some of us are trying, but you run into people in Nigeria who feel that you are a threat to their existence. They think more of themselves and not the athletes. When you put the athletes first, you may have problems with them. These people are everywhere in our system.”

STUBBORN ITANYI:

Itanyi did not attend the last All Africa Games in Maputo-Mozambique based on what she earlier said were based on her principles. She was listed as a welfare officer. She turned down the offer. She insisted that she should be designated as a coach, not a welfare officer. Many other former Nigerian athletes at home or abroad would have jumped at the offer, at least to be entitled to the allowances that would accrue to them. Not Pat.

Itanyi is highly respected in USA as a coach. She is not accorded 1% of the same recognition in her own country. And yet most of those picked to coach Nigerian teams do not possess the qualification and ability that she has. At a point, she was asked to bring her certificate to show she is a coach which she did but all the other coaches in Maputo were stressed to such scrutiny.

Itanyi said: “It was really funny and I just couldn’t come to terms with it. I’m I a welfare officer? I am a qualified coach. I could be welfare officer when I’m no longer coaching or if I read social work.

“Look at the set up in the camp. There wasn’t a single female coach and we had female athletes in there. As an athlete, I know a lot about what goes on in the camp. We have people coaching but they are not qualified coaches. This is the reason I always speak out and I will continue to speak until things are done the right way. I was told that certain people were glad that I was not in Maputo. This is because they see me as the only coach who can voice out her opinion and condemn some of their ways. It is for the sake of Nigeria and not for my sake,” Itanyi said.

Itanyi’s and Nigeria’s former national coach, Emelia Edet said, “I am really happy for her. She deserves the recognition even if Nigerian officials lack the perception to appreciate what she’s doing for the country. It is sad that while Nigeria spurn their great athletes, they are being honoured and celebrated abroad. That tells you something is wrong with our system. I am really proud of her.”