Hamadou Djibo Issaka (born 3 July 1977) is a
Nigerien
The demographic features of Nigeriens, the people of Niger, consist of population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
The largest ethnic groups ...
athlete. A competitive swimmer, Djibo Issaka trained as a
Men's single sculls rower for the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to take a development spot offered to the Nigerien federation by the International Olympic Committee.
2012 Olympics
Djibou Issaka, a gardener and swimming pool attendant, was chosen by Niger to train as a sculler just three months prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics, receiving his first training in competitive rowing in Egypt, then spending two months at the International Rowing Development Centre in Tunisia. He was chosen for a wild card from the IOC Tripartite Commission, adding him to the full pool of otherwise qualified rowers, in a program that seeks to develop sports outside traditional competitors. He trained in the Belgian town of Hazewinkel, prior to the opening of the games.
On 28 July, Djibo Issaka gained widespread press attention for his first Olympic appearance in the 2000 metre single sculls heat, in which he finished last with a time of 8:25.56, almost a minute behind his nearest competitor and almost 1 minute 40 seconds behind the winner,
Mahe Drysdale. The British press gave Djibo Issaka a wave of attention following his first appearance, comparing him with Equiguinean swimmer
Eric "the Eel" Moussambani from Sydney 2000, and giving Djibo Issaka headline nicknames of "Issaka the Otter", "Hamadou the Keel", and the "Sculling Sloth".
'Sculling Sloth' back on water at London Olympics
AP 31 July 2012.
While crowds and the press cheered him, British former Olympic Gold Medal rower Steve Redgrave
Sir Steven Geoffrey Redgrave (born 23 March 1962) is a British retired rower who won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000. He has also won three Commonwealth Games gold medals and nine World Rowing Championships golds ...
criticised Djibo Issaka's inclusion. Despite these comments, the IOC explained Djibo Issaka had not taken the place of any other qualified rower, but was one of a number of Olympians added to additional places created after qualification.
In total, Djibo Issaka rowed in four rounds of the competition, finishing in last position in each race.
See also
* Niger at the 2012 Summer Olympics
References
External links
London 2012: Rower wins the hearts of fans after trailing in last
Telegraph (London). Sunday, 29 July 2012
STEVE DOUGLAS, AP . Sunday, 29 July 2012
Niger rower Hamadou Djibo Issaka is the new Eric The Eel
Mirror (London). Sunday, 29 July 2012
JEUX OLYMPIQUES DE LONDRES 2012 : QUALIFIEE POUR LES 2ND TOUR, LE JUDOKA GOUROUZA ZAKARI EST ELIMINE
Oumarou Moussa, Le Sahel (Niamey). 30 July 2012.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Djibo Issaka, Hamadou
Nigerien male swimmers
Nigerien male rowers
Rowers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Olympic rowers for Niger
1977 births
Gardeners
Sportspeople from Niamey
Living people
21st-century Nigerien people