Opute, Hassan suffer early exits in swimming, boxing
July 25, 2026 1:06 am
By Peter Akinbo
Team Nigeria suffered early exits in swimming and boxing on the opening day of individual events at the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, with Clinton Opute and Ayomide Foly Hassan both falling short of qualification for the next round.
Opute finished sixth in his heat of the men’s 200m individual medley, clocking two minutes 15.40 seconds, a time that was not enough to secure a place in the next stage of the competition.
His appearance nonetheless marked the beginning of Nigeria’s individual events campaign in Glasgow, with several more Nigerian athletes set to compete across various disciplines in the coming days.
In boxing, Hassan was eliminated from the men’s 70kg division following a hard-fought Round of 32 bout against Lesotho’s Refiloe Thai, who claimed a 4-0 victory on points.
Despite a spirited display from the Nigerian, Thai produced a composed and tactical performance to advance to the Round of 16 and continue Lesotho’s challenge in the ring.
The defeat brought Hassan’s campaign in Glasgow to an end, though his effort was seen as reflective of the fighting spirit within Team Nigeria’s boxing squad.
Peter, who has been covering sports for PUNCH for close to two years, focuses on combat sports reporting, special features and human angle stories
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