Israel Adesanya and Asisat Oshoala are two of five Nigerians included in ESPN’s list of the greatest African athletes of the 21st century.
Oshoala made the cut as a six-time African women’s player of the year winner, while Adesanya was a former UFC middleweight champion currently striving to reclaim his title.
ESPN recently released a list of African talent who have made significant contributions in various sports.
Oshoala is famous for her remarkable success at club and country levels, as well as her leadership in women’s football in Africa.
Former Super Falcons striker and four-time African Women’s Player of the Year, Perpetua Nkwocha, also made the list, being arguably the greatest Super Falcons player of all time.
Nicknamed ‘The Last Stylebender’, Nigerian-Kiwi fighter Adesanya is widely considered one of the greatest fighters in the history of the UFC middleweight division.
His influence in the mixed martial arts industry exemplifies the excellence and diversity of African athletes.
Also listed is Nigeria’s MMA fighter, Kamaru Usman, who has already established himself as one of the most prominent fighters in the UFC lightweight division.
New York Giants legend Osi Umenyiora also made the list, having recorded tremendous success in the NFL.
Umenyiora spent much of his childhood in Nigeria, and he has continued his post-NFL career in Lagos as a talent developer.
A few eyebrows were raised due to the surprising exclusion of two other legends in Nigerian sports.
ESPN’s list has sparked discussions due to the surprising omissions of Nigerian football legends Jay-Jay Okocha and John Obi Mikel.
Okocha, renowned for his flair and creativity on the field, and Mikel, celebrated for his success with Chelsea FC and the Nigerian national team, have both had illustrious careers.
The complete list of the 25 best African athletes of the 21st century, compiled by ESPN: Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) Athletics, Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) Athletics, Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon) Football, Kirsty Coventry (Zimbabwe) Athletics, Tirunesh Dibaba (Ethiopia) Athletics, Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast) Football, Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) Athletics, Jacques Kallis (South Africa) Cricket, Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria) Football, Mohamed Salah (Egypt) Football, Joel Embiid (Cameroon) Basketball, Siya Kolisi (South Africa) Rugby, Yaya Toure (Ivory Coast) Football, Wayde van Niekerk (South Africa) Athletics, Israel Adesanya (Nigeria) MMA, Ernst van Dyk (South Africa) Cycling, Caster Semenya (South Africa) Athletics, Mary Keitany (Kenya) Athletics, Sadio Mane (Senegal) Football, Perpetua Nkwocha (Nigeria) Football, Chad le Clos (South Africa) Swimming, Ramy Ashour (Egypt), squash, Kamaru Usman (Nigeria) MMA, Osi Umenyiora (Nigeria) NFL, Mwadi Mabika (DR Congo) – Basketball
