Returning Ssekitoleko promises medal at African Games
Ssekitoleko lifts during the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast. He has been sidelined for nearly three years after his Tokyo Olympic woes. PHOTO/INTERNET.
What you need to know:
In the 67kg category, his best lift in snatch was 100kg after failing his first and third attempts. In clean & jerk his best was 120kg after failing twice at 127kg. He totaled 220kg, finishing second behind Devis Katende, who totaled 227kg.
Joshua Cheptegei and Julius Ssekitoleko were Uganda's athletes who arguably attracted most media attention during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 2021, but for contrasting reasons.
Track and field maestro Cheptegei was lauded for adding Olympic gold to his enviable medal harvest while weightlifter Ssekitoleko dominated the news for vanishing from the Olympics Village after learning he was ineligible for the prestigious Games in Tokyo, allegedly looking for the proverbial greener pastures, something he still denies.
“I wasn't disappearing. I just lost my mind after being shocked that I wasn't due for the Olympics after all the hard work," he said.
Vanishing in international cities has been a hobby for Ugandan athletes for decades.
Ssekitoleko was immediately deported and spent nearly a week in police custody "for ashaming his country."
Once a rising star, he was ignored for international duty, until January 15, when he participated in the trials for the African Championships and the African Games in Ismailia, Egypt and Accra Ghana respectively.
"I thank Ultimate Fitness for giving me a job as a trainer and the room to train s an athlete. It really helped me to regain shape and sail through the tide. And I thank God that finally I am back on the national team," he told Daily Monitor after the trials at Ultimate Fitness Gym on Fifth Street Industrial Area.
"I aslo thank the president and all the coaches for accepting my apology.
Ssekitoleko is among the 11-man provisional squad for the African Games in Accra, and vows to make the final list.
"I am still committed to winning a medal for my country and Ghana could be moment," he said.
Ssekitoleko’s dream of lifting at the Olympics is improbable. Paris 2024 Olympics is just months away. But for him it is still thousands of miles away, because during his predicament, he missed the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and many qualifying events for the Paris 2024 including the 2022 World Championships in Bogota, Colombia, the 2023 African Senior Championships in Tunisia, The 2023 World Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the Grand Prix in Doha, Qatar.
His colleagues Davis Niyoyita and new national captain Lydia Nakidde have been participated in those events.
"Surely, I have lost much because the level I had reached was good for my Olympic dream. I had to compete in major events to win qualifying points but now...," he said.
His mother Juliet Nalwadda and his son Jethro Ssekitoleko, Ssekitoleko’s motivation amid disarray, attended the trials.
In the 67kg category, his best lift in snatch was 100kg after failing his first and third attempts. In clean & jerk his best was 120kg after failing twice at 127kg. He totaled 220kg, finishing second behind Devis Katende, who totaled 227kg.
220kg was less 10kg below Ssekitoleko's personal best at the 2021 African Championships. At the African Games due March 8, Ssekitoleko is aiming at 110kg in snatch and 135kg in clean & jerk to total 245kg.
“I j ust need more support from my employers and the federation. And if all goes well, I shall prosper at the African Games and win the medal I have always promised my country.”
RECENT MAJORS
2021 African Championships
Position: 3
Category: 67 kg
Snatch: 100
CI&Jerk: 130
Total: 230
2019 African Junior Championships
Position: 3
Category: 67 kg
Snatch: 95
CI&Jerk: 121
Total: 216
