Winning Against the Odds: The Untold Struggles of Female Athletes in OAU

          Israel Bakare & Michael Olawuyi 

Long before the morning sun cuts through the mist over the Obafemi Awolowo University campus, a lone female figure is usually already down on the dirt. For Lucas Victoria, a Part 3 Political Science student, 6:30 a.m. is not just an early hour, it’s the threshold where sweat, ambition, and discipline meet.

Known across campus simply as “Impressive,” Victoria is a quarter-miler, a 400-meter runner, and one of the standout athletes of the OAU Spartans. However, on a campus where female student-athletes routinely face steep uphill battles, her story isn't just about times on a stopwatch. It’s about breaking administrative glass ceilings, dodging potholes on makeshift practice grounds, and proving that speed and leadership can share the same lane.

 The Spark and the Track

Victoria’s journey as a runner began long before she gained admission to Great Ife. In secondary school, she competed without basic facilities, running on bare school grounds without a proper track. Coming to OAU, the sight of a real running track was an immediate magnet.

"I went into sports knowing it was what I loved doing most and doing best," Victoria recalls. "Getting to OAU, I saw an avenue to explore. I saw the track, and I was happy.”

That enthusiasm brought her face-to-face with the Spartans' head coach, Coach Tarzan. Under his strict training schedule, five days a week, starting sharply at 7 a.m. she found both a mentor and a blueprint for personal discipline.

"Our coach is a very committed person," she says. "To build that same attribute in myself, I had to be on the track every morning before 7 a.m."

Her rapid improvement on the track quickly earned her a nickname among peers and supporters: "Victoria Amusan," a nod to Nigeria’s world-record-holding hurdler, Tobi Amusan. For Victoria, the comparison is both humbling and motivating.

"Tobi started small and grew into something big," Victoria added that she never gives up even when the chances are slim. She always believes she is a winner and she never loses with that mindset."

6:30 a.m. Trainings and First-Class Dreams

Balancing the intense demands of varsity athletics with rigorous academic coursework is a constant tight-rope walk. During her Part 1 year, 8 a.m. SER classes threatened to conflict with morning drills. Instead of backing down, Victoria simply adjusted her clock.

"When we had early classes, Coach would tell us to inform him. After we told him, he told us to show up at 6:30 a.m. instead," she laughs. "Omorr, at 7 a.m., it feels like you have not slept! But for the love of sports, I had to keep going."

Coach Tarzan would grant a 15-minute window before class for athletes to change outfits and catch their breath. 

To keep her grades from slipping, Victoria adopted an overnight study schedule on campus. The sacrifices paid off: she earned a First Class GPA in her very first semester.

Meanwhile, the life of a student-athlete in OAU often comes with unseen financial and physical strains. Following her first year, school vacated in July, but the South West University Athletics Championship in Ibadan was scheduled for September. Rather than returning home to relax, Victoria stayed back on campus to train.

When competition time came, the support system was weak. "We contributed our own money for transportation, feeding, and our rent fee in Ibadan for the three-day competition," she explains. 'The competition went fine, but the prize money was far too small for what we put in.'

Cracks in the System

Victoria’s personal journey highlights a broader, systemic issue facing student-athletes at OAU, particularly women: a high lack of grassroot sports infrastructure in halls of residence. 

While observing sports activities around campus hostels, particularly Mozambique Hall, home to most female freshers, Victoria noted that enthusiasm is high, but facilities are severely lacking.

According to Victoria, "Mozambique is where we have most female freshers who are willing to delve into sports, but the environment is did not attracts them. The football field there has a lot of potholes, and the basketball court is the same. They need better fields, like the one at the Post Graduate hall. There isn't enough space, and there are no coaches stationed there to train them."

Without basic, safe infrastructure at the hostel level, many young women who arrive at the university with athletic potential give up before they even start. 

For many young ladies living in female halls, the absence of basic, safe facilities inside or near their residence presents significant barriers including:

Safety & Accessibility of facilities

Having to journey across campus early in the morning or late at night for practice creates safety concerns and logistical strain. 

‘I can not do quick personal training at leisure. Every time I want to train I have to go to the sports complex and sometimes there may be distractions.’ Ezealaoma Goodness, a female Taekwondo athlete shared. 

Discouragement

Seeing cracked courts and pothole-ridden pitches signals a lack of investment in female sports, deterring students before they even start. 

How it holds them back

The absence of these facilities and systems hinders the growth of the athletes. Seyifunmi, a female footballer, highlighted that “lack of it affects the way I am supposed to train,” further explaining that she only trains at the team training. Giving her little space to practice what she has been taught on her own. 

Loss of Talent

 Without basic equipment or accessible coaches at the residential level, potential varsity talent is filtered out in their first year.

Victoria urges the university management to prioritise the rehabilitation of basic sports areas within female hostels, provision of standard gear, and placement of grassroots trainers to cultivate dormant talent.

Rewriting History off the Track

Refusing to let those barriers limit her impact, Victoria has channeled her track discipline into sports administration. She is now set to make history as the first female Director of Sports for the Department of Political Science.

Having served as Secretary to three previous faculty sports directors, handling the bulk of administrative work behind the scenes, she is now contesting to become the first female Director of Sports for the entire Faculty of Social Sciences.

Additionally, as a committee member for the Great Ife Student Union sports team handling welfare and registration, she has officially been put in charge of all female sports affairs for the upcoming tenure.

Her message to young ladies and aspiring student-athletes across campus remains rooted in the resilience that carried her through 6:30 a.m. sessions and self-funded road trips.

"Sports is more than winning trophies; it is about building discipline, resilience, teamwork, and character. Take care of your body, stay focused on your goals, and remember that success comes from the effort you put in when no one is watching. Stay dedicated. Stay humble. Stay hungry.” she concluded.