Damilola Sholademi

An Abuja archer

Damilola Bartholomew Sholademi came to archery late and by his own effort. In 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, he taught himself to shoot from online videos, because Nigeria had few ranges or coaches. With friends he then co-founded the ARCH Archery Club in Abuja, now one of the country’s leading clubs and the home of the ARCH Archery International Open.

Before archery he spent 16 years in law enforcement. He shoots the compound bow, the discipline that joins the Olympic programme at Los Angeles 2028.

African medals

Within two years of starting he was on the podium at the 2022 African Championships in Pretoria, where Nigeria’s compound archers won two silver medals. A team bronze followed in Nabeul, Tunisia in 2023, where he finished 7th individually. In Abidjan in 2025 he won team silver despite severe sciatica, and at Oran 2026, shooting with borrowed equipment after his bow went missing in transit, he helped the compound men’s team to another silver while serving as team manager of Nigeria’s record-breaking squad.

Selected results

A Nigerian archer in America

In 2023 he moved to Massachusetts to study for a PhD in criminology and justice studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, focusing on terrorism and security. He found a new archery home at weekend ranges in New England, volunteers at a local archery centre, and won gold at the USA Archery Northeast Region Indoor Nationals in both 2024 and 2025. His two daughters now shoot too.

He credits American coaching for his growth and is working towards a Level 3 coaching certification, knowledge he brings back to Nigeria as the federation’s Technical Director.

Why he matters

Sholademi’s story shows how quickly Nigerian archery is growing: a self-taught archer who helped build a club, win African medals and connect Nigerian archers with coaching abroad. His goal, shared by the federation, is to see a Nigerian archer at the Olympic Games for the first time.