Chierika Ukogu

Chierika Ukogu in our words

Chierika Ukogu is a Nigerian professional rower; she was born in America on 2nd October 1992 in Northeast Philadelphia, U.S. She’s also known as Coco and attended Stanford University.

Ukogu qualified at the 2015 FISA African Olympic Qualification Regatta to represent Nigeria at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, making her the first Nigerian to achieve such.

Chierika Ukogu made history by being the first Nigerian athlete to compete in the rowing event at the Olympic Games 2016 after she finished on the women’s singles sculls’ final day.

The road to Rio

Born in Philadelphia to a Nigerian family, Chierika “Coco” Ukogu rowed at Stanford University. She chose to represent Nigeria and, at the 2015 FISA African Olympic Qualification Regatta, won a place at the Rio Games, the first Olympic rowing quota in Nigeria’s history. With little funding available, she raised about US$15,000 online to pay for her campaign.

Rio 2016

In the women’s single sculls she placed fifth in her semi-final and finished 20th overall, becoming the first Nigerian to row at the Olympic Games. After Rio she went on to medical school at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.