Japan announces the loss of a Ugandan Olympian

a Ugandan Olympic athleteHe was declared missing after it was found that he was not in the hotel in the Japanese city of Izumisano, which includes the Ugandan delegation, announced a spokesman for the mayor of this city near Osaka (west).

Shortly after noon on Friday, city authorities notified police of the weightlifter’s absence Julius Siketoliko, 20, who did not show up for a daily antibacterial test.

Local authorities said the athlete was last seen by his compatriots shortly before midnight on Friday, warning police not to go into hiding.

Ssekitoleko was part of the first group of nine Ugandan athletes, coaches and managers who arrived in Japan in mid-June, with two non-athletes testing positive for COVID shortly thereafter. The entire group was immediately placed in quarantine.

Uganda Weightlifting Federation president Salim Musuke Senkongo told AFP the player had trained “with great effort” in his first major international competition, but was told this week that he would not be able to compete.

“He was participating in the 61kg class, but we advised him to pass the 67kg test for administrative reasons”, Senkongo said.

“If someone comes to Japan thinking they’re going to compete and gets bad news, they’ll obviously be disappointed,” he added.

Although she has recently competed in the senior category, Sikitoliko has plenty of international experience, having competed in Ivory Coast, Kenya and Egypt and last May she won a bronze medal at the African Championships in Nairobi.

He started training in the gym in Kampala, the capital of the country, when he was only 15 years old and after showing great potential he moved to Kisugu Unified Gym.

Japanese authorities expected strict restrictions on all participants in the Tokyo Games (from July 23 to August 8) at a time when the health crisis in the country has worsened.

Athletes are tested on a daily basis and their trips are limited to their accommodation, training centers and competition facilities.

Almost all competitions will be held behind closed doors, organizers decided last week.