Ex-British Fencer Akinyosoye Switches Allegiance to Nigeria

Former British fencer, Folayemi Akinyosoye, has recently pledged his 

allegiance to Nigeria, leaving behind his representation of Great 

Britain.

Akinyosoye, who has been a prominent figure in British junior fencing 

in the past six years, made this decision as fencing gains momentum in 

Nigeria.

In an acceptance letter dated August 1, 2024, and signed by British 

Fencing CEO, Georgina Usher, Akinyosoye was exempted from the usual 

three-year non-compete period.

The letter stated, “In accordance with FIE regulations 1.4.3, this 

letter is from the former federation (Great Britain) accepting the 

transfer request and agreeing to waive the 3-year non-compete period.” 

It further confirmed, “On behalf of British Fencing, I write to confirm 

that British Fencing has no objection to the athlete (Folayemi 

Akinyosoye) changing their FIE nationality and that we waive any 

non-compete period.”

The 20-year-old fencer expressed his excitement about the switch, 

saying, “I would like to represent Nigeria because of my personal 

connections to Nigeria it’s where my family roots originate, so there is 

desire to contribute to the development of the sport which is in its 

early stages stage in  Nigeria. I also hope that representing Nigeria 

might provide a unique platform to promote the Sabre Fencing and inspire 

other young Nigerians to take an interest in the sport.”

He added: “I am very excited to represent Nigeria and cannot wait to 

work with the Nigerian fencing federation to bring my fencing to the 

next level.”

Akinyosoye also shared his optimism about Nigeria’s potential to compete 

in the 2028 Olympic Games.

Adeyinka Samuel, President of the Nigeria Fencing Federation, welcomed 

Akinyosoye’s decision, highlighting the positive impact on the sport’s 

development in Nigeria.

“We are so excited that the work we have done in the last few years is 

yielding positive results with the decision by Akinyosoye to fence for 

Nigeria. This again shows that we are doing something right to improve 

the fortune of the sport, and we hope that we can have a strong team 

that will compete for places at the 2028 Olympic Games. We can’t wait to 

have him represent Nigeria in an international tournament and mix up 

with others already in the team,” Samuel said.