Former Big Brother Naija housemate, Ozoemena Chukwu, speaks to MOTUNRAYO AKINRUN about his career and other issues
What influenced your decision to become a sports administrator?
When I was about 10 or 11 years old, I knew I was not very good at sports. I had the mentality that if I was not able to fit in at the professional level, it made no point for me to play football or any other sport.
From watching sports with my dad at a young age, I knew there were a lot of administrative positions in sports, not just football alone. With that mindset, I knew I could actually work in those places.
Then, I told myself that if I was not good enough to be a professional, the best thing I could do was to channel my drive and ambition towards the administrative side of it.
When I graduated from the university in Ukraine, I came back to Nigeria and underwent the National Youth Service Corps scheme. One of the best moments of NYSC, for me, was being involved in the sports competition on camp. I coached my platoon (team members), and we won the tournament.
My Master’s degree was in Business and Financial Management from Riga Technical University, Latvia, and my thesis was on the assessment of the European football cup. That was because I wanted to understand the financial side of football and other sports.
I scored 9/10 in the thesis. My university spoke with the football federation where I was and informed them that they had a student writing his thesis based on football business, finance and management.
I met with the football federation, and they sent my thesis to the Union of European Football Associations. After that, I got my first major job in football. I became a football academy analyst with the UEFA Latvian Football Federation.
I called it my first major job because prior to that, I took up some talent identification courses with the Professional Football Scouts Association in the United Kingdom, where I worked as a scout. I was basically an assistant coach.
My job then was to set up the cones for the training drills for the academy players. At the Latvian Football Federation, I was a football academy analyst. My job description there was to work with the academy directors and ensure that the football philosophies were in line with what the federation wanted for the academy’s career development.
I would go there to watch training sessions, watch some of the previous football games that they had been playing, and watch some live games.
It has been said that administration is the major issue with Nigerian football teams, as players are regularly owed bonuses. What is your take on this, and how can the issue be managed?
I am pretty new to the administrative side of sports, especially when it comes to Nigeria. I really do not know what the factors are that are causing those situations (owed bonuses). I think it all (narrows) down to the federation’s leaders to find practices that would put an end to that type of situation.
In what ways did your participation in Big Brother Naija impact your career?
The biggest blessing I have was the year I was on the show. There was a betting company that was one of the major sponsors (of the show then). Every Friday, there were sports trivia games, and that gave me a great opportunity to show I had so much knowledge and interest in sports. There were questions ranging from football, basketball, tennis, golf, Formula One, boxing, and Ultimate Fighting Championship. My fellow housemates then used to clamour for me to be on their teams. That was big for me.
Do you have any interest in joining the entertainment industry like some of your ex-BBN housemates?
Sports and entertainment are intertwined. I am never bored, and that is because there is always a sports event for me to watch. There is always a form of entertainment for what I do.
For example, I am (an analyst) on a football show where we talk about things that happen around the English premier league. There is a company where I am a minority owner, and we are about to start our own show and quiz people on different football matters. Also, we give people the best idea of how they should set up their fantasy teams.
Who are your biggest cheerleaders?
I would say my family, friends, and the fan base I got from being on the BBN platform. They have helped me a lot in the sense that, regardless of the negativity that anyone brings up, whenever I remember my family, friends, and fan base, that is enough for me to get myself in a positive space.
How do you handle female admirers?
I think this is a tricky question (smiles). I could liken this to when people talk about fame or life in general, when they say, ‘Never let things get in your head’.
It is not something I lay so much emphasis on when it comes to my life. I have always wanted to show a positive example to people who want to be like me. When it comes to that part of my life, I don’t put so much emphasis on it.
How do you unwind?
I play video games. Also, there are a lot of sporting activities to watch. I can watch a football game, two or three times, and I also watch a lot of sports shows.
Then, if I am in the kitchen and one wants to see that I am a great chef, that is when I am listening to Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, and (watching) other sports. That’s pretty much how I unwind.
