Says "I can only think of retiring when I am 77 years".
The man is big, very fleshy His tummy is larger-than- life, hanging out like a calabash. He weighs about 120 kilogrammes. His frame is towering, yet he manoeuvres it with the agility of a 15-year-old: But he is 62, with many grand-children. Ordinarily, he is not supposed to engage in very vigorous ac- tivities. But he does. At his age, he is still very much into the Superman business he started some 43 years ago. His name is Uzoma Nwachukwu, though many know him as Killiwe Nwachukwu.
Killiwe is the first strongest man to be produced by Nigeria. For those who know him, his name is synonymous with strength. And even at 62, he is far from retiring from his role as No. 1 strongman. Said he: "I have not started thinking of retiring from this business. I will only think about leaving the profession when I have attained the age of 77 years. Note that I didn't say that's when I'm quitting. It's when there is the possibility. I may quit much, much later than that age."
True, the man is still overflowing with strength. What with his recent perfor- mance on June 5, at the National Theatre in Lagos, on the occasion of the first African Traditional Wrestling Champion- ship, organised by Power Mike Interna- tional Promotions in collaboration with the National Theatre. In his performance, which was a supporting activity to the day's main event, he comprehensively stunned the near-capacity crowd when he effortlessly won a tug-of-war with ten able-bodied men, old enough to be his sons and grandsons. His body-twisting, muscle-flexing and chest expansion and contraction shows were breath taking, at least for a man his age.
His Native Place:
As Nigeria's first superman, Killiwe
Nwachukwu, who hails from Amaeghuazu Ogwa in Mbaitoli Ikeduru Local Government Area, Imo State, started his career when he was in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Then, he was a truck pusher and lived in Mile 2 area of the city. According to him, his entry into the trade was accidental.
The Wunderkind: Killiwe
How He earned the name "KilliWe"
Killiwe recalls that he had a fond boast in the early 40s, "if you talk rubbish, I kill you, kill your wife," for anyone who annoyed him, thus he earned the nick name, "kill me, kill my wife." And each time anybody called him that nick name, he would raise his right hand in acknowledgement. After a while, the nick name was shortened to Killiwe, which has since stuck.
How he beat up 6 people together to stupor:
He also recalls that he once beat up a man and five others single-handedly when, the man tried to fight with him because he owed his wife money for the gari she sold to him. He bagan to realise his enormous strength then. But the turing point came much later. One day, while he was pushing his truck along Abonema Wharf road in Port Harcourt, en-route to the wharf, a Maurice Minor car went past him recklessly, splashing some dirty water on him without stopping. Filled with rage, Killiwe abandoned his truck and sprinted after the car.
Unfortunately for the driver, he was forced to slow down by a traffic jam. As
Killiwe was about to reach the car, it rac- ed off again. But before it could go fur- ther, Killiwe had pounced on the rear bumper, forcing the car to a standstill. Surprised, the driver stopped the engine and came out. After some argument, Killiwe insisted that the driver took him to where he (Killiwe) lived so that he could change into clean clothes, since the one he was putting on had been messed up. But the driver wasn't willing to oblige him. "Instead, he brought out a screw-driver and tried to scare me with it, but I twisted his arm and he quickly agreed to take me home."
Later in the evening of that day, Killiwe laid on his bed relaxing; when a rap sound- ed on the door of his one-room apart- ment. "Come in," he bellowed, and the driver of the Maurice Minor walked in. Killiwe was told that the boss (the owner of the car) wanted to see him. The driver had told his boss how Killiwe stopped his car in motion with his bare hand. But the boss didn't believe him, so he asked the driver to go fetch Killiwe. He promised that if he was able to stop the car right before him, he (Killiwe) should take the car. Killiwe agreed and followed the driver to the boss' home. "When I saw the crowd that had gathered to watch me catch the car, I lost hope and wanted to turn back. A thought told me I couldn't repeat it the second time. But somehow, I managed to hang on," he told journalists. Killiwe also had another problem what he would do with the car if he finally succeeded in stopping it. According to him, "I was too poor that the thought of own- ing the car was like a dream." When the man sensed his mood, he changed the of- fer to 50 pounds.
The task began. The crowd had formed a circle, with Killiwe and the car in the centre, the driver comfortably seated behind the steering, with the ignition on. But for the sound of the running car, there was pin-drop silence. On the boot of the car lay five crisp 10 pound notes. "If only I can stop the car, this money will be mine" he told himself. Killiwe doubled over and held the rear bumper. Then he yelled, "alright go!" The drive engaged the gear and fired." But the car wouldn't move. Killiwe had done it. In seconds the 50 pounds disappeared into his pocket with his left hand, while the right still held
the car in place. For nearly five minutes, the driver fired in vain. And that was it the beginning of his career. The attendant crowd showered him with money in ap- preciation of his effort.
It was after this incident that he started touring the whole of Nigeria, looking for somebody to challenge him. "Not even Dick Tiger or Power Mike could. Everybody was afraid of me," he said. The sport also took him to other countries like Britain, Spain, United States of America, and almost all African countries. It was during one of his trips, to Canada, that he saw and married a Canadian lady who later divorced him during the Nigerian civil war.
Today, the stomach has grown bigger, the muscles flabby, and the tell-tale signs of age are there. But Killiwe Nwachukwu can still pull a crowd; literally, and swears he will do so to the end.
