By Abdulrasheed Adelakun
As we are now, there is no money to prosecute the travelling to BENIN
- “I am not happy representing Ogun State” – Paralympian
Ogun State Contingent to the 20th National Sports Festival tagged Edo 2021 may not eventually make it to the games holding BENIN, the capital of Edo State if feelers reaching us from the Sports Ministry is anything to go by.
An official in the Ministry who spoke on condition of anonymity disclosed that as of today, Ogun State athletes are not in camp to prepare adequately for the games, they’ve also not received their camp and training allowances ahead of the national sports fiesta.
The National Sports Festival is an annual national sports meet that brings together athletes from all the states of the federation including the federal capital territory (FCT) to a State.
The Games have over the years produced so many A-list Athletes that have represented the country at the Commonwealth and Olympics Games.
Falilat Ogunkoya, Segun Toriola, Funke Oshonaike, Atanda Musa and a host of others were some of the greats the games had produced in the past.
The official who craved for anonymity said “As we are now, there is no money to prosecute the travelling to BENIN and we can’t go to a place as far as Edo State without at least an average preparation and things to take care of our athletes and officials”.
He disclosed further that according to the rules guiding the sports festival (NSF by-law), any state team that fails to show up at the Festival’s venue will have to cough out a fine of Twenty million Naira (#20 000 000)
Also speaking, one of the Athletes who does not want his name announced corroborated the official’s stance, saying they are still been owed training Allowances and they don’t have up-to-date facilities to prepare adequately for the Games, whereas they are aware of what their colleagues in other states enjoy.
The National Sports Festival-Edo 2020 should have held in March last year but for the break out of the Covid-19 pandemic which necessitated its postponement till 2021.
It would be recalled that Ogun State’s Athletes had to protest to the Governor’s office at Oke-Mosan Abeokuta last year, before they were paid their camp and training allowances, that was just before the festival was postponed
The last Sports Festival was held in Abuja in 2018 after several years of inactivity.
Ogun State last hosted the Games in 2006 during the tenure of former Governor Gbenga Daniel, Ogun State came second on the medal table of the 2006 Games which was adjudged one of the best in the history of the sports festival.
Meanwhile, the state athletes have expressed their frustration at the turn out of events. Africa. Number 1 female badminton player Dorcas Adesokan said she is very sad that they (Athletes) are not encouraged to do well.
“When you know you have support, there is this energy that radiates in you, but when your welfare is being tampered with, you have the mindset that hampers your performance”, she concluded that they would not let the situations affect us if we eventually leave for Benin
Paralympian, Isau Ogunkunle, is more direct and frank when he said if they eventually leave for Benin, it must be known that team Ogun is not adequately prepared and there are no miracles in sports other than preparation.
He opined that though he is not preparing as he should for Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, he believes there could be a positive turn around before August
Ogunkunle did not smile when he said, “I am not happy at all representing Ogun State, nothing makes us happy here, no equipment, no encouragement”.
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