* Calls for grassroots sports development drive
Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Kogi State Chapter, has bided the State contingent success to this year’s National Sports Festival as they set to compete for medals.
This was made known in a statement jointly signed and issued out to newsmen in the state by the chairman, Bishop Aturu and secretary of the association, Lawal Aliyu, charging the state contingent to imbibe the spirit of sportsmanship as they compete.
According to the statement, the association, stressed that though the state is participating with fewer sports as against the usual, it encouraged the contingent to strive hard to claim medals in the few registered sports.
SWAN further pleaded with the relevant authorities of various sporting sports association heads to invest more in discovering and training athletes for more participation in upcoming national sporting events.
Also, in the statement, the state SWAN association emphasized on the need for massive grassroots sports development drive to discover and nurture future stars for the state.
It further revealed that if the state must do well in national competitions, like Delta, Lagos and, Edo state, they must work hard to register and qualify from zonal competitions to enable them stand the chance of competing for more medals.
The state as disclosed in the statement is blessed with so many talents playing and representing other state due to lack of training facilities in some cases and low motivation from necessary quarters.
The Statement advised State Officials to this year’s festival to ensure that what rightfully belongs to the athletes reaches them so as to boost their morale.
They further applauded his Excellency Governor Yahaya Bello for releasing fund for the festival, while pleading to the state government through the sports ministry to invest more on grassroots sports and the ministry to carryout sporting projects in the state.
