Sports
Iyaye Excited With Preparations Ahead Niger Delta Sports Festival
Joel Ajayi
Chairman of the Main Organising Committee of the Niger Delta Sports Festival, Alabo Boma Iyaye, has expressed satisfaction with the level of preparations ahead of the Niger Delta Sports Festival.
He disclosed this yesterday during an inspection tour of hostel facilities and competition venues around Uyo which are being prepared to host the event, the first ever sub-regional multi-sports competition in Nigeria, and an epoch making initiative towards sustaining the supremacy of the region in sports and reviving the sporting fortunes of the nation.
Iyaye who is also the Executive Director, Administration and Finance of the Nigeria Delta Development Commission, sponsors of the event, could not hide his excitement when he was shown round the Dakkada Skills Acquisition Centre pencilled for the accommodation of five of the nine states, as well as competitions in Basketball, Tennis and Volleyball.
Other facilities inspected include the West Itam Sports Centre, Ultra Fit Sports Centre, the Swimming Pool section of the Uyo Township Stadium, which is undergoing renovation, and the Cordelia Connely College. “I am really excited about the facilities and the level of preparations. From what I have seen, I can say that we are ready. What is left is just to dot some Is and cross some Ts. The consultants have done a great job, and it gives me joy.
“I used to think that Edo or Delta would be best qualified to host these games in terms of facilities, because they have recently hosted the National Sports Festivals, but looking at what Akwa Ibom has given to us, I am indeed proud”.
On the benefit of the festival, Iyaye said it is multi-pronged.
“We know that the Niger Delta Development Commission mandate states produce about 70 to 80 percent of Nigeria’s best athletes, but we have also observed the decline in our nation’s sporting fortunes, and as an interventionist agency which has been delivering on various infrastructural needs across the region, we find it necessary to intervene in sports, to provide opportunities for our youths to excel and to show the world that the Niger Delta is not only about oil. This is why the theme of the festival is “Beyond Oil: Harnessing Talents.
“But the festival is not only about talent discovery. It also leads us into intervention in sporting facilities, like we are doing now in Akwa Ibom”.
The Niger Delta Sports Festival, sponsored by the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, holds in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, from April 1 to 8, 2025.
Sports
Abeokuta agog as Nigeria’s Elite Para Athletes gear up for BetKing 3×3 Wheelchair Tournament
Joel Ajayi
The Sporting city of Abeokuta will come alive in a few days time when the highly anticipated BetKing 3×3 wheelchair Basketball tournament begins from April 3 to 7, 2025.
The entire Ijeja neighborhood in Abeokuta is already anticipating the dunking off of the tournament and also gearing up to welcome top sports dignitaries and athletes from across the Country.
Among the top administrators expected at the tournament include the Chairman of the National Sports Commission, NSC, Mallam Shehu Dikko, the Director General of the NSC, Hon. Bukola Olopade and the President of the Nigeria Para-Olympic Committee, Sunday Oyebode.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Elite Athletes and Podium Board, Yusuf Ali , is also expected to grace the Championship.
President of the Nigeria Wheelchair Basketball Federation, Seyi Johnson, emphasized the core essence of the tournament which he says it’s primarily to discover new talent and select players for the National team.
” As a board we are very intentional about having a sustainable pool of talents so that at every time the county will not lack athletes for international competitions”.
” Para Sports have always being Nigeria’s area of strength at major international competitions and there is need to maintain that momentum with regular competitions of this nature”.
” Qualification for the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow is our priority as a board and we know we have a very good chance when we go for the Qualifiers in South Africa later this year”.
” This is why we are not leaving any stone unturned to ensure we have a very good competition with this 3×3 National tournament at the Lake Sports Centre in Ijeja, Abeokuta and we are happy with the kind of support we are getting from the National Sports Commission, NSC”, he concluded.
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