Sports
Unforgettable Start: Gateway Games 2024 Opens with World-Class Ceremony
By Joel Ajayi
Call it a gateway of excellence, a gateway of prosperity, or a symbol of national unity and peace—you won’t be wrong.
It was an evening filled with entertainment, laughter, and celebration as Nigerians came together to embrace the nation’s rich and diverse culture. The 22nd edition of the National Sports Festival, tagged Gateway Games 2024, kicked off on Sunday with what many have described as the most colorful and spectacular opening ceremony in the history of the games.
The event featured vibrant cultural displays showcasing Nigeria’s heritage, with electrifying musical performances that lit up the night. Renowned Nigerian artistes Asa and Davido headlined the ceremony—Asa opened with a soulful performance, while Davido brought the curtain down with an energetic and thrilling finale.
More than 10,000 athletes from the 36 states of the federation, the Federal Capital Territory, and the Invited Junior Athletes Team are competing in 33 sports disciplines. The festival will be held across multiple venues in Abeokuta, including the Alake Sports Centre, the newly renovated MKO Abiola Stadium, Remo Stars Stadium, and Babcock University Sports Complex.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Director General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Hon. Bukola Olopade, welcomed state delegates and assured them of a groundbreaking event that will set new standards in the history of Nigerian sports.
The sporting community, both at home and abroad, was captivated by the world-class spectacle, infused with rich cultural heritage and star-studded performances.
In his address, Hon. Olopade emphasized the core values of the festival—love, focus, discipline, and unity. He noted that the festival is not just a sporting event, but a celebration of integrity and sportsmanship.
“Let medals be won with honor, not by crook,” he urged, stressing the importance of fair play and true athletic spirit.
The DG acknowledged the unwavering support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, whose vision and leadership he credited for the transformation currently taking place in Nigerian sports.
“We are where we are today—revamping, reshaping, and resetting our sports ecosystem—because of Mr. President’s vision. He is the reason the National Sports Festival now has a world-class standard, and we will continue to thank him,” he said.
He also commended the Chairman of the NSC, Mallam Shehu Dikko, for his dedication to the success of the festival.
“Mallam Dikko has shown immense commitment and passion for this project. That spirit must be reflected in every athlete and official involved,” he added.
Hon. Olopade expressed deep appreciation to the Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun, for his exceptional support in mobilizing resources and empowering stakeholders. He described the games as “a festival of modern times,” poised to place Ogun State on both the national and international sports map.
Welcoming participants to the state, Hon. Olopade concluded with emotion: “Welcome to my story—a game I bid for, a journey that has my name written all over it.”
As anticipation builds, Gateway Games 2024 is shaping up to be a landmark edition of the National Sports Festival—celebrating not just athletic excellence, but also unity, passion, and the enduring Nigerian spirit.
Sports
A Triumphant Close to the 22nd National Sports Festival
…As organisers promise another spectacle at closing ceremony on Thursday
Joel Ajayi
After 11 days of a true showcase of sporting competition in multiple Sports by some of the country’s top and even promising athletes, the curtain will finally be drawn on what many have described as one of the best ever organised National Sports festivals, when the closing ceremony is held on Thursday at the MKO Sports Arena in Abeokuta.
Whilst the quality of the Games’ opening ceremony is still getting tongues wagging, the entire sporting family and beyond is now anxiously looking forward to what the closing ceremony will look like.
The last 11 days have showcased Ogun state as a true Sporting hub with potential to even do more, with the quality of the facilities built for the games and the enthusiasm of the people who made the various venues their second home in the last few days.
A big testament to this was the history-making crowd that attended the male football final between Ogun state and Kwara State, which the host won by 4-1.
The MKO stadium was filled to full capacity while the crowd outside watching from the big screen reminds one of how much Sports is truly the soul of our togetherness as a country.
From the Alake Sports centre in Ijeja and the Baptist boys high school, to the Obafemi Awolowo square and the Remo stadium both in Ikenne, to the NYSC orientation camp in Shagamu, and the Ilisan town hall in Ilisan, the festival never lacked spectatorship throughout the games.
The Games actually lived up to the pre-tournament hype as both the National Sports Commission, NSC and the Ogun state Government pulled out every administrative capacity to ensure both athletes, officials and the media have an unforgettable experience.
The Gateway Games 2024 had been full of exciting drama and intrigues amongst the states and athletes which led to different new records being set and some old records being shattered.
The festival has also produced for the country some new exciting young talents especially with the shocking performance of the 38th state, the Invited Junior Athletes ( IJA), where they ended up winning some surprised medals to justify the Commission’s establishment of the initiative.
As the Closing ceremony holds on Thursday, the leadership of the National Sports commission, NSC, expresses its profound gratitude to the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Ogun State Government for making sure millions of Nigerian youths see a renewed brighter future in the country through the National Sports Festival.
The NSC Chairman Mallam Shehu Dilko said ” our overwhelming gratitude goes to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,GCFR, for his personal commitment to the development of Nigerian Sports by giving us every support financially and otherwise for the success of this festival”.
” And the Ogun state Governor, Dapo Abiodun also deserves a huge praise for the feat we all recorded with these games. I can’t thank him enough and posterity will surely remember him for good “.
The NSC Director General who is also the Chairman of the Main organising committee of the games, Hon Bukola Olopade also extended his gratitude to all the technocrats behind the scene that are responsible for the successful organisation of the games.
” From all the members of the Main organising committee to the various sub committees, to members of the local organising committees and all our technical officials in the various sports to the media and our athletes, every success that everyone is talking about concerning these Games belongs to you all”.
” Yes it was not a perfect festival because we acknowledged we had also some challenges but let me assure everyone that some of the challenges are already being worked upon ahead of the next Games holding in Enugu state next year”, he concluded.
The Closing ceremony is expected to bring together top Government functionaries to captain of industries while there will also be the rich cultural display of the state as Ogun state will officially pass the barton of hosting to Enugu state for the 23rd edition of the Games come September 2026.
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