By Kareem Yusuf
The Gateway Tertiary Institutions Games (GATIG) Council chairman, Kehinde Olalekan Adeyemi, believes the forthcoming National Sports Festival scheduled to take place between May 16th and 30th in Abeokuta and other sporting centres in Ogun Sate, would be a good test for student-athletes.
Adeyemi in an interview with journalists averred: “First and foremost, we want to see how many national and Ogun State records that will be broken during the National Sports Festival because if new records are not achieved, then it would mean that Nigeria may not be able to do well at various international competitions like the Commonwealth and Olympic Games in the future.
“We also want to monitor all the student-athletes that would represent their different states, especially Ogun State. We want to know how well they will perform at the biennial national competition so that they can have the opportunity to represent Nigeria at various international competitions like the African, Commonwealth, and Olympic Games.
“Like I said during one of my interviews earlier this year, at the last Paris Olympics games in 2024, the USA presented about 594 athletes for the games, out of which 400 were student-athletes from various American colleges and universities, and they did well in their various sports.
“This highlights the importance of proper training and support for our student-athletes, as well as the need for increased investment in schools’ sports development programs in Nigeria. By fostering a culture of excellence in athletics, we can ensure that our representatives are well-prepared to compete on the world stage.”
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Speaking further, Adeyemi canvassed for the upgrade of sporting facilities in tertiary institutions in order to give the teeming youths the enabling environment to engage actively in sports with the objective of discovering and nurturing the talents from our various campuses across the country.
He continued: “By investing in state-of-the-art facilities and providing adequate training resources, we can create a pipeline of talented athletes who are not only competitive but also serve as role models for future generations.
“This commitment to sports development will ultimately contribute to a healthier, more vibrant society, where young people can thrive both in athletics and academics.”
“Additionally, we expect Ogun State not only host the National Sports Festival effectively but to achieve victory in the competition,” Adeyemi, who doubles as the director of sports at Olabisi Onabanjo University, stated.