•Onyali foresees sports revolution by 2018
Founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD), Aare Afe Babalola, has said the dismal performance of Team Nigeria at the last Rio Olympics and the dwindling fortunes of sports in the country are wake-up calls on the citizenry to rise to the rescue.
Chief Babalola called on all tiers of government and public-spirited individuals “to make it a point of duty to contribute to the funding of sports to improve our standing in continental and world tournaments”.
He spoke in Ado Ekiti yesterday shortly after he endorsed the Nigeria Olympic Fund (NOF), an initiative of former Nigerian internationals, to raise funds to support Nigerian team to Olympics in a bid to discourage a repeat of the frustrations of the just concluded games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Babalola said it was only through such contributions that “we will deliberately turn around our fortunes right in sports and indeed other areas of human endeavour. I must point out that government cannot do it alone. There is need for private participation”.
The ABUAD founder, who assured of support for NOF and donated N10million as part of his contributions to the Fund and success of sports in the country, lauded NOF Executive Director (Technical), Chief Mary Onyali, for the initiative.
Onyali, in an address at the event, praised Babalola for his support to sports development, which she said was the reason former Nigerian internationals overwhelmingly voted the ABUAD founder as Chairman of the Governing Board of the Basic Olympic Opportunity Sports Training (BOOST). The ex-Nigerian sprinter said the Celebrity Endorsement which kicked-off with Babalola’s public identification with the project, had sights on over 10,000 celebrities.
“Whatever monies they (celebrities) give us, we shall take 10 per cent into the National Athlete Welfare
Fund to care for aging former sportsmenand women.
“Thirty per cent goes into NOC Solidarity Fund which sports federations will be able to access based on performance. Fifty per cent goes into the BOOST project. The balance of 10 per cent shall go into our operational account to drive this advocacy project,” Onyali explained.
According to her, Ekiti State, will from January next year enjoy the pilot scheme of the project with six schools in the state selected and the Elite Athletes Programme for Tokyo 2020 will begin in ABUAD.
“It is my prayer that we will have the courage to be the change agent for sports in this nation. We look forward to the changes in the various communities in a short while. Our return to glory as a nation is here.
“We shall bring one million children into sports in four years. We have got the latent talents in this country. We shall recruit and keep the very best coaches, sports scientists and sport medics, referees, umpires, volunteers and all.
“From 2018, there will be youth leagues where these kids will compete at state, zonal and national levels. A new generation of stars will be born, professionally supported and managed to stardom. Our nation will never be the same. Over 27,000 professionals will be expected to work with us on this project to maturity,” Onyali added.
from National Mirror http://ift.tt/2cDbAyd
via IFTTT
