Following the abysmal performance put up by Anambra state contingents in the ongoing 2016 National youth Games in Ilorin, the state sports enthusiasts have called on government to revive the dying athletic spirit in the state.
They blame the poor performance of the athletes to inappropriate selection and poor administrative decision taken by some directors in Anambra state ministry of youths and sports which resulted to their despair in the tournament.
The sports enthusiasts and athletes called on government and private individuals to invest heavily in sports and as well as ensuring right personnel are commissioned to manage each athletic unit in the bid to achieve the desired result.
Anambra state is known for producing Nigeria’s best in academic, economic and sports personnel, who had represented the country on many local and international functions and brought home medals to the credit of Nigeria.
Neglect and reduced penchant to develop what seems to be a known standard of progression in local and international sports development is currently receiving a drawback, while effort instituted to restructure the dwindling standard of sporting activities is also striked by lack of political will by relevance government agencies to ensure Anambra sports get its desired result in the field of inter-states performances.
Speaking with some table tennis athletes in Awka, they expressed disappointment in the ongoing national youths tournament, blamed the poor performance to what could be described as a gab in bureaucratic structure of the state that encourages non professional in a discipline to handle crucial tournament like the ongoing National Youth Games in Ilorin, on the guise to please a particular Director in the state ministry of sports at the detriment of the state feat in the national games.
They regretted that persons trained for the tournament were later dropped at the command of some personnel in the state ministry of youths and sports, leaving the management of the athletes of Table Tennis to be handled by a football coach.
They urged the government to restructure the state ministry of youths and sports, by ensuring that square pegs are placed in square holes as well as providing conducive environment to grow sporting activities in the state.
For Nigeria to achieve improved grassroots sports development, stakeholders like government and private individuals are encouraged to invest heavily in sports as the net employer of labour , which also serve as the societal framework that reduce youths restiveness and other social vises.
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