Sports
Dappa wants Sports Institute, Isaka Revamped
A grassroots sports exponent in Rivers State, Prince Iyalla Ibifaa Dappa has called for the resuscitation of the Rivers State Sports Institute, Isaka, as the once impressive institution is now a shadow of itself
According to Dappa, the institute was a haven for blending of academic and sports development in the state and beyond towards nurturing talents for future.
Making the call in a chat with Tidesports yesterday, Dappa, who is also the president of Garden City All Stars Football Club, said that the rot at Isaka should be arrested without further delay.
He explained that the institute which was modeled after the Western sporting philosophy where sports men and women are discovered and natured in line with their sporting interest, and still given commensurate educational opportunities like their peers who are not sports inclined.
The Prince continued that this approach which is more fashionable in Europe and America is aimed at making the youths more relevant in the scheme of things, even when they retire from active sports.
In his words; “The Sports Institute at Isaka is a ground for catching them young, building them up in other to meet with the challenges of the sporting world because the structure is usally designed to brush up the athletes sportswise and educationally, to a level that even when they are done with the physical game, they can still find themselves useful in the society, sometimes as sports administrators.
Dappa further maintained that sporting institutions in the mould of Isaka Sports Institute should be established in all the local government headquarters in the state and beyond, adding that the approach if adopted would give ample opportunities to talented youths in the rural areas, who may have so much to offer the father land, but are usually deniel the chance due to lack of facilities.
He also reiterated that the Rivers youths are expected to perform well in such sprts like wrestling and swimming. He stated that these sports are part of the Rivers culture, and noted that the establishment of more sports complex and the resuscitating of the Isaka Sports Institute would bring life to the core traditional sports in the state.
He thus added that the poor performance in the areas of swimming and wrestling by Rivers youths in particular could be attributed to low level of interest and poor managerial prowess on the part of the administrators.
A well-known football pundit in the State, Chief Christopher Okonkwo has lauded the efforts and vision of the Super Eagles Coach Eric Chelle for going from one venue of the Nigeria Domestic Nigeria Professional Football League match to the other in monitoring Nigerian players, with a view to invite some exceptional good one discovered into the main stream of the Super Eagles team.
Okonkwo, who made the commendation in an interview at the Port Harcourt Club recently, described the positive move by Coach Chelle as a good step in the right direction, noting that the practice was how its been done in the past among any contracted coach assigned to tinker the Super Eagles team.
“Truly, it has been an old tradition in the country seeing any newly engaged Coach to lead the National team, visiting some our Nigeria League venues during the league matches to spot light some good talents that could be used to beef up some grey areas in the department of Eagles team”
He, however, frowned at the current situation where our coaches had continously been over depending on the use of foreign based players during invitation of players to the National camp, thereby, relegating the domestic home based league players to the background as if they have nothing much to offer to the team.
“I can vividly recall that the likes of great players in the mode of Finidi George, Taribo West, Kanu Nwankwo, Austin Okocha, Richard Owobokiri, Emmanuel Osuigwe among others started from Nigeria football league before they graduated to play in Europe through which they later invited to Super Eagles camp to represent Nigeria”
“Besides, I’m also of the view that going to secondary school football competitive games could equally serves as a a good platform to discover budding talents that could be nurtured to become great stars in near future”, Okonkwo frankly added.
Okonkwo, therefore, prayed that any football coach to be engaged by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to tinker the Super Eagles should be told not to confine himself in staying in big hotel alone but to be visiting some of our local league match venues, with a view to discover some good players that can be drafted into the Super Eagles team.
“Indeed, I stand to be challenged that there some young good players in the Nigeria Professional League. If spotted and exposed, could give the some of the invited foreign based players a stiff competitive fight in securing a postion in the team”, Okonkwo emphatically stated.
Ezechukwu, one of the youngest members of the Nigerian contingent at the championship in Ghana, said her ambition was to win the 100m title in style and cap it with a new personal record.
The fresh secondary school graduate explained that she is fully focused on contributing to Team Nigeria’s medal hopes and is determined to deliver strong performances across her events.
“My main objective in Ghana is to clinch the 100m title and the 4×100m,” Ezechukwu told Tidesports source.
“Nigeria can be assured of my very best and my commitment to the Team. I would love to set a new personal best in Ghana, but anything that comes, I will take it. The spirit in the team is high, and I think we are ready to go,” she said.
Ezechukwu, who was part of Nigeria’s women’s 4x100m relay squad at the World Relays in Botswana, said the experience gained from that competition has strengthened her mindset heading into the continental championships.
She admitted that she learned valuable lessons from her previous outing, including a difficult moment during the relay where an early error affected the team’s rhythm, but said she has used the experience to improve her discipline and composure.
“The secret is just being disciplined, training hard and trusting my coach and believing in God, and the result will show,” she added.
The teenager is part of a 41-member Nigerian team comprising 24 female and 17 male athletes competing at the championships, which begin today at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nigeria are expected to compete across multiple track and field events as they aim for a strong finish against the continent’s elite athletes.
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