Sports
17th NSF: Dikio Lauds LOC Over Successful Games
A Sports enthusiast in Rivers State, Barrister Faye Dikio has commended the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the recently concluded 17th National Sports Festival in Port Harcourt, for making the “Garden City Games 2011”, a huge success.
Dikio, who made the commendation recently in Port Harcourt, described the opening and closing ceremonies as the best ever to be witnessed in the annals of the National Sports Festival in the country.
According to him, the efforts of the security sub-committee and the operatives should also be commended given the fact that there were no incident of crime all through the fiesta. He said that the situation went a long way to show that the police did their job very well.
Reacting to the allegation that Rivers State was buying medals, Dikio said that the allegation was mischievious and classified the carriers of such unfounded allegation as those working against the growth of football in the country.
“I can assure you that such allegation does not perturb me since it is obvious that people must talk one thing or the other, whether you win or lose,” he added.
The legal luminary continued that if Rivers people were using money to buy medals, then why should most of her athletes lose out badly in some events, noting that the state would have bought all the medals at stake.
“I will however advise Rivers athletes and their handlers to see the allegation as an omen which will propel them to sustain the standard they have exhibited and if possible, climb higher in subsequent National Sports Festival so that their detractors who are wagging tongues over their feat will be forced to swallow their words.”
Earlier, Barrister Dikio had applauded the wonderful performance of Team Rivers at the “Garden City Games 2011.”
“I am highly surprised by the excellent performance and position attained by Rivers athletes on the medals chart,” he said.
It would be recalled that Rivers State climbed the first position with a total of 299 medals, 135 golds, 79 silver and 85 bronze medals followed by Delta State who clinched 82 gold, 89 silver and 81 bronze while Edo state bagged third position with 46 gold, 41 silver and 43 bronze.
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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