Coach Harps On Early Athletics Programmes

Head Coach (Athletics) in the Lagos State Grassroots Sports Project Uruemu Adu has appealed for the early release of the 2014 athletics programme by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN).

Adu told newsmen in Lagos that the early release of the federation’s calendar would enable the state associations to plan their own programmes.

The coach, who spoke on plans for the new year — 2014 — noted that delays in the release of the programme was ‘administratively unfriendly’.

According to him, we have been expecting the programme since the second week of December, about the same time it was unveiled in 2012.

“It is the document that guides associations in planning ahead. The delay is anti sports and should be reversed to enable us to move with the times,’’ Adu said.

The coach observed that the dates for the All Nigeria Cross Rivers Athletics Championship, also served as preliminaries for selection of the team to the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

The coach expressed dissatisfaction at the delay and pleaded for a better programme, saying that acting fast would make it easy for states to key into the national programme.

Athletes for the Commonwealth Games would return to their Abuja camping site on January 5 to continue their preparation for the Games.

The camping was temporarily halted to enable the athletes to rejoin their families for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.