Dearth Of Competitions: Coach Now Trades In Shoes

A Lagos State Weightlifting Coach, Taiwo Oyebanji, says the hard times in the country has forced him into selling shoes to eke out a living.
Oyebanji, a former Lagos State athlete, told newmen at the National Stadium that “the unpleasant situation I found myself in has compelled me to trade in shoes’’.
Fondly called “Buffalo’’ by his fans, Oyebanji said that he was a contract athlete with the defunct Lagos State Sports Council (LSSC) for the 2012 National Sports Festival, tagged “Eko 2012’’.
“I am still in weightlifting but I just have to sell these shoes to create another source of income because there has not been major competitions for us,’’ he said.
Oyebanji said that he sustained a serious injury at the NYSC Orientation Camp, Iyana Ipaja, Abeokuta Express Road, during preparations for the festival to represent the state in weightlifting.
I was a vibrant athlete with high hopes of winning gold medal for Lagos State but my vision was cut short when the weight we were training with mistakenly fell on my stomach.
“I was rushed to the Ifako-Ijaiye General Hospital before being transferred to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, where I spent over six months.
“The painful thing about the whole experience is that it was our coach then, Tina Chima and my family members that paid the bill because Lagos State abandoned me.
“Since then, there has been no compensation of any form.
“I have been managing with my wife and six children in one room but the responsibility is too much, so, I have to find another way out,’’ he said.
According to him, several efforts made to get the state’s assistance during and after the “EKO 2012’’ festival proved abortive.
“I have an outstanding debt of N150,000 incurred as a result of that injury, the only money I got from the Lagos State Sports Commission is one month camp allowance.’’
The weightlifter, who resides in Mushin area of the Lagos, appealed to the Lagos State Sports Commission to come to his aid.
“I’m facing a big problem now, my house rent expired since last year and my landlord took me to court, where I was given four months to pay or pack out,’’ he added.