Sports
Police Games: AIG Supports Zone 9 Athletes
The Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police, Hosea Karma, has thrown his weight behind Police Zone 9
athletes for the forthcoming National Police Games to ensure they performed exceptionally well.
The Tidesports source reports that the 2018 National Police Games had been scheduled to hold in Awka, Anambra State, in November though there is yet to be a definitive date.
Karma disclosed his support in Awka on Monday during the Police Zone 9 Command Sports Committee Conference to fine-tune sports modalities and development for the zone.
The AIG, who was representative by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Maurice Yusuf, said that the zone was prepared to do well ahead of the rest 12 zones in the country.
“We are hosting and leaving no stone unturned as we want to present the best and do better in the overall medals table.
“The zone will participate fairly and to ensure that our athletes do well through early preparation, the Zonal Command Headquarters will support them with its limited resources in all ramifications,” he said.
Responding, the Zonal Sports Officer for Police Zone 9, George Okafor, thanked the AIG for his support and sending a top ranking officer to know areas of need of the athletes in the zone in terms of preparation.
Okafor also lauded sports officers and the coaches for the conference ahead of the Games.
He maintained that the zone will seek to maintain an enviable record during the Games and urged all hands to be on deck to enable Zone 9 to achieve enviable record.
Also, the Secretary of the Zone 9 Police Command Sports Committee, Christian Chukwu, maintained that the zone had some sports talents that could help the zone get medals during the Games.
Contributing, Ebere Amaraizu, Sports Officer in Enugu State Police Command, said that a lot needed to be done, urging the coaches and the command to look beyond football as there were many medals in other sports.
The Tidesports source reports that the conference resolved that the Zone 9 Sports Competition to be hosted in Enugu in preparation for the Games proper.
The Zone 9 Sports Competition, which is expected to commence from October 14 with arrivals for all the formations in Zone 9 police command, would feature contingent from four State Police Commands in the zone, namely Abia, Anambra, Enugu and Imo.
The Zonal Competition in Enugu will hold from October 15 to October 19 and those selected will be kept for zonal camping preparatory to the Games.
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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