- Abiodun, right; and Tobi Amusan
A multi-million naira house and N5 million cash gifts have been splashed on the World, Commonwealth and African 100 m hurdles champion, Oluwatobi Amusan, by her home Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun.
The governor, who hosted the star athlete at his Oke Mosan office on Tuesday, while announcing these jumbo gifts, also named Amusan as a Sports Ambassador of the state.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Kunle Somorin, Abiodun said: “So, you (Amusan) will be our Sports Ambassador; I am happy that you said you are not from any other state. You are from Ogun and not from Lagos and you want to come back home.
“We also want to ensure that you come back home. We want to assure you that as you come back home, you have a home here in the state. So, in view of that, we are also going to be presenting to you a home in Ijebu-Ode. On top of that, we will be giving you a small token, we will be donating to you the sum of N5m.”
Noting that his administration is on course to giving the Ijebu-Ode Stadium the necessary face-lift it needs, the governor added that the call by Amusan, the women’s 100m hurdles world record holder, to train at the stadium whenever she is in the country, would further prompt his administration to fast track the renovation of the stadium.
His words: “We are in the process of rehabilitating a few of our sport facilities, I have spoken to the Minister of Sports and a few other people.
“But now that we have one of our own, who is saying that ‘I want to train in that stadium,’ that puts us under a lot of pressure to ensure we prioritise the Ijebu-Ode Stadium because we want you (Amusan) to come and train at that stadium.”
Abiodun also said his administration considered the role of women very important in all spheres of human endeavour, adding that the passing of a law to ensure the full emancipation of women in the state, would usher in an era where women would get more responsibilities.
He stressed that his administration viewed Amusan as a point of contact for other youths in the country that had lost faith in hard work, persistence and diligence. He noted that the Ogun-born athlete’s story would educate those who still viewed the combination of sports and education as a waste of time.
Abiodun described Tobi Amusan as a role model to the girl-child and a practical example of a truism that what a man can do, a woman can even do better.
The governor had on April 26, 2021 adopted the star athlete, whose exploits were made known to the governor by the Minister of Youths and Sports, Sunday Dare.
Responding, Amusan acknowledging the support of Abiodun towards her success, and called on the Federal Government to do more for athletes.
She said: “All thanks to my Governor for supporting me and I feel the Federal Government can do the same when it comes to supporting athletes financially.”
Her coach, Abiola Onakoya, also noted that the world champion is already giving back to the society through an athletics development programme named the Tobi/Abiola Grassroots Sports Development in Ogun State.
