One thing I have noticed is that our sports prowess on the tracks, the boxing rings, the courts and the swimming pools, has diminished drastically.
Times were when we did very well in the All Africa Games, Commonwealth Games and the Olympics.
Then we had the Innocent Egbunikes, Lawrence Adegehingbes, Isiaka Adeyanjus, Mary Onyalis, Falilat Ogunkoyas, Charity Oparas, the Ezinwa brothers, Olapade Adenikens, Seun Ogunkoyas etc dominating the tracks, the Andeh brothers- Tony and Davidson, Peter Konyegwachis, Joe Lasisis, Jerry Okorodudus, Bamidele Jonathans, Billy Savage, Lat Darasins etc dominating the boxing rings while the Power Mikes, Ben the Lion Hearts, Power Utis, Sunny Wonders ruled the wrestling rings, the Regina Figbeles, Digha Baraweis and Nathan Okoros swam like fishes in the pools.
But today, the reverse is the case. We just have a sprinkling of them in the Blessing Okhagbares and few others to now boast of.
What caused this downfall? To me, it is the neglect of grassroots sports which normally starts from the primary school up to secondary and then the tertiary institutions. Most of the names I reeled out earlier were discovered from these institutions.
In my days in these institutions, especially the primary and secondary, we had ample space/field to engage in sporting activities. We used to have physical training, which is called P.T in the primary school, which we all looked forward to daily while we had inter house sports competitions in the secondary school.
There was also the inter school sports, the Principals soccer cup competition, games among teachers training colleges and colleges games and so on and so forth where young budding talents were discovered and selected to be honed.
Most of the athletes who won medals and laurels for us in days gone past were discovered from these breeding grounds. But now, such open spaces in our schools have been built up with various infrastructure such as classrooms, as pupils\’ and students\’ population have soared. The result of this can be seen in our lack-lustre performances in sports.
A time there was in my state, Ondo State, when we did well in international youth competitions in handball, table tennis, athletics, gymnastics and swimming.
Apart from swimming which still fetches us laurels, we have nose dived in others. Same also in most states of Nigeria.
I want to attribute the current state we are in sports wise to the downturn in the economy and lack of will on the part of the political heads to prioritise sports development at the grassroots. Sports kits have worn out and our spirit too is down. Our kids have to be re-kitted and our spirits lifted for us to take our rightful place in sports, not only in Africa but also in the Commonwealth and the Olympics.
I also notice that even in the dearth of funds, it is only soccer that our governments prefer to pump the little recourses into at the detriment of other sports. A fraction of the money spent on men and women football in all age grade categories can bolster our other sports which attract more medals in competitions than football which attracts only one medal, whereas an athlete can win as many as ten gold medals in swimming, and we can have as many swimmers as we want in a competition.
I will like to appeal to our various governments to endeavour to spend more money on sports in our primary and secondary schools.
Apart from making some, if not all our youths, to develop into good professionals in the sports of their choice, it will keep them out of vices and harmful behaviours while in school and make them good citizens as their boundless energies will be directed towards sports.
Also, schools should be mandated to have playground/sports fields and should not, under any circumstance, erect structures on such places.
Catch you next week.
