LAGOS FOCUSES ON GRASSROOTS SPORTS DEVELOPMENT
The Chairmen of Lagos State Sports Associations have agreed to focus on the development of games at the grassroots so that more talents to represent the State and country at various local and international competitions will emerge in the nearest future.
Rising from an inaugural forum of Chairmen of various sports associations held at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, Mr. Seyi Akinwunmi, Chairman of Lagos State Football Association who presided expressed displeasure at the dwindling fortune of sports in Lagos, noting that all associations need to aggressively pursue the successful development of sports at the grassroots in Lagos.
He, therefore, charged all the Chairmen of the various associations concentrate their major efforts to developing grassroots sports, saying “The state of sports in Lagos State is worrisome and I believe that if all chairmen of the sports associations can design long term strategic programmes, the better for sports in the State. Presently, we want to start our programmes for sports from the grassroots by taking all the sporting programmes to schools where we can develop and nurture talents”.
“By doing this, we would have returned focus on grassroots sports where Lagos had always developed raw talents. I want to urge my colleagues in other sports associations to look into this and if there are challenges, association chairmen can rally round and support such chairman,” he said.
In his own comment, the Executive Chairman of the Governing Board of Lagos State Sports Commission, Dr. Kweku Adedayo Tandoh also said that the only way Lagos can reclaim its lost glory is to embark on school sports development.
He envisaged Lagos having a pool of talents for sports in Nigeria, saying other States could poach athletes from Lagos ahead of national sporting competitions.
“My focus is on how we can develop sports at the schools level. I want Lagos to become a place where talents would be produced and discovered for Nigeria. If our athletes are representing the country in various international competitions, the glory would come to Lagos because what people will be saying is that those athletes were discovered and nurtured from Lagos”, he said.
Tandoh charged all the chairmen of the sports associations to come up with various developmental programmes in line with the Lagos State policy on sports.