No plans to postpone National Sports Festival, says Olopade

The Chairman of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the 22nd National Sports Festival (NSF), tagged, “Gateway Games,” Bukola Olopade has described arsenic untrue, insinuations successful immoderate quarters that the Games mightiness not clasp successful January 2025.

The Federal Government approved January 2025 arsenic the authoritative day for the 2024 NSF during the gathering of the National Council connected Sports held successful Enugu, earlier this year.

A media study astatine the play claimed that the festival mightiness not beryllium held arsenic scheduled. It did, however, not springiness afloat details, oregon reasons for the planned re-scheduling.

However, Olopade, a erstwhile sports commissioner successful Ogun State, told The Guardian successful a telephone chat, yesterday, that the festival would clasp arsenic scheduled successful January 2025.

He said: “I don’t cognize wherever the study is coming from. We are going to big an astonishing sports festival successful January 2025. There was ne'er a clip that we changed the day of the festival.”

“For the archetypal clip successful the past of the National Sports Festival, we are accommodating 15,000 athletes successful 1 place.

The Ogun State authorities has entered into an statement with the absorption of Babcock University for the accommodation, which is cardinal successful our effort to big 1 of the astir palmy events successful the past of the National Sports Festival. Besides, Governor Dapo Abiodun has enactment successful spot a squad of technocrats for the Games.

“The facilities that we are going to usage for the National Sports Festival are not acold distant from the venues for the Games. So, I tin accidental that determination is nary request for anyone to rise an alarm astatine this stage.”

The Guardian recalls that during the Council of Sports gathering successful Enugu State, Sports Minister, Senator John Owan Enoh, noted that the sports festival plays a captious relation successful nationalist unity arsenic good arsenic expanding socio-economic maturation for the sustainable improvement of the authorities and the state successful general.

He besides urged each cardinal stakeholders to play progressive roles towards successfully hosting the Gateway Games.