Uncertainty over sports festival affecting preparation- Para-athletics coach

Rio Olympic Paralympic Games: Team Nigeria

A coach, Austin Chima, says the uncertainty over the staging of the 19th National Sports Festival in Calabar in November is disrupting preparations by athletes for the competition.

Chima of the Rivers Para-athletics Association made the assertion in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos.

He said that since the festival’s Local Organising Committee (LOC) had yet to come up with any clear declaration, athletes believe that it might not hold.

“The festival’s aura ought to be everywhere now, especially with the good performance of the Para-athletes at last month’s Rio 2016 Paralympics in Brazil.

“But as we speak, there is no sign that the festival will hold because the authorities are not talking about it, keeping us in a state of doubt.

“Our activities have been affected, many of the athletes no longer come for training and the few ones that do are not as committed as before.

“This is not good for our sports development, the festival is a biennial programme that has suffered several postponements since the last edition, “Eko 2012’’ in Lagos,’’ he said.

Chima noted that some technical officials were contract coaches under the states and therefore, needed to know their faith to determine their next line of action.

“Most contract coaches have the opportunity to increase their income with the postponements because the festival increases their scope of responsibility since they are to ensure adequate athletes preparation for good performance.

“Every coach will make sure that his athletes win medal at the festival so that he can be rewarded by the state that contracted his services,” he added.

According to him, the para-athletes who have been training and were not privileged to participate at the Paralympics are looking forward to the festival to win medals and improve their records.

NAN reports that the 19th NSF, organised by the Ministry of Youths and Sports, is expected to be hosted by the Cross River Government from Nov. 8 to Nov. 21.

It will be recalled that after the NSF hosted by Lagos State in 2012, the competition was shifted to 2014 and to 2016 as a result of lack of readiness by Cross River.