Sports
Administrator Blames Shoddy Preparation For Nigeria’s Poor Olympic Outing
An astute football administrator in the State Mr. Williams Mapuibi Inko has attributed the cause of Nigerian contingents’ dismal performance at the just concluded Paris 2024 Olympics Games to poor preparations from the authorities concerned.
Baring his mind to our reporter via telephone conversation recently, Mapuibi Inko maintained that there was no magic Nigeria athletes would have performed that would have guaranteed her a medal from the event, considering her poor level of preparation to the event competing against notable World Sports beaters on Parade.
“Honestly, the Nigerian athletes had hardly had enough and regular track and field event preparation before the championship, coupled with poor organization among the overbloated officials who were only interested in what they would gain as individuals from the two weeks outing”
On whether it will be ideal to sack the Sports Minister John Enoh, following the woeful out of the Nigerian athletes at the concluded Olympic games, the Outspoken Mapuibi Inko, who is the President of Diobu International All Stars Sports Club says he has some little reservation for now.
“Perhaps, I will subscribe that some professional and seasoned Sports administrator should be engaged to work with the Sports Minister so that different good ideas would be brought together to prosecute another major competitive event to guarantee better result of winning laurels at the end of the day”, he submitted.
In a different development, Mapuibi Inko has encouraged members of the Diobu All Stars International Sports Club to affirm faith and continue to imbibe the spirt of oneness with a view to strengthening the team for effective outings.
“Speaking to our reporter after taking a critical assessment of the club so far, Mapuibi Inko stated that it was a clear fact that Diobu International All Stars is on the right path of progress, having seen the vision of the Club towards ensuring that it’s dreams of hitting it big in the comity of other All-Stars Football Club in near future is actualized”
He further, posited that the Club which had been the cynosure of all eyes in Diobu axis is making frantic effort to acquire all necessary sporting facilities, ranging from Jersey, footballs etc. to enhance their routine football trainings at St Andrews School Field, Mile one Diobu, Port Harcourt.
“Besides, we are also training very assiduously to ensure that we are physically fit and capable to engage in any competitive matches within and outside the state”
“Again, we are equally looking forward to establishing a good working relationship with the Basic Senior Secondary School management Board as to intimate them more of our vision and readiness towards encouraging grassroots sport development in Post-Secondary Schools in Rivers State, aimed at catching them young”
The amiable Diobu International All Stars Sports Club boss, however, expressed happiness with the current improved numerical strength of the team, which according to him, is in line with the good ideal and vision of the Club right from its formation stage.
England captain Harry Kane netted a hat-trick to guide Bayern Munich to an impressive victory against Stuttgart.
Kane’s goals, plus one from Kingsley Coman, helped Bayern end a three-game winless run in all competitions.
They faced a tough task against a Stuttgart side who sat back and limited their chances, leading Vincent Kompany’s side to enter the break frustrated and with the deadlock unbroken.
Bayern eventually found a way past Stuttgart’s steely defence when Kane drilled a low effort into the bottom corner from around 30 yards out after Joshua Kimmich overturned possession.
Former Nigeria goalkeeper, Dosu Joseph, is full of thanks to God after he miraculously survived another life-threatening automobile accident recent at Kara, along the Lagos-Ibadan Express Way, where a heavy-duty truck ran into his SUV.
Narrating his ordeal, the 51-year-old, who guided Nigeria to gold in the Men’s Football Tournament of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, broke the news in a statement on his social media handles on Friday.
“To God be the glory, another death escaped by Grace and Mercy of God. Me and my friend SM were at Enyo Filling Station after Ojodu Berger bus stop to get fuel on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, around 6 p.m. when this MACK truck fully loaded with iron, with registration number LND 470 XX, left the road and crushed my car beyond repairs. Thank God for life,” he stated.
This is the second time the soft-spoken club proprietor will cheat death by a whisker, having been involved in an accident in 1997 that ended his career at 23 and left his spinal cord in bad shape.
He helped Julius Berger win the Nigeria FA Cup in November 1997 shortly a memorable Olympic outing by keeping a clean sheet in the finals against Katsina United. The following year, he was involved in the auto along Ikorodu Road, Lagos, which not only cut his career short but also left him almost paralysed, ending his spell at Serie A club Reggiana.
The former Nigeria international, who also kept goal for Julius Berger FC, said the case has been reported to Isheri Police Station, Ogun State, where the driver is currently detained and the truck also seized.
According to him, the owner of the truck said he can’t fix the badly damaged SUV until after a year.
Ex – Super Eagles of Nigeria, Okwuchukwu Waobikeze has observed that sports development in Nigeria is going down.
According to him, grassroots sports is very important, without it, the administrators cannot get it right. So everybody should key into grassroots sports development, he said.
Waobikeze said this last Wednesday in an interview with sports journalists shortly after the Port Harcourt All Stars Independence football festival (OCTOBERFEST) at the Port Harcourt club, Rivers State.
He explained that for sports administrators to get it right, grassroots development is key. “They should be organising competition at the grassroots level to fish out the young ones for different sporting activities.
“Grassroots sports is very important so the administrators have to go back to the grassroots.
” Sports Development in Nigeria is going down we need to go back to the basics.
“Look at the just concluded Paris Olympics, Nigeria did not win any medal.
” Our football team did not even qualify for the Olympics. We are going down.
” If they should go back to the grassroots, they will get young ones in the games and talents will be developed.
” I started from school games, to youth games before playing for the national team. Now everybody wants to fly board to play professional football and a lot do not know the basics of the game.
” A lot of people did not know the little things about the game, they just want to play. It is not done so,” Waobikeze stated.
Kiadum Edookor