The Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, has addressed athletes representing Nigeria at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and advised them to give their best to the country.
Mr Dare gave this advice on Monday when he visited the athletes who have been training at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
“Your job is to run and give this country the best,” the minister told the athletes.
After missing the World Athletics Relays in Poland due to visa issues, about 24 athletes and an unspecified number of coaches are set to depart for the United States of America on Thursday to participate in relay qualifiers ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.
The minister added, “Focus on your training and the goal ahead and leave the administration to us. The world is waiting to see what you can do, you must meet their expectations.”
Dare, who asked the athletes not to be distracted, showered encomium on some of the team members for their recent performance.
According to him, the future is bright for Nigeria to have podium performances at the Olympics.
The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) said yesterday it has contacted an ‘international lawyer’ over the controversy surrounding a ‘secret’ Puma kits contract, which has torn the federation apart.
Since last year, AFN board members were at daggers drawn following a four-year deal the Ibrahim Gusau-led AFN signed with Germany-based sports kit manufacturing company, Puma.
Puma’s Senior Manager Corporate Communications, Robert-Jan Bartunek, had confirmed then that the agreement with AFN was reached just before the Doha 2019 IAAF World Championships. He failed to give details of the deal.
But the Olamide George-led faction of the AFN rejected the deal, alleging that due process was not followed in the contract with Puma. “How can you sign a kit contract without telling the secretariat?’’ George had queried.
An AFN official told reporters yesterday that the secretariat has written to its international lawyer the implications if the athletes do not wear the Puma kits in the relays in the U.S.
“We have written to our international lawyer to seek his opinion about the Puma kits. Whatever he says is what we will follow,” the official said.