BOMA DIPRIYE
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Sports and Youth Development, Alhaji Ismaila Abubakar, has said that Nigeria felicitates and congratulates the country’s Olympic Silver Medallist, Blessing Oborodudu, who was conferred with Wrestler of the Month award by the United World Wrestling Bureau.
Ismaila, who disclosed this in Abuja, stated that Nigeria is proud of her athletes, assuring that the Ministry would continue to create an enabling environment for them to excel in their sporting career.
“We felicitate with our Olympic Silver Medallist, Blessing Oborodudu, on this award. We congratulate her and we are proud of her as a nation. As a Ministry, we will continue to support all our athletes to ensure they compete favourably with their counterparts globally, so as to record more podium performances for our dear nation,” he said.
The Permanent Secretary used the opportunity to call on all sports loving Nigerians and philanthropists to join hands with the President Asiwaju Bola-Ahmed Tinubu-led Administration by taking advantage of the new Sports Industry Policy to invest in sports, with a view to developing the sector for the benefit of the teeming youths.
He explained that with the new policy, sports is no longer a mere recreation, but a business, and, thus, urged all relevant stakeholders in the industry to invest in the sector for the benefit of young athletes, as well as the nation’s economy, as that is the practice the world over.
Government, he added, “cannot do it alone.”
Alhaji Ismaila further called on Sport Federations to ensure they put on their best and technical know-how in order to record more podium appearances in all international competitions for the country.
Recall that after seven months of layoff due to surgery, the Commonwealth Champion, Blessing Oborodudu, returned to her full fitness with a gold medal at the recently-concluded African Senior Wrestling championships in Hammamet, Tunisia, and was handed a record 13th title at the African event.
