As part of the due process towards the bid to host the 10th edition of the annual National Youth Games, the top management Staff of the Lagos State Sports Commission, alongside delegates from the National Sports Commission, embarked on a 2 day inspection tour of Sporting facilities in Lagos State, as the state has expressed its interest in hosting the grassroots developmental program designed to showcase and unearth raw talent across the disciplines, in li e with the State government’s commitment to youth empowerment through sports and education.
The inspection of facilities started from the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, before proceeding to the National Stadium.
Others are the newly refurbished Elegbata Sports Complex, Iconic Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Cricket Oval, Tafawa Balewa Square, Mobolaji Johnson Sports Centre, Rowe Park,Yaba. including the University of Lagos Sports Complex, CMS Grammar School, Bariga, and the Agege Stadium.
Speaking at the brief meeting with the delegates from NSC, Director General, Lagos State Sports Commission, Mr. Lekan Fatodu, emphasized on the significance of the games designed for the athletes below the age of 15, while assuring the state readiness and determination to host one of the best in the history of the NYG in Nigeria.
He added that Sports has gone beyond the traditional engagement and interactions, saying sports has become full engagement for life and purpose, and that's the agenda Lagos state is driving towards.
Fatodu stated, "We want to have our history truly sports being a tool for national cohesion, national unity, and empowerment of our young people. That message will definitely be amplified in our agenda, in our theme, in our actions towards hosting the Youth Games. We have reignited the process of reconstructing, renovating, and repositioning some of our facilities."
Speaking further, the DG LSSC stressed that the bid to host the 10th edition of the Games is coming at the eve of another national election which provides another ample opportunity to bring Nigerians together as one of the objectives of the initiative established in 2013.
According to the Head of the delegation from the National Sports Commission, Director, Grassroots Sports Development Mrs. Amaka Ashiofu, one of the objectives of giving hosting right to any state is to develop sports infrastructure.
She noted that their intention is to assess and point to any facility that needs to be improved as the commission would work with the state government in ensuring a smooth process.
The hosting of the NYG is not only an avenue for the U-15 athletes to participate. It also creates opportunities for youngsters to get scholarship to tertiary institutions. It will further spotlight the iconic facilities in the state of the aquatic splendor to the world, its culture, and telling the story of the nation commercial nerve center.
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