TEAM ANAMBRA athletes numbering over 400 with their officials made up of coaches, instructors and medics are set to depart the state capital this Saturday to participate in the annual 5th National Youth Games (NYG) holding at the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) from the 7th to 17th of September 2019.
The multi-games competition which was instituted by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports five years ago is an avenue to discover, nurture and develop athletes from grassroots to stardom in line with international best practices. Athletes discovered at the NYG as has been the culture would be handed over to the respective sports federations for proper monitoring and development.
TEAM ANAMBRA had earlier embarked on three-week camping to intensity preparations in a bid to do the state proud at the annual national sporting program for athletes under the age of 16 years from the 36 states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) who are expected to participate in above 34 sports.
The Anambra State Sports Development Commission (ASSDC) under the watch of the indefatigable Chairman, Chief Tony Oli, had hitherto initiated the move for the state to host the South-East Zonal Elimination which was graciously approved by His Excellency, Chief Willie Obiano, the Executive Governor of the State. The state no doubt lived up to expectations in terms of hosting and qualifying for all team events it registered for with exception of the game of Hockey, also officials from the four states of the zone attested to the level of organization, professionalism and hospitality provided by the state during the course of the four-day program.
TEAM ANAMBRA have all but concluded its preparation for the upcoming games and will participate in 15 out of the 34 sporting events available namely Table Tennis, Badminton, Basketball, Chess, Handball, Judo, Wrestling, Taekwondo, Karate, Scrabble, Track and Field, Volleyball (Beach), Volleyball, Football and Cricket. With the level of preparedness of TEAM ANAMBRA, it is expected that the athletes will give states such as Delta who are the defending champions with 67 medals (27 gold, 24 silver and 16 bronze) from the last program a run for their money during the competition proper.
