Ikpoba-Oka Local Government Area (LGA) of Edo on Saturday in Benin emerged winners of the just-concluded Edo State Sports Festival with 100 gold medals.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the competition, which was its third edition, Edo’s Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, thanked all the 18 LGAs which participated in the competition.
“This festival was also used to select athletes that will represent the state at the 20thNational Sports Festival tagged `Edo 2020’.
“There were lots of surprises during this competition, and that is what we expected. We are going to see new athletes at the National Sports Festival.
“For us, this is the beginning of the return of sports to the native land which is Edo, and just as Governor Godwin Obaseki said at the opening ceremony, this event has become an annual event.
“The era where Nigeria uses calculator to calculate qualifications are over. Edo and Delta are back and Nigeria now will be winning at world games as it used to be,’’ he said.
The Deputy Governor assured that the state government would keep in touch with all the participants in the competition.
Owan West LGA clinched 74 gold medals while Egor LGA won 64 gold medals.
