The Lagos State contingent to the 5th National Youth Games, comprising 248 athletes, coaches, association secretaries and other officials, have arrived in Ilorin for the tournament.
Participating at the National Youth Games for the second successive year, Team Lagos will compete in 33 individual and team sporting events with the hope to better their overall second-place position last year.
Speaking to the contingent before the commencement of the Games, the Director-General, Lagos State Sports Commission, Mr Oluwatoyin Gafaar, charged the athletes to give their best to achieve victory, adding that the State is focused on providing the necessary support and exposure to develop athletes from the grassroots.
“Learn to work hard and pray. If you train hard, prayers will speed up the process. We’ve done all that is necessary for us to excel at the Games with the permission of His Excellency, Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, who gave us moral and financial support. All that is expected of us is to make the State proud and I believe that at the end of Games, we will all be proud of ourselves” he said.
In his own contribution, the Chairman, Lagos State Sports Commission, Dr Kweku Tandoh encouraged the athletes and officials to reflect excellence on and off the field, saying that the State will not tolerate any act of indiscipline.
Tandoh urged the athletes to represent well at the games by being well behaved, disciplined and non-confrontational with referees and officials, hoping that “we will have reasons to celebrate all of you at the end of the Games”.
