Relay groups eye medals in ChinaSteps in direction of constructing a formidable Workforce Nigeria forward of the 2026 Commonwealth Video games in Glasgow, Scotland and the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles in USA could have began with the Nationwide Sports activities Fee (NSC) making good its promise to pay coaching grants of $20,000 every to some elite athletes.
The choice by the rapid previous Sports activities Minister, John Enoh, to pay the athletes coaching grants in the course of the Paris 2024 Olympics didn’t go down effectively with some stakeholders.
However on resumption of workplace, the management of the NSC vowed to take a special strategy, and this led to the institution of the Elite Improvement and Podium Board headed by Olympian, Yusuf Ali.
The Guardian learnt, yesterday, {that a} whole of 78 Nigerian athletes throughout all main sporting federations have been penciled down to learn from the coaching grants, with 38 of them coming from monitor and subject.
A supply near the NSC’s board mentioned in a phone chat, yesterday, that up to now, a sizeable variety of the elite athletes have been paid $20,000 every as towards the $10,000 that they acquired from previous administrations.
“As we converse, the NSC has disbursed $20,000 every to the elite athletes, and they’re so enthusiastic about it as a result of that is the primary time such cash is attending to them. The elite athletes are in class A, B and C, and the cash will get to all of them based mostly on the class they belong.”
The official added: “Now, our consideration is to current a formidable squad on the 2025 World Athletics Relays in China. We’re making ready 4 relay groups, 4x100m relay (women and men), 4x100m relay combined and 4x400m combined. We determined to depart out the 4x400m relay squad as a result of the World Relays in China clashes with the NCAA programmes within the U.S. and majority of our 400m runners are affected as a result of no coach in America will launch his/her prime runners. They need to make use of them of their varied faculty programmes. We’re hopeful that the 4 relay groups we’re making ready for China will do us proud.”
The 2025 World Athletics Relays will maintain on the Guangdong Olympic Stadium in Guangzhou, China on Might 10 and 11, 4 days earlier than the zonal sports activities federations’ elections throughout Nigeria.
