Delta State will host the best National Youth Games yet as it has the facilities and the capacity to deliver world class events that would be memorable.
The Chairman of the Delta State Sports Commission, Mr. Onoriode Oborevwori stated this during the Joint Technical Meeting of the Main Organizing Committee, MOC and Directors of Sports of various states ahead of the 9th National Youth Games to be hosted by Delta State.
Mr. Oborevwori represented by the Acting Director General of the Delta State Sports Commission, Emuobo Igalase, said the State under the leadership of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori was keen on delivering the best in the annals of Nigeria Sports stressing that the State was always ready to host both national and International sporting events whenever it was saddled with such responsibility.
The Sports Commission Chairman however revealed that the State despite its readiness to host the 9th National Youth Games this month would not be able to provide facilities for Deaf Sports, Beach Volleyball, Power lifting Baseball and Softball.
According to him the sports commission got the inclusion of some of the Sports behind schedule and the state government would not want to provide shabby facilities as it was not the style of the Government.
Mr. Oborevwori said the facility which was built by the state government for Beach volleyball had been destroyed due to the ongoing storm drainage work ongoing at the St. Patrick’s College Asaba .
while the facilities for Baseball and Softball as well as Power Lifting and Deaf Sports cannot be built barely two weeks to the commencement of the games and urged the National Sports Commission, NSC, to expunge those events from the ones earmarked for the games.
The Chairman of the Main Organizing Committee, MOC, and Director General of the National Sports Commission, Hon. Bukola Olopade represented by the Director Grassroots Sports Development, National Sports Commission, Chief Amaka Ashiofu while thanking the Delta State goverment for providing quality facilities for the NYG said the facilities still needed some level of attention and renovations before the commencement of the games.
Hon. Olopade however averred that the State should work towards ensuring that all the events scheduled for the games be provided facilities stressing that the state does not have any excuse to do otherwise as the rest of Nigeria would be converging on Asaba within the next 16 days.
He opined that several states had invested heavily preparing their athletes for the games especially deaf sports, beach volleyball, power lifting, baseball and softball hence the state goverment should expedite action in ensuring that all the events scheduled were accommodated during the games.
Some of the Directors of Sports who spoke including the Director of Sports Zamfara State, Mr. Nasiru Aliyu Bakura while lauding the Delta state goverment for being 95 percent ready it should work assiduously towards meeting its hosting obligations saying the athletes for the games were children and cannot be exposed to hazards like lack of accommodation as well as stalling their sports careers and dreams due to unavailability of facilities.
Earlier the Directors of Sports, Coaches, Secretaries of sports associations among others had undertaken an inspection tour to the facilities earmarked for the National Youth Games with the varioud teams affirming Delta States readiness to host the games especially with improvements made from the last edition in 2024.
Meanwhile Team Delta would be hoping to continue its stranglehold in the annual cadet sports fiesta having won the first 8 editions of the games which began in 2013 at the National Stadium Abuja while the state government looks forward to hosting the third of the four editions of the games handed to Delta State by the Ministry of Youths and Sports Development now National Sports Commission in 2022 at the University of Ilorin Kwara State.