Lagos, NSC Sign Agreement On National FestivalFOLLOWING the misfortunes dogging Nigerian sports in recent times, Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola, has said that with sincerity and administrators' commitment, the country's sports would regain its place among the comity of successful nations.Like a patriot, who feels that the dwindling fortunes of sports is not a true reflection of the talents in the country, Fashola is sad at the level of Nigerian sports, which he blames on lack of planning and insincerity among those saddled with leading the sector.Speaking yesterday during the signing of the agreement between the state and the National Sports Commission (NSC) on the 18th National Sports Festival to be hosted by Lagos State, Fashola said: 'In Nigeria, we have refused to plan and this is causing the present misfortunes being experienced in sports lately. We have not been honest with ourselves as a country because in sports there is no short cut to success.' You need constant coaching, training and competitions to be successful in sports. I know talents abound in this country and we should also know that we cannot always win. It is time for us to start rebuilding and this is why I believe the Lagos 2012 National Sports Festival can be the beginning of this. The festival should not be for old people but for young athletes that will improve with time.'He added: 'Everybody is talking about Lionel Messi now but where are the people that played alongside Messi at the 2005 World Youth Championship in Holland, except Mikel Obi. I think we need to begin to do things right in this country so that we can get back to where we were in sports.'Fashola, who featured as an athlete at the Oluyole 1979 National Sports Festival, revealed that the state would use the competition to discover athletes for the country.'Our decision to host the competition is not accidental, but deliberate, and it is also our statement of commitment to the youth of this state and the country. Our primary objective is to do well and we feel that if we do well we can also win. But what is more important to us is to use the festival to discover and unleash a new generation of athletes on Nigeria.The idea of allowing athletes to take part in five to six editions of the competition was not the initial objective of the festival. But we will use the Lagos 2012 to champion the crusade of turning the festival to its objective of amateur sports. Our legacy at the end of the festival is that Lagos will be remembered as the turning point for Nigerian sports,' he emphasized.In his remarks during the ceremony, Director General of NSC, Patrick Ekeji, expressed confidence on the readiness of Lagos for the 18th National Sports Festival, saying it was obvious that the state can stage the championship in 2012 considering the infrastructure put in place by the Fashola administration.'Lagos hosted the maiden edition of the festival in 1973 and it is apt that the state is hosting it at this time because the efforts of the Babatunde Fashola administration to put facilities in place is there for us to see and I am confident that the state can do better than what Rivers at the last edition in Port Harcourt,' Ekeji said.
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