When Prof. Olatunde Makanju, 60, started running as a pupil at Ansar-Ud-Deen Primary School, Gbongan in Osun State in the 1950s, he never knew what sports had in stock for him. For over two decades, he burnt the tracks and in the course of this, he was invited to the national team. Prior to his invitation to the national team, Makanjus exploits on the tracks came to limelight at Gbongan Odeomu Anglican Grammar School in Osun State and Ijebu Muslim College, Ijebu Ode in Ogun State, in the 1960s. He then became an integral member of the school team. Makanju got to the University of Lagos (UNILAG) as an unpopular athlete but became popular through athletics after dusting some of the top athletes. He later became the schools long jump champion, NUGA Games silver medallist in 1972 and West Africa Universities Games (WAUG) gold medallist. The erstwhile psychologist of the 1989 Golden Eaglets to the FIFA World Cup in Scotland told OLALEKAN OKUSAN that his involvement in sports taught him virtues like discipline, resilience and fairness, which he said have helped him in life. The chairman of the UNILAG Sports Council, however, lamented the dwindling fortune of sports in schools while calling for a return to the grassroots as the only way out of the problems bedevilling sports in the country.AS a junior student, Makanju was chosen as mascot of Gbongan Odeomu Anglican Grammar School team to the 1962 AIONIAN Games and afterwards his passion for athletics grew, after he witnessed the superlative performance of some of the best athletes at the championship.Prior to being named the school mascot, Makanju was actively involved in sports at Ansar-Ud-Deen Primary School, Gbongan. He took part in athletics and football and at a time, he was the assistant goalkeeper. But his soft spot for the track made him decide to stick to athletics. This was how his romance with sports began: I started sports right from primary school.We used to run on the street because we made use of any available space as track. We also used human beings as polls to carry the bar that we would all be jumping over. We enjoyed this such that we even run on the tarred road when there was no vehicle, especially in the evening till the night.When I was at Ansar-Ud-Deen Primary School in Gbongan, I ran and also played football for the school team. I was named the assistant goalkeeper but did not do much because I was relatively too small physically. But nonetheless, I was in the school team in my primary six. It was when I got to Gbongan Odeomu Anglican Grammar School that I started specialising in the sprint and hurdles events. I later added long jump to it.In my secondary school, we had a European principal called Rev. Wilson, who took special interest in tiny kids who took part in sports. He chose me as the school mascot to the 1962 AIONIA Games and being the mascot, I was so excited. I went again as the mascot in 1963 and it was there I started seeing some of my seniors winning gold medals and I vividly I remember an athlete called Bimbo Okanosi, who won the long jump event. He jumped 22 feet six inches and the mark was etched in my memory and later on the feat was like a target to some of us.So when we started jumping between 17 and 18 feet, we felt there was no difference between 18 and 22 feet. But we later learnt that it was very wide. This was how the interest in athletics was fanned. Aside this, we realised that all the top athletes were very popular and everybody loved them, this also enticed me to sports.Despite his exploits, Makanju was not able to make the school team through sprint but had to try his hands on hurdles, which paid off for him. He revealed: I got into the school team by chance because we were planning to go for the Grier Competition and unfortunately I did not qualify for the sprint event and decided to go for hurdles. Fortunately, I came first to be part of the team. This helped me to represent my school in the AAA Games and Grier Competition. But I could not go far in the hurdles because my style was not too good.From Gbongan, Makanju moved to Ijebu Muslim College for Higher School Certificate (HSC). But there was no hiding place for the gold fish as he was quickly spotted in the school. He said: I moved to Ijebu Muslim College and the principal of the school, Mr. A.O. Sanni, who was a fantastic tennis player, took interest in some of us that were not physically endowed and I took interest in long jump.I failed mathematics and had to spend another year and nine months before I could gain admission to the university. So I taught in a secondary school for nearly two years and also learnt mathematics from my students. Fortunately, I passed my mathematics and, in the course of being a teacher, I developed my athletics skills. I was the games master at Ayedade Grammar School, Ikire, even when I moved to my Alma Mater, Gbongan Odeomu Anglican Grammar School.I also linked up with one of my former contestants in secondary school, who was also the Western champion. His name was Sunmonu and he specialised in 400 metres. We linked up, formed a divisional athletics group and started competing in various competitions. I then focussed on 100 metres and long jump. I remember the first day I jumped over 23 feet I could not believe it and 23 feet should about seven metres now.Even as Makanju was neck deep into sports, his parents never had anything against his activities, which took him away from home most often. However, his scintillating performance in athletics never aided his admission to the University of Lagos (UNILAG) in 1970.My sporting prowess never had anything to do with my admission to the university. Even the UNILAG authority did not even know me because most of us that did not school in Lagos were at a disadvantage, as nobody knew us, he noted. When I came into the school, the athletes that were popular then were Bayo Mania from Kings College and Lambo. But during the first competition, we came out on top and that was how we sent some of the top athletes packing.This feat ensured that Makanju became part of the school team but it was not until 1972 that he represented UNILAG at the NUGA Games, where he won silver medals in the long jump and 4x100 metres. In 1971, he had featured in the West Africa Universities Games (WAUG) and won bronze medal while in 1973, he was the regional champion in long jump, having won gold medal.However, Makanju would not forget in a hurry his feat when he single-handedly aided the UNILAG team to win the Mumford Cup athletics championship in Lagos. He enthused: The day I will not forget was the day I ran the anchor for UNILAG at the Obalende Sports Ground. In those days in athletics, we had teams like Prison, Marketing Board, UAC and a host of others.The competition was the annual Mumford Cup, which was an athletics competition for teams in Lagos State. In the final of the championship, I took the last leg for my team because the person who used to run the last leg, who is now an Oba in Ijebu, Engr. Kasali, was not available. So I had to take the last leg and as God would have it, immediately I took my baton before David Ejioke, who was one of the top athletes in the state then, it was a great battle between the two of us.I got in before Ejioke and UNILAG came first while Ejiokes teamPrison - came second. Do you know that up till today, people who witnessed that competition still recognise me as the man that beat Ejioke and I cannot forget it because it has been etched in my memory forever.Just like his greatest moment, Makanju also had worst moment: My worst moment in sports was in 1973 when the National Stadium in Lagos was opened. There was a football match and at half time, sprinters were invited and formed into teams, he said. I ran the last leg for my team and we were leading until I took over the baton.In relay, baton exchange must be smooth. Unfortunately for me, I had to wait for the third leg to give me the baton and before I could discover, Kola Abdullahi, who was the best sprinter in Nigeria then, was placing third and he was able to catch up with me and the gap was widening to the extent that the third person nearly caught up with me. We eventually came second but my team-mates were mad at me and I was booed by the fans at the stadium. I will not forget this day as my worst day in sports.For the chairman, Lagos State Athletics Association, sports indeed boosted his academics. He said: Sports really helped my academics, especially when I was in the university. I was called up to represent the state, region and the nation briefly as an athlete and in the course of this, you will definitely miss classes and therefore as an athlete you needed to put in extra effort.I found out that my classmates were very co-operative; in fact, there was one of them that would always go into class with a carbon paper between his own to give me a copy of what he had written. So sports really helped me and it never dragged me back because I did not take time for granted: it helped me to manage my time very well.Makanju had a stint with the national team and represented the country in some competitions within and outside the country. According to him, the national team in athletics is not like football. I got to the national team because the officials then believed in giving opportunities to young men who they believed had some skills. I never took part in competitions like the All Africa Games or the Olympics. But I took part in minor competitions for Nigeria. My first competition was in Crystal palace, London, which was an invitational. My invitation was made possible because I came third in the All Nigeria AAA in 1971.I also represented Nigeria during an athletics competition involving Nigeria and the United States visiting team in 1972. I remember vividly that the man who later became a super long jumper, Charlton Ekusuele, was invited to join us (junior athletes) at the Liberty Stadium in Ibadan. To the glory of God, Ekusuele beat everybody, including the American athletes and most of the top Nigerian athletes that took part in the competition.It was a fulfilling moment because at the Liberty Stadium, we had to line up to meet the guest of honour - the then Governor of Western Region, Brig. Oluwole Rotimi. I remember when he came to shake hands with me, he extended his right hand, but I extended my left hand and we began to crack joke. The scene was captured on television because my friends later asked me what I was discussing with the governor and I said we were just joking. I believe beautiful things happen when you meet people and also make friends. Most of the friends I have were through sports and they are still with me.He continued: My participation at the national level was very short because it was just two years and that was the end of it. It was because in those days when we were out of the university, you had a job waiting for you and that was the end of your career, unlike what happens nowadays. I was not finished with athletics because when I went for my post-graduate (studies) abroad I also took part in sports. Even though I was already getting old, I nearly broke the Scottish record in long jump and was the toast of the University of Aberdeen, a school founded in 1495.Sports made positive mark on Makanju throughout his active days. According to him, sports gives you resilience because there is nothing you throw at me that I cannot take from you and sports taught me this. I want to think of myself as being very fair to people around me because if you are a sportsman, you want to play according to the rules.It has also taught me that with dint of hard work, you can achieve a lot. I keep to small details, which later become big. Also, it helped me to socialise and make lots of friends. The likes of Tony Urhobo of Ahmadu Bello University (Zaria), Ogunjobi of Ife (Obafemi Awolowo University) and a host of others were all friends and we will continue to be friends.But he lamented the dwindling fortunes of sports in schools, saying: How many schools nowadays have playing field In those days in the primary school, we had playing fields with different fields for athletics and football. Most of the schools nowadays dont have playing field, how will they take part in sports Secondly, Physical Education (PE) was included in the school curriculum as a subject and you were all forced to go out and try your hands in one sport or the other. But nowadays this is not there.Thirdly, I believe money has come in to the extent that nowadays many schools believe they dont have the funds to compete. At present, I am in charge of sports at the school and state levels. I discovered that one of the problems facing sports is lack of fund. Companies are not ready to fund sports, while the government has a lot to attend to in the country. Most government look down on sports and al these have contributed to downgrading of sports in schools and if we dont go back to the primary and secondary schools, we can never get there.He observed further: In Britain today, majority of the black people running for them are Nigerians. Go all over the world, Nigerians are competing for other nations and if all these athletes compete for Nigeria, we will be one of the best in the world. But they did not have the opportunity in Nigeria, they went to look for the opportunity, while some were born there; they had the opportunity and use it.All those born here dont have the opportunity and nobody knows them. If coach Ogunmakinde, who was the Lagos State coach as well as the national coach, did not encourage me from the university, I would not have made it to the national camp. He invited me and I kept on improving.To remedy these ailments, our government has to go back to the drawing board, which is the grassroots. I could recollect that when we were in the university, we had competition every week, with teams and clubs competing with one another in various events. But it is unfortunate that all these are no more there.Also, most universities dont focus on bringing up young ones and using myself as an example, if I was ranked then I would not have been rated number 24 but they saw me as a young man that must be encouraged. It was not that I was a star - most schools go for stars so that they can win medals for them. But let the young ones take part and compete because I know some of them will make it to the top. But the younger athletes are discouraged as schools resort to bringing in mercenaries and I think this is very wrong.For budding athletes, a counsel: I will advise that all athletes must strive at least to get paper qualification. It is not all of us that will be professors or doctors. But the basic is your school certificate and thereafter you can go in for coaching courses and also have a degree in coaching. But the most important thing is open your mind to learning. So it is education that will do this and you will accept so many things as well as try other alternatives.So I will appeal to them to try so that they will not become a burden to the society. I am very happy that the likes of Funlola Okunnowo, now a barrister, Rhodes Vivor, now a chief judge, and the current Minister of Foreign Affairs, Odem Ajumogobia, who was a fantastic basketball player in UNILAG, are doing well even after quitting sports. I like to see more of these athletes doing well after sports.
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