Excitement as Sports Philanthropists Award Debuts
By Jude Opara, Abuja
All is now set for the maiden edition of the Nigerian Sports Philanthropists Award slated to take place in Abuja on January 20, 2023.
The occasion is being put together by four eminent organizations including the Ministry of Sports, the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) and the Society for the Promotion of Sports.
Addressing a world press conference to herald the event, Chairman of the Main Organizing Committee (MOC) and President of the Society for the Promotion of Sports, Vincent O. Michael said the event which will take place at the Shehu Yar’Adua centre was originally billed to take place on December 6, 2022 but was shifted because of the ongoing National Sports Festival (NSF) taking place in Asaba, Delta state.
Michael said the event was conceived to honour those worthy Nigerians who over the years have been using their personal resources and positions to develop sports as well as cater for the athletes.
He noted that it is an anomaly that great Nigerians like Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, the late Chief Moshood Abiola and many more have not been given any award as a token for their efforts to invest in sports.
“The Nigeria Sports Philanthropists Award is a platform generated by the Society for Promotion of sports, the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (FMYSD), Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) and Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN).
“This prestigious Award is about the highest recognition and honour in Nigerian Sports Industry from 1960. It is primarily to give honour and recognition to those who deserve it in terms of contribution and support to sport industry at any level.
“Over the years, Nigeria has been engaging in one sporting activity or the other with emphasis largely on the athletes and their coaches. But little or nothing has been said concerning the Nigerian sports philanthropists who have continued to invest their hard earned money to develop facilities, sponsor and support the athletes.
“Most of them had to sacrifice the comfort of their immediate families to always ensure they provided for the athletes as at when due. Some even singlehandedly ran sports clubs for several years”.
He further explained that the award would encourage many more Nigerians to invest in the development of not just facilities but also in the well being of the athletes.
“It is a well-known fact that when you appreciate a good gesture, it gives more encouragement even to other people because they too know that their modest support would be appreciated someday.
“Therefore, the selection process for the beneficiaries of this Award cuts across support to local tournaments, major international sporting competitions such as; African Cup of Nations, FIFA World Cups, All Africa Games, Solidarity Games, Commonwealth Games, Olympic Games, etc”.
He added that there are different categories of the Award including: Veterans, Emerging as well as Governments.
Michael also stated that there will be the N1.5 billion Naira launching and fund raising for the Nigeria Grassroots Sports Development. This fund would be used to build sports facilities in select secondary schools across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
“Nigeria has a comparative advantage as a result of the abundant talents scattered all over the country, because we believe that the scholastic athleticism is a fundamental right of every youth, therefore, we intend to use the occasion to raise fund for the commencement of the construction of 12 Standard Basketball courts, 12 Standard Tennis courts and 12 Mini Football fields at different public schools in the 6 Geo-Political Zones of the country”.
He said the goal is to enhance the living standard of the Nigeria youth for a united and better country through sports, and to let them know that with discipline they could combine sports and education effectively.
Also at the briefing were the Secretary General of SWAN, Jude Opara and representatives of the Sports Ministry and NOC.
