Sports

Olympics-Bound Para-Athletes Commend Sports Minister

admin
17 Jun 2021 8:05 AM GMT
Olympics-Bound Para-Athletes Commend Sports Minister
x

2020 Olympics-bound Para-Table Tennis athletes have commended the Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare, for quick opening of camp and preparations for the Tokyo sports fiesta. The Para-Table Tennis hopefuls also gave thoughts about their welfare and camping in an interview on Thursday in Lagos. Supreme reports that the Olympics-bound athletes are housed […]

2020 Olympics-bound Para-Table Tennis athletes have commended the Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare, for quick opening of camp and preparations for the Tokyo sports fiesta.

The Para-Table Tennis hopefuls also gave thoughts about their welfare and camping in an interview on Thursday in Lagos.

Supreme reports that the Olympics-bound athletes are housed at the Brai Ayonote Hall at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, while the training session is on-going at the Table Tennis Hall of the Stadium.

A Para-table tennis player, Ahmed Koleosho, praised the minister for ensuring early preparation of the athletes ahead of the summer Olympics.

“So far so good, we have started on a good note by coming to camp even earlier than we thought which has been made possible by the Minister of Sports and Youths Development, Sunday Dare.

“As expected we having been going through rigorous trainings in all the several sections made available to us by our trainers; we hope this will help us to improve in our quest for medals at the Olympics.

“We specially thank the minister for making this possible for us; it is a wonderful policy assurance of good outing during the Olympics.

“For us, we are hoping to put in our very best in ensuring that our country, Nigeria, is well represented by turning in gold medals when the Olympics get underway.

Koleosho maintained that the facilities with which the athletes were being trained were all up to standard while other welfare packages such as food have well met their expectations.

“We are well catered for as we are given treatments up to the standards; for us this is a new environment although not strange to us, we are adapting well to the training regime.

Our training sessions are divided into two; the morning and the evening sessions. The morning sessions starts by 9.a.m, and ends by 11.30 a.m., while the evening session is from 4.p.m to 6.p.m.

“We are also provided with experienced technical staff that oversee our trainings and we have in our midst an Olympic gold medallist who is the only one to have the Para-Table Tennis gold.

“We have other coaches as well, preparing us on what it means to be at the Olympics and the expectations and also the home-based athletes who are here to encourage us,’’ he said.

Another Para-Table Tennis player, Olatunji Ogunkunle, a gold medallist at the just-concluded National Sports Festival said that the trainings had been intense.

“Our trainings have been intense and good enough to prepare us ahead of the Olympics. I think the government wants the best from us, so they are doing their best as well in terms of preparations.

“For us as Para-Table Tennis players, we will be ready ahead of the Olympics because of the adequate training given to us in the camp.

“We appreciate the Minister for giving us this opportunity to fly the country’s flag at the Olympics and we hope to reciprocate by coming out tops when the games get underway.

“We also thank those in charge of our food; they are doing their best to ensure that we are well taken care of,’’ he said.

admin

admin

    Next Story