As the 22nd edition of the National Sports Festival tagged Gateway Games Ogun 2025 draws nearer the events are scheduled to hold from 16 to 30th May 2025.
The Independent Mirror reports that It indicated that lack of early preparation by the Northern states will continue to show that they are escort to the competition due to lack of proper arrangements.
Their southern counterparts have organized different competitions to set the ground for the Gateway Games Ogun 2025.
The south West for example has made adequate preparation for athletes the same with the Niger Delta region, but sadly there was no such arrangement among the 19 states covering the North West, Northeast and North Central. As one of the “Hausa provers say ba’a fafe gora ranar tafiya.”
In their effort to use sports as a tools to empower youth’s, Southwest Games were organized to serve as platforms to unearth and nurture the region’s next generation of sporting talents across the six southwestern states; Osun, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, Ekiti and the host Lagos.
The tournament has been a new dawn of competitive sportsmanship, youth empowerment and also provides regional unity between the states.
Also the Niger Delta states have organized similar competition title “Niger Delta Sports Games 2025” in preparation for the next upcoming National Sports Festival in Ogun.
The Niger Delta Sports Games is part of a plan for the region to continue leading the festival medals table and Delta State aims to defend it’s title in Abeokuta next month.
As the southern region is trying to use sports as a tools to boost economic growth, leadership training, skill development as well as foster peace and unity, not a single northern state is planning to use sports as a means to empower youth’s.
The Northern region has been left behind in any sporting activities in the country, because leaders in the 19 northern states do not see sports as a means to reduce poverty and insecurity by empowering young people through sports.
The major aim of the festival is among others to foster unity, talent hurt, and development in the country sports. The festival is also known to be called the Nigeria version of the Olympic Games.
The festival for 2022 was the 21st edition of the competition, and it was hosted at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asabar, the capital city of Delta State.
A total of 2,652 medals were won by the competitions while the host Delta topped the medal table, winning 320 gold medals, 200 silver medals and 128 bronze medals.
Team Bayelsa came second in the medal table, followed by team Edo, which came third.
Oyo was fourth, Lagos fifth, Rivers sixth and Team Kano finished in seventh position with 76 medals, including nineteen gold, 27 silver and 30 bronze medals, followed by Team Plateau in the 16th position with 42 medals.
The National Sports Commission recognized the immense potential of the initiative of the southwest and southeast for promoting sports development and nation building.
The competitions will also boost skills development and economic stimulation across the region.
Yusuf A. Yusuf Giginyu, from Kano State.
