NED NWOKO: HARNESSING SPORTS POTENTIALS FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH, BY JULIUS OWEH

Sports apart from physical fitness of the athletes, entertainment for people, is a veritable means of revenue generation. This is done through investment and sponsorship.

In Europe and the United States, sports is big business. And Senator Ned Nwoko is keying into this beautiful narrative as vice chairman of the Senate committee on sports. It is on national record that he is the first Nigerian to establish a sports university.

Nwoko explained the vision behind the sports university at Idumuje Ugboko in Aniocha North local government area of Delta state.

Listen to the senator: “I have always been involved in sports from my primary school, through secondary school and even the universities I attended in England. Sports have always been part of my life, which is why I built the Sports University of Nigeria (SUN).

“We offer over 27 different sports, alongside academics because we want to nurture well rounded individuals – both athletes and scholars. Our goal is not just to create sports stars but to ensure they are also grounded in quality education, so they have something to fall back on after their sports careers.”

As the vice chairman of the Senate committee on sports, Nwoko had used every opportunity to advocate for adequate funding of sports and early preparation for international sports competitions so that our athletes could win laurels. He maintained it would be akin to sports alchemy to expect results without adequate preparation.

Ned Nwoko stressed that much during the 5 Stars Premier League 2024 Finale held in Abuja. During the event, he argued with conviction that sports should not be seen as mere recreation but as a professional endeavour with consistent investment needed at both grassroots and national levels.

Listen to the sports loving senator: “As a nation we must make conscious efforts to invest in sports. Identifying talent remains a challenge but the bigger issue lies in nurturing, funding and preparing our athletes. We cannot continue to wait two months before major competitions like the Olympics to provide support. We will never do well with such last minute planning. Other nations camp their athletes for years – how do we compete with such preparedness?

The senator’s love for sports development knows no bounds and recently he, again, advocated for quality education for athletes.

During the recent Senate committee on sports development in collaboration with Federal Ministry of Youth Development, Nwoko was unapologetic on education empowerment of youths and athletes.

He explained the import of the programme: ‘The essence of this competition is to try and discover young talents. There are many young talents out there in different parts of the country but they are never given the opportunity because nobody knows them, nobody has heard of them

“We are hoping that this particular initiative will at the end of the exercise, identify some young talents across the country. Those of them that are extremely good will be supported to go abroad, train further and hopefully represent Nigeria at the national team.’

If the suggestions of the senator representing Delta North senatorial district are taken with the seriousness it deserves, in no distant future Nigeria would reap the economic benefits of sports developers and investment. The youths of the nation would be attracted into the beautiful world of sports with progress for themselves, families and Nigeria would no longer participate in Olympics with no medal to show for it.

Oweh, is the Editor-in-Chief of The Pond News