Governing Bodies
VIDEO: NOW, IT’S TOKYO 2020 IN 2021 AS OLYMPIC GAMES ARE POSTPONED!
Japan will hold the Tokyo 2020 Olympics Games by the summer of 2021 at latest, owing to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Tuesday (March 24).
“I proposed to postpone for about a year and president Bach responded with 100 per cent agreement,” Mr Abe told reporters.
He made the comment in a briefing with reporters following a call with International Olympic Committee (IOC) head Thomas Bach.
“We asked president Bach to consider postponement of about one year to make it possible for athletes to play in the best condition, and to make the event a safe and secure one for spectators.”
Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike separately told reporters the Games would still be branded “Tokyo 2020” even if they take place next year.
A joint statement by the IOC and the Tokyo 2020 organising committee read: “In the present circumstances and based on the information provided by the WHO (World Health Organisation) today, the IOC president and the Prime Minister of Japan have concluded that the Games in Tokyo must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021, to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games and the international community.
RELATED STORY: https://www.sportsvillagesquare.com/2020/03/24/ioc-set-to-announce-tokyo-2020-postponement/
“The leaders agreed that the Olympic Games in Tokyo could stand as a beacon of hope to the world during these troubled times and that the Olympic flame could become the light at the end of the tunnel in which the world finds itself at present. Therefore, it was agreed that the Olympic flame will stay in Japan. It was also agreed that the Games will keep the name Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.”
The July 24-Aug 9 Games have been the last major sporting event left standing in the coming months as the coronavirus pandemic put most of the world in virtual lockdown.
The IOC and Japan’s initial repeated insistence that the event would go ahead as scheduled – and then their weekend announcement of a lengthy, one-month consultation over possible postponement – perplexed many.
The Olympics have never been delayed in their 124-year modern history, though they were cancelled altogether in 1916, 1940 and 1944 during the two world wars. Major Cold War boycotts disrupted the Moscow and Los Angeles Games in 1980 and 1984.
Pressure on the IOC had been accelerating fast in recent days, with Canada, like Australia, saying it would not participate if the Games went ahead.
Other nations have also pressed hard for a postponement and a quick decision by the Olympic body to end uncertainty.
Athletes, though sad, were mainly in agreement with a delay, given health risks and disruption to their training as gyms, stadiums and swimming pools shut down around the world.
“I have ridden not just a roller coaster but the entire theme park of emotions,” Keesja Gofers, part of the Australian women’s water polo team, said on Instagram.
“I am relieved. Athletes around the world will now have the chance at a proper preparation and the Olympics can, on whatever date they are held, continue to be a coming together of the world’s best at their best.”
The coronavirus pandemic has raged around the world, infecting nearly 380,000 people, killing more than 16,500 and wrecking sports events from football’s European Championship to Formula One.
“Even if the current significant health concerns could be alleviated by late summer, the enormous disruptions to the training environment, doping controls and qualification process can’t be overcome in a satisfactory manner,” the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee said.
The US is by far the most successful nation in the history of the modern summer Games, while the rights deal with American broadcaster NBC to televise the Olympics represents from 50 per cent to 70 per cent of the IOC’s total annual revenues.
“Today the Games are not the priority, the priority is health, and that is how the world of sports contributes to that international solidarity,” Mr Tony Estanguet, head of the Paris 2024 Olympics organising committee and an IOC member, told France Info radio.
Japan and the IOC have previously said calling off the Games entirely is not an option, but a delay would present major logistical difficulties given the crowded global sporting calendar and complex commercial considerations.
World Athletics has said it would be willing to move the 2021 world championships, scheduled for Aug 6-15 in Eugene, Oregon, to clear a path for a 2021 Olympics.
Postponement would be a massive blow for hosts, Japan, which has pumped in more than US$12 billion (S$17.3 billion) of investment, while huge sums are also at stake for sponsors and broadcasters.
But a poll showed about 70 per cent of the Japanese think a delay is appropriate.
Governing Bodies
Sanusi set for record-extending tenure as Nigeria’s football politicians assemble in Asaba
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Speculations gathered ahead of the 2024 Annual General Meeting of the Nigeria Football Federation holding in Asaba on Friday have it that tenure elongation for the General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, is a major item on the agenda.
Neither formal confirmation nor denial has been issued since one of the leading newspapers in Nigeria, ThisDay dropped the hint.
The agenda of the meeting is also not made public. Dr, Sanusi is the longest-serving General Secretary in history having been in office from 30 March 2015 making 3,476 days or nine years six months and four days.
It easily drowned that of his closest rival in tenure – Sani Toro whose tenure from 21 December 1993 to 3 May 1999 is merely 2020 days or five years, six months and 12 days.
Thus, no one had enjoyed a longer period in office than the incumbent, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi. It is speculated that the tenure will be extended as NFF has reported that all delegates have arrived in the Delta State capital by Thursday evening.
The NFF Annual General Assembly, the first of which took place 90 years ago in Lagos on 19 February 1934, is the biggest assemblage of football administrators and stakeholders in the country.
In one such meeting on 24 July 2008 in Makurdi, the football body changed its name from NFA to NFF.
This year, according to a press release by the NFF, the plenary will have in attendance, the chairmen and secretaries of football associations in the 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory, chairmen and secretaries of the Nigeria Premier Football League, Nigeria National League, Nigeria Women Football League and the Nationwide League One, as well as chairmen and secretaries of the referees’ association, players’ union and coaches’ association. This group of 88 makes up the Congress.
They are joined by the members of the NFF Executive Committee and the management team as well as former NFF Presidents and General Secretaries.
The Minister of Sports Development, John Owan Enoh, is announced as the special guest. Nigeria’s Member of the FIFA Council, Amaju Melvin Pinnick is also expected as well as a representative of the West African Football Union (WAFU B).
The Governor of Delta State, Sheriff Francis Oborevwori will declare the General Assembly open.
Venue is the Unity Hall of the Delta State Government House.
Governing Bodies
Like in Egypt, former Nigerian Olympian, Sadiq Abdulahi wants Tinubu to declare ‘State of Emergency’ in Sports
Former Nigerian tennis player and Olympian, Prof. Sadiq Abdulahi has called for drastic action to arrest the decline of Nigeria in global sporting events.
The former tennis player who is now a professor in the United States declared that the “failure to win a medal at the regular 2024 Paris Olympics, the few medals at the Paris Paralympic and the fallout at the National Youth Sports Festival has exposed the deep problems facing the sport’s sector.”
He wants Nigeria to have the same approach that the Egyptian president has taken while reacting to the country’s performance at the Paris 2024 Olypics.
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ordered a comprehensive evaluation of sports federations that participated at the Paris Olympic Games, following a mission report submitted by the country’s sports minister.
According to Prof. Abdulahi, the National Sports Federations charged with the preparation of elite athletes have failed to do their job despite the cry for funding from the government.
“Federal Government cannot adequately fund all the Olympics sports. It is impossible.
“By declaring a state of emergency, new people, new approaches and new funding models will be identified. More importantly, the Federal Government will redefine grassroots sports development.
“We will lay sustainable foundation for sports development.”
Continuing, he called for the return of the National Sports Commission (NSC) which enabling decree was abolished through Decree No. 7 of 1991, but came back through presidential proclamation under Sani Abacha before it was abolished again.
The original NSC was established in 1964 as National Sports Council before the promulgation of Decree 34 of 1971 which legalised it as the apex Federal Government agency to control, regulate and organize sports.
“The FG may now bring back the National Sports Commission or the National Sports Authority. Our emerging national economy with the full participation of the private sector can support this new beginning. I hope this helps.”
RELATED STORY: President Al-Sisi orders sports system overhaul
Governing Bodies
CAF gives Yoruba and Arabic interpretations of ‘OLA’ the Super Cup 2024 Official Match Ball
The Confédération African of Football, CAF, has given the linguistics interpretation of OLA, the confederation’s official match balls produced by Puma which has also unveiled a special edition for the Super Cup duel holding on Friday in Saudi Arabia.
According to CAF, OLA, symbolizing the dynamic and energetic nature of African football, means “wealth,” “honour,” and “respect” in Yoruba and “rise” and “success” in Arabic.
The OLA ball stands out with its vibrant design and cultural significance. “OLA”
The ball is a mix of black and gold, representing power and sophistication. The ball will be the centrepiece of the eagerly-awaited match between the two giants of African football.
NFF Communication director unfolds 20 Points of a 20-hour ordeal on Libyan soil
African football legends, Adebayor and Aubameyang condemn Libya’s treatment of Super Eagles
BREAKING! CAF wades into the Libya-Nigeria Airport episode
Breaking! Uzoho suspended from Super Eagles’ next match with Sierra Leone
No longer Super League as CAF changes name of its new clubs competition
AIU releases its report on Tobi Amusan
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
Players boycott Libyan national team
-
AFCON5 days ago
Billiat’s penalty seals Zimbabwe’s 1-0 win over Namibia
-
AFCON1 week ago
Eguavoen unfolds Super Eagles’ squad for back-to-back duel with Libya
-
AFCON7 days ago
Facts & Figures as AFCON 2025 qualifiers enter Matchday 3
-
AFCON6 days ago
AFCON 2025 in Morocco: Everything you need to know
-
AFCON5 days ago
Libya’s captain, Faisal Al-Badri alleges poor treatment in Nigeria
-
Uncategorized7 days ago
CAF compels Kwasi Appiah to step down from Ghana FA
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
Fastest World Cup final scorer is dead!