Olympics
Why Team Nigeria failed at Paris 2024, former sports minister, Dalung speaks
To fail to plan is to plan to fail! That’s is the summary as former Nigerian sports minister, Solomon Dalung spoke to Sports Village Square on phone from Nigeria. According to him, the foundation of Team Nigeria was faulty ahead of the just ending Olympic Games.
He faulted the composition of most of the sports federations that produced athletes for the games. According to him, the federations were not well composed to present athletes that would have excelled.
“The federations must command the confidence of the congress. Unfortunately, the foundation I laid to while I was in office had been dismantled”, said Dalung who was Nigeria’s Games master- General from 2015 to 2019.
He is of the opinion that most of the sports federation leadership are not accountable to the congress that elected them. “During my tenure, I enlarged the electoral college to include all stakeholders in sports. I had an all-encompassing board that included even the media. But upon my departure, the structures were dismantled.”
Continuing, Dalung said that he heard the current sports minister, John Owan Enoh saying that the sports sector will have to go back to the drawing board after Paris 2024.
“It must start with accountable sports federation boards. As it is in Nigeria, no sports minister ever had the opportunity of attending two editions of the Olympics owing to the four-yearly cycle of the Olympics. No sports minister stay to implement new idea for the succeeding Olympics.
Dalung said that in his time, he did not have as much fund as it was made available to the current minister. “Money for the Olympics was not released until four days into the Games in Rio. Ihad to borrow N50 million from Ifeanyi Ubah before the arrival of fund from the Federal Government.
“I travelled to Rio Olympics with my money before I was reimbursed. We had crises, but we managed to solve them. It was tough.”
He told Sports Village Square that the demonstration in Nigeria may also have had negative effects on Team Nigeria.
“They are Nigerians and have families at home. The crisis at home will have effect on them and could have made athletes lose focus.”
The Olympic rings installed on the Eiffel Tower since June to celebrate the upcoming Olympic Games were removed from the Parisian monument early on Friday morning, as confirmed by an AFP photographer. But the Paris City Hall intends to replace them with a more permanent structure until 2028.
The five-coloured rings, measuring 29 metres in length and 15 metres in height, were placed between the first and second levels of the iconic iron structure on 7 June.
According to Inside the Games publication, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo wants the Olympic symbol to continue decorating the monument until the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
But the descendants of the tower’s creator, Gustave Eiffel are opposing the move. They are insisting that the Olympic rings are aesthetically in conflict with the concept and design of the Tower.
The 30-tonne rings initially installed on the Eiffel Tower were also not designed to withstand winter weather conditions.
Olympics
Despite Egypt winning 3 medals at Paris Olympics, President Al-Sisi orders sports system overhaul
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ordered a comprehensive evaluation of sports federations that participatedat the Paris Olympic Games, following a mission report submitted by the country’s sports minister.
The mandate includes a thorough expenditure check and a performance review to better highlight areas of improvement and fund allocation in future Games.
Additionally, the president plans to take necessary measures against federations —such as limiting funds— that had negative results in the Paris Games.
Egypt’s participation in sports where it lacks a competitive advantage will also be limited, as the president aims to direct resources to promising athletes to ensure optimal results. The president also aims to reduce administrative and technical staff within Olympic delegations and task relevant ministries with preparing future Olympic athletes.
Al-Sisi’s Olympic overhaul is to be presented to the cabinet for approval and urged the government to prioritise amending the sports law for the House of Representatives for review.
Egypt took home a total of three medals in the Summer Games. Ahmed El-Gendy triumphed in modern pentathlon, Sara Samir claimed the silver in weightlifting, and 21-year-old fencer Mohamed El-Sayed earned the bronze.
-Insidethegames
Paris 2024 sold a record 12 million tickets for the Olympics and Paralympics, beating the Games record previously set by London 2012, organisers said on Sunday.
Some 9.5 million tickets were sold for the Olympics and 2.5 million for the Paralympics, which end on Sunday.
In 2012, London organisers set the record for the Paralympics with 2.7 million tickets sold but only 8.2 million were sold for the Olympics.
-Reuters
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
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
CAF compels Kwasi Appiah to step down from Ghana FA
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
Fastest World Cup final scorer is dead!