Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has sworn in 44 chairmen of sports associations in the state. He urged them to promote grassroots development, find new talents, and create sustainable paths for athletes to succeed both nationally and internationally.
During the inauguration at Lagos House, Ikeja, on Tuesday, Sanwo-Olu said these appointments are a big step towards improving sports management in the state.
The governor asked the new sports leaders to set clear goals for their associations. He wants them to create programs for succession and build systems that can identify, nurture, and turn raw talent into top athletes.
He stated that Lagos’ image as the Centre of Excellence should go beyond just finding talent. It should also include providing the structures, training opportunities, and competitive environments needed to turn talents into champions.
"Lagos’ reputation as a Centre of Excellence must extend beyond talent discovery to establishing the necessary structures, training opportunities, and competitive platforms to transform talents into champions," Sanwo-Olu said.
He emphasized that sports is not just for fun. It can also encourage discipline, education, job creation, entrepreneurship, and boost the economy.
"Sports is not merely recreation but a pathway to discipline, education, employment, entrepreneurship, and economic growth," he said.
Sanwo-Olu noted that big sporting events can also create jobs in hospitality, transport, entertainment, media, technology, fitness, and sports medicine.
He called for better teamwork between the government and private sector. He believes that more private investment would strengthen sports and athlete development in Lagos.
The governor instructed the newly inaugurated chairmen to focus on transparency, accountability, and discipline. They should also ensure their associations have active competition schedules.
He encouraged the associations to create chances for women, girls, people with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups.
Sanwo-Olu said the performance of the new chairmen would be based on the athletes they develop, the institutions they improve, the records they break, and the champions they produce.
"Their success will be measured not by the duration of their tenure but by the athletes developed, institutions strengthened, records broken, and champions produced during their tenure," Sanwo-Olu said.
The governor mentioned Lagos’ recent successes in national sports competitions as proof of what can be done when talent gets support from a good system.
He also pointed out that Lagos hosted the National Intermediate Games to strengthen the state’s role in sports development and provide a platform for young athletes across the country.
The Director-General of the Lagos State Sports Commission, Lekan Fatodu, said the inauguration shows the administration’s dedication to sports development.
Fatodu stressed that the government alone cannot grow the state’s sports sector. He called for stronger partnerships between the government, sports associations, athletes, coaches, corporate bodies, schools, and local communities.
"Government alone cannot develop the state’s sports sector," Fatodu said.
He described the new chairmen as important links between athletes and their sporting communities. They will handle talent identification, athlete development, competition organization, building technical skills, and creating paths for athletes to compete and succeed.
Dr Solomon Alao, the Chairman of the Lagos State Athletics Association, spoke on behalf of the chairmen. He said the new leadership is committed to supporting the government’s vision for sports development.
"We are committed to supporting the government’s vision for sports development," Alao said.
He added that the inauguration boosted the chairmen’s confidence in the administration’s commitment to the associations. They promised to work hard to achieve good and impactful results in their sports associations.
Alao concluded that the chairmen were inspired by the trust placed in them and were eager to bring better results for athletes and grow sports in Lagos.
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