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Tag 6th Kaduna State Sports Festival

  • Mar, Mon, 2020
Sport

Kaduna govt pledges special scholarship packages for talented athletes at state sports festival

Pledge
By Stella Kabruk
Kaduna, March 2, 2020 (NAN) The Kaduna State Government will provide talented athletes identified at the ongoing sixth edition of the State Sports Festival with special scholarship packages, an official disclosed on Monday in Kaduna.

The state’s Deputy Governor, Hadiza Balarabe, made the disclosure while declaring open the festival at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium.

She said the state government would, in view of the importance attached to sports, provide incentives such as scholarship packages to students who distinguished themselves in events.

“To provide these incentives, the state has instituted special scholarship packages for those who excel in sports,” Balarabe declared.

She said the state government was aware of the importance of sports in promoting the socio-economic development of states.

The deputy governor pointed out that this knowledge led to the need to give the state’s Sports Development Ministry the necessary support to ensure the festival was held annually.

She said the state government was hopeful the festival would enable young athletes in the state to find national and international space to exhibit their talents.

“Sports generally enhances students’ academic performance. Youths involved in sports are also most likely not to engage in drugs and they do not drop out of school.

“Sports unites people, and it is as such a driving force that makes us to begin to provide sports facilities in all public schools,’’ Balarabe said.

She charged the chairmen of all local governments in the state to support events at the grass roots to ensure an all-round development.

“Also, let me call on corporate organisations and public-spirited individuals to come and partner with us in ensuring this sports festival is sustained annually,” she said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that over 2,000 athletes and officials from the 23 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state are featuring in the one-week event.(NAN)
KSS/JPE/OLAL
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(Edited by Joseph Edeh and Olawale Alabi)

 

  • Mar, Sun, 2020
Sport

Athletics to get priority attention at Kaduna State Sports Festival, official says

Athletics
By Stella Kabruk
Kaduna, March 1, 2020 (NAN) The Kaduna State Ministry of Sports on Sunday said it would concentrate more on athletics during the sixth edition of the State Sports Festival which gets underway on Monday in Kaduna.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that 16 events are to be competed for at the festival.

“We will focus more on the athletics sport at the festival because the state has already qualified for 23 team sports at the forthcoming National Sports Festival (NSF) billed for Benin later this month,’’ the state’s Commissioner for Sports Development, Kabir Mato, told newsmen in Kaduna.

Mato, who was represented by his Special Assistant on Media, Ismaila Lere, added: “Kaduna State has already qualified to compete in 13 team sports for the NSF from the zonal eliminations in Kebbi.

“So, we have to use this state sports festival to select our athletes in track and field, and as such, athletics will be given priority.

“The Ahmadu Bello Stadium will therefore be the epicentre of activities. The opening ceremony and all athletics events, as well as the closing ceremony, will be held there.’’

The commissioner however disclosed that several venues would be used for the competition.

“We have several venues for this activity. About six or seven venues will be used, namely the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna Township Stadium, Kaduna Recreation Club, Kaduna Club, Police College, Kaduna State University and Hamdala Hotel,” he said.

On the event’s funding, Mato said it was being sponsored by the state government and local governments.

“The state government is shouldering 60 per cent of the responsibilities, while the local councils are taking charge of the rest 40 per cent,’’ he said.

The commissioner disclosed also that the event’s logistics, such as accommodation and feeding, have been split between the two bodies.

“We (the state government) are taking care of accommodation of all participants at the Hajj Camp, while the local governments will take care of feeding,” he added.

Mato however commended the Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) Limited for supporting the state sports festival.

He assured that adequate measures have been taken to ensure comfortable accommodation in a healthy environment and to eliminate the problem of contagious diseases.

“We are involving the state Ministry of Health in our activities all through. There will be health personnel at all the venues, and things will go well,” the Sports Commissioner assured.(NAN)
KSS/OLAL
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)