The Nigeria Olympians Association (NOA) has rolled out it’s programmes for 2023 with this year’s summit scheduled for July in Abuja.
General secretary of the association and Olympic gold medallist, Emmanuel Babayaro (MON), said NOA would continued to focus on the welfare of Nigerian athletes both present and past with a view to inspire the young ones and honoured past Olympians..
This according to him will be heralded by honouring the past Olympians during the Summit in July.
“I am here to intimate the media with plans for the Nigeria Olympians Association.
“Customarily, every two years, we have the Olympians Association Summit. The summit is a forum that allows every Olympian from inception till date, probably the future athletes, wherever they live anywhere in the world to converge here in Nigeria and fly the country’s flag once more time.
“We also come together to do a lot of humanitarian works, in line with the Olympian spirit, to celebrate the spirit of the Olympics,” Babayaro said.
While reeling out the programmes for 2023 NOA summits to journalists in Abuja, former captain of Nigeria’s senior men national basketball team and president of Olympians, Olumide Oyedeji, said the new executives are determined to impact the lives of past and present Olympians with laudable activities cum programmes that would be staged across the country.
“We are here to lay out the plans for this year’s Olympic summit, just like we had two years ago.
“I want appreciate those who supported us two years ago, the ACTDF, Bet9ja, Dr. Larry Echejile, and Ambassador Ronsewe, to the DG of art and culture, the Nigeria Olympic committee, ministry of Youth & Sports, and also NTA.
“This year, there are going to be a lot of exciting things. And we are having on the 11th, 12th, and 13th for the Olympian Summit. And on the 12th, it would be the first time the Nigeria Olympian Association will be having a co-session with Nigeria Olympian Committee Athletes Commission. Talking about a lot of things relating to athletes and Olympics.
“And on the last day, there’s going to be a gala night which is already been tagged ‘The Labour of our Heroes past’.That’s where we would award the Olympians who have contributed and still contributing tremendously to the development of the sports and the Olympian society.
“The last time, we had a couple of our members, all the way from Germany, Funke Osunaike, Fatima Yusuf, Patricia Patrick, to mention but a few.
“We are looking forward to have more of them this year. But during the course of this year’s summit, we are definitely going to have our congress, mentorship, gathering about a thousand students.
“Young Olympians, future champions, as we have a program called ‘Building of champions,” Oyedeji states.
