President, Muhammadu Buhari will host Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume to a presidential reception at the Villa following their recent achievements for Nigeria, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Sunday Dare has said.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume last month won Nigeria’s two medals at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon: GOLD in the 100m Hurdles, and Silver in the Long Jump.
At the just concluded 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, both athletes inspired Team Nigeria to amass 35 medals, made up of 12 gold, 9 silver and 14 bronze.
The Minister of Youth and Sports assured members of the historic Team Nigeria contingent to the 2022 Commonwealth Games of a presidential reception.
“I followed every moment of your competition. I was in Birmingham from the beginning till I had to leave for other official engagements. So many Nigerians followed you too. We are all so proud of what you achieved for Nigeria and yourselves.
“Mr President is also very proud of you and has approved that a presidential reception be held to honour you for the historic feat at Birmingham 2022.
“We will immediately start to plan for the reception and once we have tightened things up, we will announce the date, invite you over from your different bases and you will have that privilege of meeting Mr President.
“Nigeria will appreciate you for the great acts of sacrifice, patriotism and determination to excel that you all have demonstrated here, whether you have a medal around your neck or not,” Dare said.
He commended Team Nigeria for the outstanding performance, describing the outing as the best ever in the history of the competition for Nigeria.
“The gold medal haul is the highest at a single Commonwealth Games for Team Nigeria, representing its best performance ever,” the Minister said.
Dare who described this year’s performance as excellent, inspirational, phenomenal, commendable and commanding, noted further that the impressive outing earned Team Nigeria number 7 on the medals table, and also the best-ranked African country in the tournament.
“This is a performance like no other, many new records were set, old records broken, long standing jinxes of not getting on the podium in some sports were destroyed”, the Minister said.
While congratulating all the participating athletes, coaches, officials, staff and top management of the Ministry and Nigerians in general for their sacrifice, commitment, confidence and patriotism, he added that this signposts a brighter and better future for the country’s sports development.
“I am proud of them, Nigeria is proud of them and I believe that the Nigerian spirit that led them to these performances will lead them to the place of excellence,” Dare affirmed.
Meanwhile, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Alhaji Ismaila Abubakar, has attributed the success recorded by Team Nigeria at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Birmingham, to God and the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Administration.
Alhaji Ismaila while congratulating officials, coaches, staff of the Ministry and Nigerians in general for the success recorded at the tournament, applauded the present Administration for its support and avowed commitment to the development of sports in the country.
According to him, when adequate preparation collide with determination and dedication, the ultimate result is success. He therefore applauded the Team for taking advantage of the opportunities granted to them by the government to ensure more podium appearances for the Nation.
He reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to the full implementation of the policies, programmes and projects of the Federal government, especially as it relates to sports.
The Permanent Secretary also commended the Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports, Development, Mr Sunday Dare for his doggedness in providing the quality leadership that led to the breaking of records in the contemporary Nigerian sports history.
Also speaking, Nigeria’s Chef de Mission to Birmingham 2022 and Director, Federations, Elites and Athletes Department (FEAD) of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Dr Simon Ebhojiaye stated that discipline, focus and determination set the tone for the Team’s glowing performance at the sporting event.
He commended the Minister, Mr Sunday Dare and Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Ismaila Abubakar for their exemplary leadership and guidance that made the Birmingham success story, a reality.
“I strongly believe that success cannot just happen by accident. You have to plan for it. The athletes too were disciplined, focused and very determined to excel; so it was a case of preparation meeting opportunity”, he said.
