Adopt-A-Talent Sports Programme: We’re Grooming Athletes For The Future In Lagos

Prince ‘Wale Oladunjoye, the Principal Senior Special Assistant on Grassroots Sports Development to Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola, is the initiator of the Adopt-A-Talent sports programme, which started three years ago. He told SUNDAY AKINTOYE about the importance of the project to sports development in Lagos State

How would you see the Adopt-A-Talent Sports Programme since inception three years ago?

The programme has been a success and I am happy that it has brought a lot of upcoming athletes to the limelight. When we started nobody thought it will be a success, but today a lot of parents, guardians are beginning to register their wards.

Some people said that some of the athletes in camp are above 18 years, what is your take on this?

Adopt-A-Talent Sports Programme is designed to discover and create a pool of budding talents who are below 18 years. There is no iota of truth in what people are saying. Our plan is to groom these athletes and give them three or four years to pick up. I am happy today that those who started these programme three years ago are improving in their performance.

You have groomed many athletes, as any of them represented Lagos State in national tournaments ?

I am glad to inform you that our athletes have done well in national competitions. Some of our athletes won laurels for Lagos State in the school sports festival held in Kano and Calabar in 2010 and 2011 respectively.

Our athletes who took part in the National U-18 Athletics Championship and even at the last National Sports Festival in Port Harcourt did well. We should appreciate and encourage these athletes.

Is it true that most of the athletes from the programme will represent Lagos in the forthcoming National Sports Festival later in the year?

We have discovered talents for the sports festival this year. Our main goal is to discover and groom talents for the future. We have told Team Lagos coaches to come to our camp and pick athletes that they believe are good enough for the festival this year. But what we are doing is grooming athletes for the future.

The second phase of the Adopt-A-Talent starts this month, what are your expectations?

My expectation is to see significant improvement in the performance of the athletes. The programme will contribute to sports development in Lagos, judging from the number of athletes that have registered for our programme this year. It is encouraging.

In what way did Governor Raji Fashola support this programme?

I am using this medium to thank the Governor of Lagos State for his support and contribution to this project. Governor Fashola is the brain behind the success of this programme and I want to thank the sports officials who work with me since the inception of this programme.