Athletes Task AFN

As the Athletics Federation of Nigeria, AFN intensifies preparation for the London 2012 Olympic Games, the nation’s athletes have tasked the body to look inwards by developing the sport.

Some of the athletes, who spoke with Athletics Weekly at the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos, said there is need for the board of the AFN to put more efforts to take athletics to the desired height in the country.

The athletes opined that Nigeria is blessed with abundant talents but much is needed from the AFN if Nigeria must be a force to reckon with in international athletics.

Seun Adigun, who specialises in short distance races, stated that the AFN must do away with the attitude of pouncing on established athletes, who international events are around the country but they should rather discover budding talents in the country.

Adigun is of the view that AFN should hold at least an athletics competition on weekly basis, where they would identify talents that can help the country win medals in international competitions.

For Ifeoma Ezewanta, she argued that the AFN should have a scouting department, which will embark on various tours to discover young talents that are hungry for honours.

Ezewanta reasons that if the home-based athletes are kept busy, they would give their foreign-based compatriots a run for their money during trials.

According to the quarter miller: “I train on my own because there is nowhere that I can compete with my counterparts except during the National Sports Festival, it should not be so, there should be other platforms for us to compete, this is not how they do it in other countries”.

Another athlete, Bimbo Orekoya advised the AFN to endeavor to visit Inter-House Sports competitions because  many athletes could be discovered and groomed to stardom.

Orekoya said some athletes in secondary schools have the potentials to go far in athletics, but regretted that they fizzle out after leaving school because  they are not properly monitored, adding that there are no competitions, where they can hone their track potentials.