4th December, 2012
Chairman of Kogi Judo Association, Damisa Sulaiman, has said that there is need to take the sport seriously because of its medal prospects.
Sulaiman made the call during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday at the University of Lagos Sports Complex. He said the efforts being made to promote the sport had began to yield results in the ongoing Sports Festival, where Team Kogi have won a gold and a silver medal.
The chairman expressed worry that the sport was yet to be appreciated in the country, in spite of its visibility through the activities of the Nigeria Judo Federation. Sulaiman, therefore, urged the National Sports Commission (NSC) and the media to do more for the sport.
“The state government has been doing a lot to promote the game and we want to make the state a haven for Judo. For instance, we have won one gold and one bronze in the sport through this remarkable feat. We are now entrenched on the medals table. `It is surprising that Judo is not a popular sport in the country, which is why some of us are making efforts to give judo its pride of place in the scheme of things.”