All is set for the 21st edition of Nigeria's Olympics in Delta State amidst the ongoing FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Delta 2022 National Sports festival, which will start on Wednesday and end on December 10, will see athletes converge across all the states of the federation.
Over 10,000 athletes will Participate in sports festival - Sports Minister
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Sunday Dare has said that about 10, 000 athletes across all the state of the federation will participate at the festival.
This is about 2,000 more than the number of athletes participated at the 20th edition in Edo State.
He added that athletes will be competing in over 30 different sports, including football, basketball, wrestling, table tennis among others.
Dare disclosed that at the end of the competition, new sets of talents will emerge that will represent the country globally.
Cricket to Feature in Delta
The National Council on Sports (NCS) confirmed that cricket will feature at the National Sports Festival (NSF) in Asaba, Delta.
In a statement by the Director of Press of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (FMYSD), Mohammed Manga said that three demonstration sports will also feature.
“The members also approved the inclusion of cricket in the 21st NSF as well as three demonstration sports, which are Netball, Teqball, and Mixed Martial Arts,” Manga said.
Delta will deliver best sports festival - Okowa
The Governor of Delta state, Sen. (Dr) Ifeanyi Okowa has said that the state will deliver the best sports festival in the history of the game.
He added that the sporting facilities are ready for the games.
“The stadium and sporting facilities are all set for the games. I truly must appreciate the Local Organising Committee (LOC) and also the contractor that did handle the project.
“There is no doubt that a lot of work has been put in since the last time that l came in and you can see that everything is ready. They are just doing the cleaning, the games starts at 6pm and obviously, everything is fully set,” Okowa stated.
Meanwhile, Delta State won the last edition of the festival in 2021 which made it sixth time in a row for the state.
Team Delta won the festival with 158 gold, 116 silver, and 110 bronze.