Chairman Anambra Sports Development Commission, Chief Patrick-Estate Onyedum says as at the close of registration, about 756 primary and secondary Schools have indicated interest to participate in the 2024 edition of the festival.
The games that will kick off on May 2 and end on June 7 shall be in three categories of Under-13, Under-14 and Under-18 at community, local government area, senatorial district and state levels.
Angel Network News (ANN) reports that
Onyedum while speaking on Tuesday at a pre-competition press conference for the 2024 edition held at the government house Awka, maintained that the preparation for this year’s National Youth games in Asaba, Delta State has started and that the young and raw talents that will be discovered from the festival will constitute up to 85% of Anambra team to the games.
Onyedum described the Anambra State Sports Solution Initiative, ANSSI, as the vehicle with which Governor Chukwma Soludo is revolutionizing sports in the state, adding that within two years of his administration, the glory of Anambra sports is returning at an encouraging speed.
He explained that in 2023, about 600 primary and secondary schools registered and participated in the sports festival that has been yielding fruitful results, adding that from that festival, young, raw talented children from across Anambra who went to National Youth Games in Asaba and shook the country at that level of sports development were discovered
In his address Governor Chukwuma Soludo represented by represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr Ernest Ezeajughi, tasked the Anambra State Sports Development Commission on engagement programmes to get more people on board to do more for the people in sports sector.
Soludo who acknowledged abundance of sports talents in the state, said his administration is resolute in bringing out the best in children in order to channel their minds to meaningful ventures to enable them contribute to societal development.
Acknowledging enormous benefits in previous editions of the sports festival, Soludo called on relevant stakeholders to key into sports project in the state to achieve better results, and maintained that most things his administration is doing is for the betterment of tomorrow.
On his part, Anambra State Commissioner for Youth Development, Mr Patrick Agha-Mba, thanked Soludo and Onyedum for their efforts in sports development, stating that it has helped in talent cultivation and showcased the state to the outside world.
ANN gathered that this year, the students will compete in 12 sporting events, including Athletics, Basketball, Chess, Football, Scrabble, Swimming, Table and Lawn tennis, Taekwondo, Volleyball, Cricket and Ncho.
