Nigeria: Ebonyi Constitutes Committee to Supervise Athletes’ Screening

17 June 2011

Ebonyi Sports Council has constituted a 10-man committee to supervise the screening of athletes to represent the state at the 17th National Sports Festival which begin on June 27 in Port Harcourt.

Emmanuel Utobo, Acting Director of Sports said on Wednesday in Abakaliki that the committee was headed by Hilary Ubesie, the secretary of the council.

Utobo said that the committee would supervise the four-day trials, which started on Tuesday, and ensure that the best athletes were chosen for the festival.

“Members of the committee are individuals of proven integrity whom we trust to discharge their duties diligently, in the best interest of the state.

“Athletes are therefore advised to channel all complaints regarding the trials to the committee to ensure that all issues that would affect overall performance of the state at the festival were sorted out,” he said.

Utobo disclosed that all allowances due to the athletes before and during the festival would be paid to avoid a repeat of the spectacle at Kaduna 2009, where the non-payment of allowances caused chaos at the athletes’ camp.

“Some disgruntled athletes held some officials hostage over non-payment of allowances, a situation that contributed to the state’s poor showing at the festival,” he said.

The acting director announced that the athletes would be paid N500 daily while in closed camping to motivate them for optimal performance.

“During the festival in Port Harcourt, the athletes would be paid N1,500 daily allowance while an additional N500 would be given to them as feeding subsidy,” he said.

Beatrice Odii, Head of the council’s medical team, advised the athletes to maintain strict compliance with treatment schedule.

“We would be careful in giving drugs to athletes during treatment to avoid the administration of banned substances unknowingly,” she said.

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