NAN-S-1
Squash
By Olanrewaju Akojede
Lagos, Nov. 17, 2017 (NAN) The Chairman, Ex-Squash Pros in Diaspora, Femi Shittu, on Friday said that the body was on a mission to revive the game in the country.
Shittu said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines of an ongoing championships organised by the body at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.
NAN reports that the competition is tagged 1st Ex-Squash Pros in Diaspora U-13 to 16 National Squash Tournament.
The competition, which started on Nov.16, will be end on Nov.18.
Shittu said that the competition was one of the series of programmes lined up to reposition squash at the grassroots.
“We realised that nothing is happening in the game of squash now. We want to change what is happening with our own contribution; we want to take the bull by the horn.
“We want to contribute our own quota to the development of the game within the country. What we are doing now is to give the young ones a platform to showcase their talents.
“They can be training on their own, but if there is no competition, it is just an exercise. We want to re-activate the game in Nigeria,’’ he said.
The former player told NAN that the group targeted young players because grassroots development was critical to the sustenance of the sport.
“The young ones are the future of the game; that is why they are the target. We want to create a database for the players with a view of tracking their progression.
“We will follow up the players so that in the future, we may know how far they have progressed.
“We have Nigeria Squash Federation (NSF) now active with the president as an individual who has played the game before.
“If we can pull resources together, a lot will be achieved because, even within ourselves, we have sponsored eight or nine championships without any government input,’’ he said.
Mubo Lawal-Ojo, who is in charge of publicity of the competition, also told NAN that the main purpose of the championships was to `catch them young’.
“The ex-pros decided to fund the championships solely because of the idea of catching them young.
“They felt that the game was fast losing its relevance.
“We need to come together and organise the competition in a vibrant manner.
“We chose Lagos because of its strategic location and economic interests. We have about 150 players across Nigeria now,’’ she said.
Ex-Squash Pros in Diaspora is an association of former Nigerian squash racket professionals. (NAN)
KOJE/ERO/IGO
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Edited by Emmanuel Okara/Ijeoma Popoola