Edo State Gears Up For All Comers Meet
Athletes from various parts of Nigeria will converge at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, Edo State, for the Athletics Federation of Nigeria’s (AFN) All Comers Meet on Sunday.
The All Comers competition is the first of many the AFN has lined up to prepare Nigerian athletes for the African Championships in Mauritius, the World Championship in Oregon, USA, as well as the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
Newly appointed Edo State Sports Commission Chairman, Yussuf Alli, said that every arrangement needed to make the athletes feel at home had been put in place.
“The All Comers is an AFN event, but we are on ground to give the competition the assistance it deserves,” Alli, who was confirmed last week by Edo State House of Assembly, said.
Alli, a Commonwealth gold medalist, former Team Nigeria Captain and national long jump record holder, was the Competition Director for Edo 2020 National Sports Festival, which was adjudged as one of the best organised in recent times.
The AFN All Comers event was earlier scheduled for last weekend at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, but it was moved to Benin City.
The shift in date, according to AFN Secretary General, Prince Adeniyi Adisa Beyioku, is necessitated by concerns by athletes and officials over the initial date.
About 1,000 athletes from 12 states signified their interest for the event, according to the AFN. The AFN also said athletes from 25 clubs, as well as military and para-military services showed interest in the competition.
Chidi Nwoke/The Guardian.
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