Gbenga Elegbeleye, the newly-appointed Director General of the National Sports Commission, on Tuesday assured Nigerians that efforts would be made to know what went wrong at the last London 2012 Olympics.
Elegbeleye gave the assurance when he officially took over the mantle of leadership at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
The director, who said his appointment was to transform Nigerian sports, added that the investigation would help to prepare the country’s athletes for future competitions.
According to him, the country’s performance at the last Olympics was disappointing.
He, however, said that the Olympics disappointment must be put behind for Nigerian sports to move forward.
He added that henceforth greater attention would be given to grassroots sports development as it was the bases for athletes’ development in the country.
Elegbeleye said: “The agenda should be to transform Nigerian sports and it will not be a one man show.
“It’s a team work.
“One thing that is more important is that at international competitions, Nigerians should be celebrated.
“So, I think what we need now is to have more podium appearance for our athletes in international competitions.
“We must put the Olympics behind us to forge ahead for better result and I think it’s a matter of everybody working and cooperating together.”
Elegbeleye, a former Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Sports, was appointed on May 15 to replace Dr. Patrick Ekeji, who retired on April 9 as the NSC Director General, after eight years of service
He was a former council chairman in Ondo State and later became the chairman, Ondo State Waste and Environmental Board.
Elegbeleye had also served as member of various sports committees, among which was the reform committee on football administration.
Mustapha Mohammed, the Human Resources and Finance Director, who had acted as the DG for about six weeks, said at the handing over ceremony that Elegbeleye’s appointment was merited.
According to Mohammed, the office of the NSC’s DG was critical to the development of the country and as such deserved a person with proven integrity to pilot its affairs.
He said: “We are gratified that person with the pedigree of Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye is appointed to this office.
“It is an important one and a very critical one for that matter because sports play a very critical role in the development of any nation.
“It is the only unifying force that binds every nation, more so in Nigeria where we have several tribes, many religions.
“We have found out over the years that sports is the most important rallying point in organising Nigerians to forget about their differences and take up one nationhood.”
He also said that the task of piloting the affairs of the commission since the retirement of Ekeji had been very challenging.
Mohammed therefore urged the new DG to see his appointment as the act of God and to carry everybody along while discharging his duties.
The Director noted that the commission was faced with a lot of challenges among which was the disappointment that follows Nigeria’s woeful performance at the London 2012 Olympics.
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