National Youth Games: 73 athletes from Osun to participate in zonal elimination events 

Funmilayo Moradeyo, the Secretary of Osun Sports Council, on Tuesday said 73 athletes from the state would participate in the zonal elimination competition of the 2018 National Youth Games.
Moradeyo, in a statement in Osogbo on the state’s preparedness for the games, said the athletes would be joined by 12 coaches and other officials.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the competition which is for states in the South-West zone of the country will hold in Abeokuta, Ogun.
Moradeyo said the athletes were selected after rigorous training and were expected to represent the state at both the elimination competition in Abeokuta and the NYG proper in Ilorin.
She said: “The athletes will be competing against their colleagues from Ogun, Oyo, Ondo, Lagos and Ekiti for tickets to the finals of the annual youth games.”
Similarly, Ademola Daini, the Director of Sports, Coaching and Training, Osun Sports Council, has commended the state government for providing financial support for the state contingent to participate in the games.
Daini said the gesture had lifted Osun above other states, as athletes from the state had become a toast of the nation both nationally and internationally.
He said this was because the state recorded successes at the third edition of the Games in 2017 at Ilorin.
He said: “The prompt release of funds then by the state government assisted the state’s athletes in discovering talents like Islamiyat Yusuf and Adedapo Opadeji who are now among the best young weightlifters in Nigeria.
“We are not going to rest on our oars as we intend to build on the experiences and successes recorded at the Games’ third edition as a way of showing appreciation for the state government’s support.
“We promise to make the state proud both at the zonal elimination and at the main event holding in Ilorin next month.’’
NAN reports that the zonal elimination stage is meant to produce the best athletes from the states in games such as football, basketball, volleyball, cricket, handball, hockey and beach volleyball.