For sure, this is not the ideal time for this write-up considering the awful circumstances that have befallen the state following the deaths of numerous of the state’s contingents in the recently finished National Sports Festival on their return home last Saturday.
But I believe it is critical that I write it now so that those who were responsible for our poor performance would know what to tell us when they return to work after mourning the deaths of our sportsmen.
But, before I go any farther, I’d like to pray for the spirits of the departed souls to find eternal rest, as well as express my condolences to the bereaved families, friends, and coworkers of the deceased.
I pray for those in the hospital to respond quickly and recover from medical treatments. May Allah grant the relatives of the deceased the strength to bear this irreparable loss. Ameen
However, it is true that we, as sports stakeholders in the state, craves to see Kano fill its rightful place at the medal table (with plenty of medals) at the end of any national competition or event.
It is shocking to find Kano state ranked 13th in the overall medals chart for the just finished NSF, with only 6 gold, 13 silver, and 10 bronze medals totalling 29 medals.
It is also unexpected to see Kano this time around placed behind FCT and Plateau state in the overall medals table of northern states. This has never happened before, so I’m left wondering why.
Kano used to be among the top ten in the medals chart, with a large number of medals, but sadly that has changed this year.
For example, Team Kano State performed admirably in the last three editions of the National Sports Festival (NSF) held in Abuja, Edo, and Delta, respectively.
Kano finished ninth on the medals table at the 19th edition of the National Sports Festival which was slated in Abuja, 2018, with 11 gold medals, 22 silver medals, and 33 bronze medals totalling 66 medals.
Similarly, at the 20th National Sports Festival, Kano State won 18 gold, 25 silver, and 33 bronze medals, totalling 76 medals, finishing ninth in the overall rankings in Edo State 2021.
Kano State also finished seventh in the 21st National Sports Festival, with 19 golds, 27 silvers, and 30 bronzes, totalling 76 medals in Delta 2022.
We are aware that no northern Nigerian state, including FCT Abuja, had held a position higher than Kano. This is because Kano excelled in past competitions.
However, the situation has changed, and the Kano Team now performs at a lower level than in past events. So the question now is, why are we going down? Was our preparation any different than the prior ones?
I hear that we had to file protests and almost battle for some of the six gold medals we won and at traditional sports. Why?
What did we do wrong that prevented us from winning several gold medals in other sports, like Kano did in the past? What did we do wrong to deserve such humiliation?
I was told that the government had done everything necessary to prepare all of the contingents for their journey to Ogun State for the Gateway Games, as all of the requested funds, as well as allowances for officials, athletes, and others, had been provided before to the teams’ departure.
And that explained why the just concluded trip was devoid of any form of crisis or disappointment as we recorded few years ago.
Therefore, the government must also form a formidable committee of specialists and academics to analyze why Kano, the northern powerhouse failed this time.
What I don’t know for definite is whether the government provided everything needed to camp all of the athletes in one spot for intensive preparation and trials before to the Abeokuta trip.
Because it is true that the bulk of the festival’s performing and outstanding states used to spend months preparing their players for competition and also organizing mini sports festivals to test their chosen athletes. I don’t see why we couldn’t emulate their style.
The issue of elite athletes, whom most states seek before to competition; I do not believe the current management of the sports commission contacted them, as experience has proven that this is what the previous management of the commission employed and excelled at.
Depending on home-based or home-grown athletes is risky since they lack the necessary expertise and exposure to do something and produce something out of these types of competitions.
A buddy of mine once informed me that in order to develop sports, two things must be considered: grassroots to catch them young for future usage and elite athletes for current use.
I still want to know why our performance is falling. When the authorities return to work after the grieving period, they will need to address and resolve this issue.