Team Nigeria’s impressive performance at the recently concluded Commonwealth Games has lifted the drowning spirit of Nigerians.
Sequel to finishing seventh on the medals table at the just concluded quadrennial games with 35 medals (12 gold, nine silver and 14 bronze), President Muhammadu Buhari has described, as a parting gift to him, the performance of Team Nigeria at the 22nd Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
Valuechain recalls that the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games outing was Nigeria’s best in recent times.
Acknowledging the feat in a statement, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the president, Femi Adesina, said the performance of the athletes was a “display of Nigerians’ indomitable spirit.
The atmosphere in camp, the statement said, “reflected positively in the psyche of the athletes, contributing to the harvest of medals for Team Nigeria.
‘‘We are proud of these achievements and the memories will linger with the nation forever, and for me, this is a special moment and a fitting parting gift, being my last Commonwealth Games as Head of State.”
Buhari who assured all stakeholders that youth and sports development will remain a priority for this administration.
The President urged the officials to work with all relevant stakeholders to build on the success of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, begin early and earnest preparations to surpass this spectacular achievement in upcoming competitions.
While commenting on the achievement, Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare also congratulated Team Nigeria for posting its best performance ever in Birmingham.
He described the performance as excellent, inspirational, phenomenal, commendable and commanding.
“This impressive outing ensured Team Nigeria also finished as the best ranked African country on the medals table, placing 7th,” he enthused.
His words: “This is a performance like no other with many new records set, old records broken, long standing jinxes of not getting on the podium in some sports also destroyed.
“This sign posts a brighter and better future for Nigerian sports development.I congratulate all our sports men and women, not just those that won medals but all those who competed. I appreciate their sacrifice, commitment, confidence and patriotism.
“I am proud of them, Nigeria is proud of them and I believe that the Nigerian spirit that led them to these performances will lead them to the place of excellence,” Dare said.
Meanwhile, BBC, in a post-event report, said the Commonwealth Games movement could have a lot to thank Birmingham for. With Barbados having become a republic last year, the event came at a time of renewed focus on the future of the Commonwealth.
Seen by some as an outdated legacy of colonialism, the Games – previously called the Empire Games – has been struggling to forge a new meaning, and find potential host cities, with an over-reliance on Australia and the UK as hosts in recent decades.
Indeed, Birmingham could be the last such Games of its kind. The next one, in Victoria in 2026, will feature a scaled-back, more flexible programme across four ‘hubs’. Athletics and swimming are the only two ‘traditional’ sports that have to be included, as part of a new approach designed to lure more cities into bidding.