Former Director of Sports, Wodi, Advocates Unified Reward System for Athletes

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The immediate-past Director of Sports, Bayelsa State Sports Council, Sir Braveman Wodi has advocated a unified reward system for athletes in the country.

Sir Wodi gave the charge while speaking at a public lecture organized to celebrate a sports administrator, Ambassador Miebi Ogunu’s 50 impactful years of grassroots sports development in Nigeria, held at the Ernest Ikoli Press Centre, at Ekeki in Yenagoa.

Wodi, who is the South-South Representative on the Board of the Nigeria Canoeing Federation, argued that there is a big gap in the inconsistent reward regime of athletes, added that whether or not the deserving athlete, coach and other officials get any reward at all and the amount of the reward the athlete gets, are at the whims of the benefactor.

The former Director of Sports, who painstakingly explained that there have been cases of mere hand shake to a victorious team/athlete; said different states give different amounts while some sports are rated higher than other sports in the reward system.

Wodi cited the example where the Super Falcons were rewarded with national honours, a three-bedroom flat at Abuja and a whopping $100,000 each for winning the continental Women’s African Cup of Nations whereas Blessing Oborududu received the same national honours of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON), three-bedroom flat but got a paltry $10,000 for winning the silver medal in women’s freestyle 68kg wrestling at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which is suppose to be higher than a continental achievement.

While positing that policymakers should prioritize sports development, Wodi advocated a unified reward policy through a formal legislation.

In his presentation titled “Celebrating 50 Years of Dedication to Grassroots Sports Development”,

the Director of Sports, Niger Delta University, Amassoma, Prof Diepreye Ere said “Miebi Ogunu started with a simple vision to offer children and youth in his rural area the opportunity to engage in sports”, adding that “Though faced with challenges such as limited resources, lack of facilities, and minimal community support, his dogged persistence and passion for sports development were foundational to him overcoming these obstacles.”

According to Prof Ere, “Miebi Ogunu was able to establish local sports clubs and informal training programmes accessible to all ages in his local communities both in Port Harcourt and Brass. He organized regular tournaments and through his passion he has mentored thousands of young athletes, many of whom went on to achieve regional, national and international success.”

Ere said Chief Ogunu has enriched lives and strengthened the fabric of many communities and called on sports lovers and stakeholders to celebrate Ogunu’s legacy and commit to supporting and expanding his vision.

Also contributing to the discourse, the President of the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), Engr Habu Gumel has, urged the Bayelsa State Government to set up a sports trust fund to cater for athlete’s welfare, adding that such an initiative will motivate the state’s enterprising sportsmen and women to pursue excellence.

While noting that sustainable national growth in sports begins from the grassroots, Gumel, who was represented at the occasion by the Chairman of the Rivers State Teqball Association, Mr Halim Zaccah, said “the celebration was not only a tribute to longevity but a recognition of Miebi Ogunu’s consistent sacrifice, vision, and unwavering commitment to nurturing talent from the community level to national and international prominence”

He equally posited that the nation must move beyond goodwill alone by establishing a strong legal framework that mandates structured support for needy athletes and sports professionals.

According to him, “young enterprising athletes will be inspired and motivated to pursue excellence with confidence, knowing that their sacrifices will be honoured and protected through the sports trust fund.”

Earlier, in his opening remarks, chairman of the occasion, Dr Laye Julius, who is a sports stakeholder and immediate-past chairman of the Trade Union Congress in the state, lamented the absence of sports fields in most schools, decline in schools sports and the extinction of organisations promoting grassroots sports, adding that all of these have worked together to stifle grassroots sports development in the country.

Recalling that in days gone by, the likes of Jossy Donbraye, Tarila Okorowanta and Adokie Amasiamaka all played for the Green Eagles while still in school, Dr Julius said the way out of the quagmire was to return to the basics and recreate grassroots sports.

Chairman of the planning committee, Barr Uroh Kiani said Miebi Ogunu is being celebrated because of his 50 impactful years of unassailable contributions to grassroots sports development in the country.

Technical Adviser to the Bayelsa State Governor on Sports, Alaowei Opokuma lauded Ambassador Ogunu’s passion and commitment to grassroots sports development and prayed that the renowned sports administrator reaps the benefit of his labour.