By Afusat Agunbiade-Oladipo

In the last five years, Rofiat Abdulazeez from Kwara has been the number one female Squash player in Nigeria.

Abdulazeez has been training at the Kwara Stadium, with eight different squash courts, which are serving athletes who take turns to use them.

Kwara Indoor Sports Hall

In the past, the stadium, now named after the late former military administrator of the state, George Innih, had just two twin courts.

Obviously, this was inadequate for the state blessed with many talents in the racket game.

“Honestly, coming home and seeing squash courts that are practical enough for both the younger ones and the seniors, which gives room for everybody to train in a very good space, personal solos (a lot of courts) which enhance efficiency is commendable.

“It helps each of us to improve on personal skills since there are a lot of courts that are available to train on.

“Before, we have just two twin courts which have been in existence since, and the service the two courts will render cannot be compared to the eight courts we have now which is history on its own.

“What we need now is maintenance and we are grateful for the opportunity to support squash especially Kwara being the grassroots of squash in Nigeria.

“Constant maintenance will help in keeping the court in good shape,” she said.

Kwara Squash Court

The facelift is not only in squash; table tennis, another grassroots game, which had also propelled the state to limelight in the past, also has its own share of the transformation.

The administration of Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, realising this, constructed a standard table tennis arena with modern facilities for players to train.

Table Tennis Arena in Kwara Stadium

Malam Bello Azeez, a Technical Official of basketball, said table tennis had always been a strong sport in Kwara owing to the up-to-date facilities.

“The likes of Atanda Musa making the state proud at the international stage were produced from these facilities.

“The new standard table tennis arena built by the present administration can host any national or international competition.

“The current administration has invested heavily in providing a standard table tennis arena with world-class table tennis facilities to train with.

“We just hope the facilities are maintained to continue serving its purpose,” he said.

The feelings of Abdulazeez and Malam Azeez  are playing out on the heads of athletes and officials in Kwara regarding upliftment of facilities in the stadium.

Main Bowl of Kwara Stadium

The present administration embarked on different renovations at the George Innih Stadium Complex ranging from the squash courts, swimming pool, table tennis arena, indoor sports hall, main bowl of the football pitch, the handball courts, among others.

The stadium has modern glass squash courts, including eight new courts which form the largest number in one location in West Africa and the indoor sports hall renovation was adjudged to cost more than N2billion.

The Executive Chairman, Kwara Sports Commission, Coach Bola Magaji, said that the present administration had revived sport activities in terms of infrastructural development in sports.

He said as a founding member of the stadium complex in 1977, the facilities there were monumental and attributed it to the growth of sports in the state.

“Most of these facilities have been abandoned for years, but the governor revived them all because he does not want the legacy of the then military administrator of the state to rot away.

“He has demonstrated what true leadership is, that is, when you consider the general public and not yourself; for what he has done here, he has left a legacy that anybody who wants to beat it will have to work hard.’’

The chairman said the governor had rewritten the narrative for sports in the state, as athletes no longer leave the state to represent another state.

“It has not been very easy before; the athletes were running and leaving the state to represent another state before, but now, they are representing and winning medals for us.

“But most of the youths are now engaged in one sport or the other instead of cultism, hooliganism or other forms of social vices.

“No stadium in any state can meet up with this standard; all our sports are concentrated in this stadium, except for golf, which is unprecedented.

“We can engage in 32 sports here without going out. And we are already trying to see if there can be a mini golf court yard,” Magaji stressed.

Magaji, meanwhile, said the investment in sports had started yielding fruits for the state, while the status had changed from being 21st on the National Sports Festival Log to the 7th and the 5th.

With the investment in sports, people from outside the state have also been coming to enjoy the facilities, seeking for knowledge in the state.

One of the students of Kwara Football Academy (KFA), Abdullah Hassan, said he chose to come to Kwara Football Academy (KFA) because the name popped up when searching for an academy with up-to-date facilities.

“I started playing football at the age of 7; when we searched for the best academy in Nigeria, it was KFA that popped up severally, amongst others.

“And so far that I have been here, I have been enjoying my programme, in terms of usage of facilities and the way we are treated here,” he said.

Corroborating Hassan’s position on the KFA, Mr Bako Ibrahim, the Chief Executive Officer, KFA, commended the governor for providing a conducive environment for the students to learn, and the support given to the academy generally.

“We thank the governor, because in fairness he has done more than enough for the sustainability of the academy.

“We commend him for reviving the sports activities here, in terms of the infrastructural development,” Ibrahim said.

The Chairperson of the House Committee on Sports at the Kwara House of Assembly, Mrs Rukaiyat Shittu, said the administration’s massive sports infrastructure renewal was a strategic effort to turn the sector into an engine of economic empowerment and community development.

According to her, the indoor sports hall, along with newly upgraded tennis and squash courts, a refurbished football field, and ongoing reconstruction of the Offa and Lafiagi stadia, form part of AbdulRazaq’s vision to industrialise sports and create a youth-driven economy.

Ultimately, observers say the Kwara Government is making giant strides in grassroots sports development.

They say these bold steps deserve commendation and emulation.(NANFeatures)

***If used, please credit the writer and the News Agency of Nigeria.