Ogun State officials from the state ministry of sports abandoned athletes and coaches who participated at the 19th edition of the National Sports Festival in Abuja.
www.aclsports.com gathered that the top ranking officials flew out of Abuja without addressing Ogun state contingents.
Some of the athletes who spoke with www.aclsports.com on the condition of anonymity accused the staff of the ministry for neglecting before, during and after the festival.
An athlete said, “The Ministry of Sports was the one that handled this year festival and there were lapses, the sports council normally handle the festival things like this has never happened. As I am speaking with you, the athletes are still at Utako and they have nowhere to go”.
“Before we left Abeokuta for Abuja, we were not properly taken care off; the team escaped a robbery attack, our bus caught fire and we struggled to feed all through their 11 days stay in Abuja.
“The rickety team bus that brought them to Abuja has since packed up after a near fatal accident, yet the athletes gave their all to bring pride and honour to a state they love so passionately”, he said.
“When we woke up at our hostel, we got the shock of our lives as officials at the hostel ejected us from the facility without a formal warning. With bags on their heads, we littered the streets of Abuja begging for help.
A coach said, “We struggled to eat and drink in camp but we endured the suffering till the very end and amassed a total of 64 medals comprising of 8 gold, 15 silver and 41 bronze medals, to finish 12th on the overall medals table.
“This is a feat worthy of celebration but instead, what we are getting is humiliation and frustration. The tears have not stopped coming down; everyone is in a state of confusion not knowing where to go”.
