With some of the best facilities you can find in any part of the world, Ogun State is in the mood to host the best ever National Sports Festival, the state’s Commissioner for Sports, Wasiu Isiaka, has said.

The 22nd National Sports Festival will hold from May 16 to 30 at the MKO Abiola International Stadium, Abeokuta, and other designated centres across the state.

Speaking during a facility tour ahead of the festival on Thursday, Isiaka assured that the Games would be declared as “best of the best” at the conclusion.

He said the upgrading of the facilities at MKO Abiola International Stadium, hub of the upcoming festival and the Alake Sports Centre, where some indoor games as well as handball will be held, is part of the plan to give Nigerian athletes and their officials an experience they would cherish for a long time.

Remarkably, the facilities have undergone a tremendous upgrade as the facade of the stadium wears a new look, while the new athletics tracks have also been laid.

The football pitch is now lush green following the laying of hybrid astroturf. Isiaka credits the state governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, for the transformation of the facilities and the huge ongoing mobilization of the indigenes ahead of the games, pointing out that the enclosed VVIP pavilion at the stadium has been expanded to accommodate nearly 150 guests, up from the previous capacity of fewer than 50 guests.

Apart from the finishing touches currently ongoing in some of the facilities, Isiaka affirmed that everything is set for a ‘glorious’ games.

“We are fully prepared. The facilities speak for themselves.

“We are working around the clock to ensure every necessary structure is in place. By the time the games begin, Ogun State will be more than ready.” Apart from the sparkling new facilities at the MKO Abiola International Stadium, more astonishing is the transformation and nearly remodelling of the Alake Sports Centre, which a few months ago seemed not ready for any event .

“Our governor is particularly interested in the welfare of Nigerian youths hence he has gone to a great length to ensure their comfort when they arrive for the festival.

“We are expecting between 10,000 and 12,000 athletes and they will all be accommodated at the Babcock University campus.
“The plan is to ensure that these athletes from different tribes and zones of the country mix, bond and became live-long friends after the festival.”