Determined to present a formidable squad in the maiden edition of the National Intermediate Games in October, host, Team Lagos, has commenced the screening of athletes through a Secondary School Sports Fiesta.

The open trial, held at Tolu Secondary School Complex in Ajegunle, brought together students from both public and private schools to compete in athletics, chess, and scrabble.

The aim was to identify fresh talents who will represent the state at the championship.

The Director of School Sports at Lagos State Sports Commission, Dr Oluyomi Oluwasanmi, explained that “The purpose of the Lagos State Secondary School Sports Fiesta is to comb the nooks and crannies of the state, especially our school system, to get more talents that we can use to beef up the already established pool of talents in preparation for the maiden edition of the National Intermediate Games being hosted by Lagos State in October this year.”

She added that the fiesta is one of several competitions designed to allow deserving pupils to emerge as part of the best U-18 teams.

“More trials will still be conducted to discover talents who will join the already established pool. Then we will commence training from there. By the time we get to September, Lagos will have formidable teams across all the sports that have been approved for the National Intermediate Games.”

Director of Sports Development at the LSSC, Nunayon Travih, also addressed the pupils, urging them to seize the opportunity. “Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the leadership of the Lagos State Sports Commission under Lekan Fatodu commenced this process as part of activities to select athletes for Lagos State’s participation in the National Intermediate Games to be hosted by Lagos State.”

He emphasised the importance of the trials thus: “This is a selection trial to pick top and talented athletes within the school bracket to engage with already discovered athletes from sports associations at the Lagos State Sports Commission.

“This way, we can have a mix of both environments to get the best for Lagos State at the National Intermediate Games. So, see this as an opportunity to express yourself and put in your best. I pray that you all come out successful and become worthy ambassadors of Lagos State at the National Intermediate Games.”