Former General Secretary of Nigeria Handball Association, Victor Onogagamue, has described as ‘great initiative’ the Young Athletes Appreciation Initiative currently embarked upon by the National Sports Commission (NSC).

“Young athletes should be carefully nurtured, supported and encouraged to excel after discovery,” he said.

Onogagamue, a former Director General of Delta State Sports Commission, said the process of nurturing and supporting young athletes to stardom is usually expensive and rigorous.

“Let us applaud the good works of the NSC leadership. Nigeria sports will benefit from this great initiative on the long run, he stated.

The NSC continues its nationwide Youth Appreciation Tour with the recognition of outstanding young athletes in Lagos, Abeokuta, Uyo, Abuja and Asaba, bringing the total number of young athletes honoured so far to 12.

The Abuja leg of the appreciation tour took place last week at the Nigerian Tulip International College, with the Chairman of the NSC, Mallam Shehu Dikko, Director General, Bukola Olopade, and former Minister of Youth and Sports Development, now Presidential Spokesman, Sunday Dare, in attendance.

Speaking at the Abuja event, Dare expressed satisfaction with the progress being made in youth sports development.

“I am excited because what is being done align with the universal laws of sowing as we know it – find promising stars early, nurture them and then the harvest comes. We have continued to partner with the private sector, and the seeds we sowed four years ago are what we are harvesting today. Credit must go to the Chairman and Director General of the National Sports Commission for their insight and commitment to sustaining this vision,” he said.

NSC Chairman, Dikko, reaffirmed that youth and grassroots sports remain central to the Commission’s mandate. “Youth and grassroots development are at the core of what we do.

“We want to raise the standards of school sports and ensure that schools at all levels, primary, secondary and universities, receive the necessary support to discover and nurture athletes in collaboration with the National Sports Commission,” Dikko stated.

On his part, Olopade, emphasised that the Commission is strengthening partnerships between schools and the sports ecosystem while prioritising athlete welfare.

“We will continue to encourage strong relationships between schools and sports. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has always made it clear that Nigerian athletes must never feel abandoned or neglected, and that is the commitment of this Commission.

“It is part of my responsibility to educate the public about the ongoing Young Athletes Appreciation Initiative. We should acknowledge the positive impact of this gesture, innovation, and initiative, which has motivated many athletes in just two weeks. The funds were paid directly to the schools or parents, not the athletes themselves.

“This approach is standard practice internationally. The athletes will receive symbolic checks, but the funds go directly to their schools or parents. For government schools athletes, we paid the parents directly, considering their fees are lower. I urge journalists to focus on sharing this positive initiative rather than criticising it,” Olopade stated.

In Abuja, two exceptional junior athletes who first emerged through the Invited Junior Athletes initiative, Rosemary Chigozie Nwankwo and Miracle Oluebube Ezechukwu, were honoured. Both athletes progressed to represent Nigeria at the CAA African U18/U20 Athletics Championships, where they won gold medals for the country, before going on to secure additional medals at the African Youth Games in Angola and African School Games in Algeria.