Delisting of scrabble is demoralising, says Aka

Making this statement in an interview with Grassroots Sports, President of the federation, Toka Aka, said the delisting came to his federation and Nigerian judokas as a shock. According to Aka, some of the Nigerian scrabble players who depend on their respective states for sponsorships may have nowhere to turn to for help, saying lack […]

Making this statement in an interview with Grassroots Sports, President of the federation, Toka Aka, said the delisting came to his federation and Nigerian judokas as a shock.

According to Aka, some of the Nigerian scrabble players who depend on their respective states for sponsorships may have nowhere to turn to for help, saying lack of sponsorship may discourage the athletes from the sport.

“The delisting of scrabble and other 14 sports from this year sports festival slated for Port Harcourt, Rivers State, is disappointing and capable of rubbishing the success we have recorded in the recent past.

“How do we explain to our athletes that they will not be welcomed at this year’s sports festival? Most of them have been preparing for the festival, but now all their efforts geared towards winning medals for their respective states and getting some rewards are now in vain.

“Also, they cannot be part of those that will be rewarded by their states for winning medals in the festival. As a matter of fact, NSC’s action is capable of forcing some of our athletes from the sport, having made a giant stride in Africa and at the global level.

“Most of the sports delisted are supposed to be competed for in international tournaments. Now that they have been delisted, how do we prepare our athletes for such tournaments, after all national sports festival is supposed to be a platform for discovering new talents for major tournaments?

“Scrabble has become a household name in Nigeria, a development which recently made the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) do a documentary on Nigeria scrabble. But, back in our country, we are being prevented from participating in the national sports festivals,” Aka said.

He wondered how Nigeria will be able to win medals in those delisted sports, if they are not allowed to engage in competition of the magnitude of the national sports festival, which takes place once in every two years.

Asked what effort his federation is making to reverse the NSC action, Aka said he and other affected federation presidents have met the Sports Minister, Alhaji Bio Ibrahim, on the mater, “But the DG, Patrick Ekeji, said the decision was made by the sports council and that the ministry cannot do anything about it.

Other sports delisted alongside scrabble in the sports festival are Baseball/Softball, Cricket, Golf, Karate, Shooting, Squash, Para-Soccer and Darts, Rugby, Rowing/Yachting, Kung-Fu, Kick-Kicking and Deaf Sports.