It was indeed an epic and historic event at the opening ceremony of the 18th National sports festival which was declared officially open by the vice-president Arc. Namadi Sambo on Tuesday night.
The hosts Lagos state in a nutshell brought to the fore, the historical backgrounds of Lagos and the ideals of its founding fathers showcasing the rich cultural heritage of Eko land (Eko Oni baje)
The vice-president, Sambo in his words described the ceremony as a land mark for Nigeria cultural history commending the host state for putting up a great show that can be likened to the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony.
He then reminded the athletes not to forget the ethics of the sports festival which is to discover young talents while asking them to play according to the rules.
Sambo who represented the President, Goodluck Jonathan , however promised to give the sum of 20 million naira to any state that will emerge overall champions as well as 15 million and 10 million to the second and third placed states.
Meanwhile, Imo state in the early hours of Tuesday missed a good chance of winning its first medal when one of her female cyclist narrowly placed fourth in the 200m cycling race that was decide on Tuesday morning.
The male team however did not qualify for the men’s 200m final cycling race on Tuesday which was taken by Rivers state.
The cycling team on Wednesday had another chance at the medals in the 500m race but the results were yet on known as at press time.
In a related development, the Imo state female football team lost to their Edo counterparts 2-1on Monday in their first group game. The team was also billed to take on Lagos state at the Agege stadium on Wednesday as a win will qualify them for the next stage since Adamawa state withdrew from the football event.
