Over 600 athletes would be participating at the Ikeja Games organised by the ranking member and Chairman Finance Committee of the House of Representatives, Hon. James Abiodun Faleke in partnership with the National institute for Sports (NIS).
The games which opened on Monday, with accreditation of participants who will be participating in 10 different sports among them football, between the 10 INEC recognised wards of Ikeja Federal Constituency, basketball, Table Tennis, Chess, Scrabble and Snooker. Other games that would be competed for are Draft, Ayo Olopon, Ludo and Cards.
Unveiling the maiden edition of the games, the Chairman of the Main Organising Committee of the Ikeja Games 2023, Bayo Ayo said in order to ensure the delivery of a well organised sports competition, the games partner, the NIS would be working with the MOC and the Local Organising Committee (LOC), to achieve the milestone.
Ayo said apart from the presentations of trophies,.certificates and medals to the winning teams and individual games,.cash prizes shall be presented to the winners and for the first time, all 600 participants shall be presented with cash stipends as participating fee to boost their morale.
He said the ideal has been on the board for over two years and efforts are on to establish a Trust Fund for the games, adding that the focus of the games is to produce sports men and women who would grow to become global champions.
He said while the constituency office would be used for the individual games, the two team games would be communicated to all participants from the 10 wards in the Ojodu federal Constituency.
Ayo said winner of the team games would go home with the trophy and N500,000, the first runner up would go home with N300,000, second runner up, N200,000, while the fourth place would go home with N150,000, even as participating teams will win N50,000.
Winner of the individual games will go home with N100,000, while everyone who registered for the games would go home with stipends.
The Vice Chairman of Ojodu LCDA Bunmi Oluyadi applauded Faleke for the games initiative. He said the games is an opportunity to build the youths in more productive endeavours as it offers an opportunity for youths with God given talents to horne them for a better rewarding future.