The Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the ongoing ninth National Youth Games (NYG) in Asaba has guaranteed that the event’s closing ceremony will not overlap with the Super Eagles’ World Cup qualifier against Rwanda, both set for Saturday.
Originally slated for Sunday, September 7th, the NYG closing ceremony has now been rescheduled to Saturday, September 6th.
Festus Ohwojero, a LOC representative, shared with The Guardian that shifting the ceremony to Saturday helps avoid additional costs related to accommodation and logistics.
“Based on our schedule, all competitions wrap up by Saturday. In coordination with the National Sports Commission (NSC), we’ve decided to hold the closing ceremony at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. This allows top NSC officials time to head to Uyo by private jet to support the Super Eagles in their crucial World Cup qualifier,” Ohwojero explained.
He elaborated, “Postponing the ceremony to Sunday would bring extra spending, and the NSC isn’t prepared to cover those costs.
For example, if the event closes on Sunday, departures would shift to Monday. Athletes and officials traveling east or through Onitsha would be impacted by the sit-at-home order in the southeast, making Tuesday the earliest possible departure and resulting in much higher expenses. But rest assured, our closing ceremony will not conflict with the Super Eagles’ match.”
On the competition front, defending champions Team Delta are beginning to recover on the medals table after slipping down to fourth place by day three of the Games.
As of yesterday afternoon, Team Lagos held the lead with 30 gold medals, followed by Edo with 23. Team Delta climbed back into third position, securing 11 golds.
