Commissioner Ananaba, Director of Sports, Comrade Obioma George hail Governor Otti, as 2nd Abia National Darts championship begins in Umuahia

The 2nd Abia National Darts Championship, sponsored and hosted by the Abia State government has commenced at the Indoor Hall of the Umuahia township stadium, with players from different States in country, in participation.

The championship which is being organized in collaboration with the Darts Federation of Nigeria, was made possible by the full approval given by Governor Alex Otti for the State to sponsor and host the sporting event.

Declaring the 2nd Abia National Darts championship, Abia State Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Sir Nwaobilor Nwadinma Ananaba, praised Governor Alex Otti for his consistent support to the development of all sports in Abia State since he came on board in 2023.

Sir Ananaba thanked the Governor for purchasing various sporting equipment for the Abia Athletes and for the ongoing retrofitting of the Umuahia township stadium, saying that the giants strides of Governor Otti has continued to place Abia at the zenith of good performance in various sporting events .

He also commended the Darts Federation of Nigeria for giving the hosting rights to Abia State assuring that the championship would be used to discover future Darts champions for Abia State and Nigeria.

In his speech, the Director of Sports, Comrade Obioma George welcomed the participating States, saying that all preparations had been put in place to make the 2nd National Darts championship a resounding success.

Comrade Obioma who was represented by the Secretary of Abia State Sports Council, Jerry Basil Udeh, hailed Governor Alex Otti for hosting and sponsoring the event, saying that Abia State has now become the first choice of all sports federations .

The Director of Sports noted that sporting activities were dead in Abia State before the election of Governor Alex Otti in 2023 but expressed joy that all sports in Abia have been revived by the special commitment of Governor Otti.

According to Comrade Obioma, Abia Athletes and Coaches are now the race of the moment in in various sporting activities, recording great victories in Zonal and national sporting events.

He attributed the good development to the special support from Governor Alex Otti, whom he said, has been providing all the fundings, purchasing of modern sporting equipment, and continuous training of Athletes and officials in the State.

Comrade Obioma George also assured the participating players and officials that their safety is guaranteed, even as he urged them to enjoy the fresh breeze of transformation of Abia under the able leadership of Dr. Alex Otti.

The Director of Sports praised the Honourable Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Sir Nwaobilor Nwadinma Ananaba for his untiring efforts in executing the vision of Governor Alex Otti in the Abia State sports sector.

He noted that the Governor Alex Otti made the right choice in the appointment of Sir Nwaobilor Nwadinma Ananaba to head the Ministry of Sport and Youth Development.

He also urged Abia athletes to strive for excellence at the festival by emerging champoins, describing a first-place finish as a fitting birthday gift to the Commissioner, whose birthday falls this month.

In his remarks, the President of the Darts Federation of Nigeria, Awolola Adeyemi Isiaka described Governor Alex Otti as the best Governor in Nigeria.

He also said that Governor Otti is now the father of Sports in Nigeria, even as he called Abia State the new heart of Darts in the country.

He noted that the 1st Abia National Darts championship previously hosted by Abia State, was a big success, explaining that the good outing of the State convinced the Darts Federation of Nigeria to give another hosting rights to Abia.

The President of Darts Federation of Nigeria who commended Governor Otti and the Commissioner of Sports for purchasing ultra modern Darts equipment for the 2nd Abia National Darts championship, expressed joy that Darts has also benefitted from Abia State, the same way other sporting federations benefitted from Governor Alex Otti.

He also identified sports as a major tool in employment, and challenged other Nigerian Governors to emulate Governor Otti by deploying sports development to build the society.

” Governor Otti is now the father of Sports in Nigeria. I urge other Governors to do the same thing he is doing in Abia State.

” If the youths are committed to sports, if they have their future in sports, they will not go otherwise.

” We have come to identify talents here because sports is where you can the youths busy”, the President of Darts Federation of Nigeria, Awolola Adeyemi Isiaka said.

He also appealed to the Abia State Commissioner for Sports and Youths Development, Sir Nwaobilor Nwadinma Ananaba and the Director of Sports, Comrade Obioma George to make Darts game more popular and attractive to secondary school students in Abia State, saying that such would lead to discovery of more talents for Abia and Nigeria.

Isiaka further congratulated Abia’s darts coach, Mr. George Chukwuma, on his appointment as the National Head Coach of the Federation, saying that the appointment was deserving and confirmed the deep presence of Darts in Abia.

He therefore charged all the participating players to respect their opponents, respect the officials and to strive for victory.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Sports and Youth Development, Mrs. Jane Igwe; the Special Adviser to the Governor on Sports, Mr. Raymond Ukwa; the Technical Adviser to the Commissioner, Capt. Eric Asomugha and other dignitaries attended opening ceremony.