23rd November, 2012
The Ondo State Volleyball team said that they ready to defend the title they won at the 17th National Sports Festival in Port Harcourt in 2011 in Lagos.
The festival, tagged “Eko 2012,” will hold from 27 November to 9 December in Lagos.
Adesoji Balogun, the state’s volleyball coach, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Akure that they were preparing seriously for the Games.
Balogun said that their counterparts from other states should, therefore, be wary of the team.
Ondo State male volleyball team won the gold medal at the “Garden City Games” in Port Harcourt in 2011, while their female counterparts crashed in the quarter-finals.
Balogun noted that Gov. Olusegun Mimiko was supporting the volleyballers in all their endeavours through the chairman of the State Sports Council, Bamido Omogbehin, especially during competitions outside the country.
“We have been the defending champions in the male volleyball event at the National Sports Festival for the past four years now and we want to stretch the winning streak to “Eko 2012”.
“I thank the governor and the chairman of the sports council for their support for sports development in Ondo State.
“It is always good to have sports-loving people at the helm of affairs.
“The results are there for everybody to see how Ondo State is progressing in sports development, especially from the grassroots,” he said.
NAN reports that Team Ondo finished fourth at the 2011 Games in Port Harcourt with 30 gold, 32 silver and 43 bronze medals.