RCCG promises improved festival, as Daddy GO’s parish sweeps medals
Abeokuta - The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) has declared that it will continue to attach much importance and put in resources for the development of sports in the country.
This assertion was made by Pastor Olu Banure, Special Adviser to the General Overseer of the church, Pastor E.A. Adeboye, at the closing ceremony of the maiden edition of the Redeemers International Sports Festival at the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abeokuta.
According to Pastor Banure, the General Overseer has taken particular interest in the sports development initiatives of the church “since sports plays a vital role in our national life, especially as it relates to the development of the youths.”
While he thanked the Ogun State government for its partnership and support especially in providing the event venues and facilities, he declared that the sports festival will now become a regular annual event in the calendar of the church.
“We will make the festival bigger and better. In the 2009 edition, we will see more participation from other countries especially from the 103 countries in which the church has missions. Of course, not all the 103 countries may attend but we will ensure that a good number of them will be represented to make the fiesta more international in outlook. For this reason, we will put in more resources,” he said.
The highlight of the closing ceremony was the men’s football final event between Osun Province Two and Ogun Province Four in which Osun ruled the day by beating their opponents two goals to one.
The ceremony also featured invitational relays for secondary and tertiary institutions, calisthenics display by children of Ogun Province One, and a Tug of War exhibition battle between the male and female Police teams and their Lagos State counterparts.
Interestingly, Pastor Adeboye’s worship center, Lagos Province One, emerged the overall winner with 19 gold medals while Lagos Province Eight and Ogun Province One, followed in the second and third positions respectively.
Chairman of the organizing committee, Col J.G.S. Hamakim, enjoined all the participants to see themselves as winners.
“We have seen one full week of sporting action and interaction. But more exciting is the friendships we have cultivated, the sportsmanship we have inculcated and the motivation we have inspired. We are all winners. There are no losers.
“Whether as athletes, officials, organizers, partners or spectators, we have all been richly blessed and the blessing will linger into the future,” he said.
Head of the technical sub-committee, Dr. Christopher Fasan in his assessment stated that the standard of performance by the athletes was high and the festival will continue to be a veritable platform for spotting future talents.
He revealed that over 202 participants were registered for athletics, 1,260 for five-a-side football, 800 for eleven a side football, 210 for basketball and 110 for table tennis among others.
Source: PM News
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