Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has inaugurated 44 sports association chairmen in Lagos, tasking them with grassroots talent development as the state prepares to host Nigeria’s first National Intermediate Games.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has inaugurated 44 chairmen of sports associations in the state, charging them to strengthen grassroots development, identify emerging talents and create sustainable pathways for athletes to achieve national and international success.
Speaking at the inauguration at Lagos House, Ikeja, on Tuesday, Sanwo-Olu described the appointments as a significant step toward repositioning sports administration in the state. He urged the new administrators to set clear and measurable objectives for their associations, implement succession programmes, and build systems capable of identifying, nurturing and transforming raw talent into elite athletes.
“Lagos’ reputation as a Centre of Excellence must extend beyond talent discovery to establishing the necessary structures, training opportunities, and competitive platforms to transform talents into champions,” he said.
Sports as Economic Strategy
The governor described sports as more than recreation, framing it as a pathway to discipline, education, employment, entrepreneurship and economic growth.
“Sports is not merely recreation but a pathway to discipline, education, employment, entrepreneurship, and economic growth,” he said, noting that major sporting events also create opportunities in hospitality, transportation, entertainment, media, technology, fitness and sports medicine.
Sanwo-Olu called for stronger collaboration between government and the private sector, arguing that increased private investment would provide a firmer platform for sports and athlete development in Lagos. He instructed the newly inaugurated chairmen to prioritise transparency, accountability and discipline, maintain active competition calendars, and create opportunities for women, girls, persons with disabilities and other underrepresented groups. He said their performance would ultimately be judged by outcomes rather than tenure:
“Their success will be measured not by the duration of their tenure but by the athletes developed, institutions strengthened, records broken, and champions produced during their tenure.”
Part of a Broader Push
Sanwo-Olu pointed to Lagos’ recent performances at national sporting competitions as evidence of what is achievable when talent is backed by a functional system, and highlighted the state’s hosting of the National Intermediate Games as part of efforts to strengthen its leadership in sports development nationally. The Games, tagged Lagos 2026, are Nigeria’s first-ever dedicated transition tournament for athletes aged 16 to 19, designed to bridge the gap between grassroots competition and elite national-level sport, with participants drawn from all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. Lagos was selected to host the inaugural edition based on its sporting infrastructure and event-management track record, according to National Sports Commission Director-General Bukola Olopade.
Tuesday’s inauguration is also the latest in a series of sports-governance appointments under Sanwo-Olu’s administration, following the inauguration in February 2026 of a new board for the Lagos State Sports Trust Fund, chaired by Enitan Oshodi, president of the African Table Tennis Federation, with a mandate to support sports funding and strengthen institutional capacity across the state.
Reactions
Director-General of the Lagos State Sports Commission, Lekan Fatodu, said the inauguration reflected the administration’s commitment to sports development, stressing that government alone could not develop the state’s sports sector. “Government alone cannot develop the state’s sports sector,” he said, calling for stronger partnerships among government, sports associations, athletes, coaches, corporate organisations, schools and local communities. He described the new chairmen as vital links between athletes and their sporting communities, with responsibilities spanning talent identification, athlete development, competition organisation and technical capacity building.
Speaking on behalf of the newly inaugurated chairmen, Dr Solomon Alao, Chairman of the Lagos State Athletics Association, said the new leadership was committed to supporting the government’s vision for sports development. “We are committed to supporting the government’s vision for sports development,” he said, adding that the inauguration had strengthened the chairmen’s confidence in the administration’s commitment to their associations, and pledging that the new leadership would work toward credible, progressive and impactful results across their respective sports.
