The Bayelsa State Government has charged the Nigerian Wrestling Federation to bring home at least six gold medals from the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.
The Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ehwrudjakpo, gave the charge when the President, principal officers and athletes of the NWF paid him a courtesy call in the Government House, Yenagoa.
Ehwrudjakpo, in a statement issued on Saturday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Mr Doubara Atasi, noted that the wrestling federation had done the country proud in its previous outings in the colours of Nigeria.
He, however, stressed the need for the NWF to improve on their previous records and performance by winning more laurels in wrestling.
He noted that Bayelsa was a fortress in sports, especially in wrestling, and had produced a lot of great wrestlers who made their mark at national and international competitions at different times.
Ehwrudjakpo expressed confidence that the 10-man wrestling contingent of the NWF that trained in the state for about two months was well-primed for a victorious outing at the games in Birmingham.
He urged the team to be prayerful, courageous and to have a positive attitude without sparing any effort to conquer their opponents to make Nigeria proud again.
The deputy governor said, “Your achievements so far are good, but we want you to go there and bring back more laurels again. We believe you have stayed long enough in training camp for a victorious and successful outing at the Commonwealth Games.
“You have won three gold medals; you have also won four gold medals before now. But this time around, we want you to increase it to a minimum of six gold medals.”
Speaking earlier, the President of the NWF, Daniel Igali, thanked Governor Douye Diri and his deputy for supporting the technical team and the athletes throughout their stay in the state.
Igali, who is also the Bayelsa State Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, noted that at the last Commonwealth Games held in 2020, all the 11 athletes that represented Nigeria in wrestling each won a medal and expressed the confidence that the feat would be replicated this year.
Also speaking, the Secretary General of the NWF, Muhammed Haruna, described as unparalleled the support the team had received so far from the state government.
