The Lagos State Sports Commission (LSSC), in partnership with ACAN International championed by former basketball international, Aloysius Anagonye, on Saturday, organised a one-day basketball clinic at Mobolaji Johnson Sports Centre, Rowe Park, Yaba, Lagos.
The event was designed to provide a platform for Lagos basketball players and coaches to be part of the mentorship and thoughtful programme aimed at improving their skills, and capacity as well as to acquire the latest tactics in the dunking game.
While addressing the participants, Lekan Fatodu, the Director-General of LSSC emphasized the significance of the clinic to participants’ personal development as it would also motivate them to increase the level of their performance, learning from the experiences of someone that have played the game to the world level.
He acknowledged the role of the Executive Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu for his effort in ensuring that the state remains at the centre of conversation around sports development in Nigeria.
He further stated that the state values the partnership with the ex-basketball player in the areas of development and capacity building as the government would continuously consider any initiative that tends to contribute positively to the development of sports.
“We need to consistently stretch our hands of fellowship to organisations like ACAN and individuals like Mr. Aloysius so that they can be able to help in the areas we think there are gaps. It’s is very important we keep that kind of engagement going forward”, said Fatodu.
The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Sports, Damilare Orimoloye pointed out that it is an initiative and meaningful collaboration that’s not going to stop with basketball.
He also enjoined the participants to avail themselves of the opportunity to stay focused and intensify their training to reach maximum potential.
Ex-basketball international, Aloysius Anagonye engaged the participants on the fundamental practice of basketball and his intention to contribute to the growth of the players in Nigeria.
He said as a Nigerian, it is a dream come true for him to contribute and give back to the young players in Nigeria and it is not going to be the last initiative.
In his words, “It’s been a long time dream of mine to do things in Nigeria. My purpose right now is to make interested people understand the fundamental skills in the game of basketball”.
Part of his discussions also centred on the areas of personal experiences, fitness, training, facilities and equipment as well as development of trainers and players.
Recall that Anagonye represented Nigeria in international basketball competitions such as the 2006 FIBA World Championship and the 2007 FIBA Africa Championship.