Olasumbo bemoans lack of tennis competitions
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Dele Olasumbo, the Head Coach, Lagos State Table Tennis Association, on Thursday said that lack of grass roots competitions was responsible for the dismal performance of Nigerian players in local and international competitions.
Olasumbo, in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, said that frequent competitions would put players in a good form for future challenges.He spoke against the backdrop of the 43rd Asoju-Oba Cup which is expected to hold later this year.
The coach said that competitions also helped athletes to train well and develop their skills and coaches to discover areas where athletes needed more coaching.
He recalled that when athletes attended series of competitions, there was an improvement in their performances, resulting in winning medals for the state and carving a niche for themselves.
Olasumbo said that he was sad because of the dismal performance of his athletes at the 17th National Sports Festival in Port Harcourt in July.
He said that the Asoju-Oba Cup was the only grass roots table tennis competition that had remained constant after 42 years, noting that other sponsors were no where to be found.
``Our athletes are training all the time but there are no competitions to show their skills and training without competitions leads athletes no where.
``Most times, the coaches are blamed for athletes’ non-performance but when there are no competitions, how do we measure our performance?`` Olasumbo said.
The coach called on corporate organisations and individuals to stake their money in the game for it to develop.
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Olasumbo bemoans lack of tennis competitions
Category: Sports Written by - Hits: 388
Dele Olasumbo, the Head Coach, Lagos State Table Tennis Association, on Thursday said that lack of grass roots competitions was responsible for the dismal performance of Nigerian players in local and international competitions.
Olasumbo, in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, said that frequent competitions would put players in a good form for future challenges.He spoke against the backdrop of the 43rd Asoju-Oba Cup which is expected to hold later this year.
The coach said that competitions also helped athletes to train well and develop their skills and coaches to discover areas where athletes needed more coaching.
He recalled that when athletes attended series of competitions, there was an improvement in their performances, resulting in winning medals for the state and carving a niche for themselves.
Olasumbo said that he was sad because of the dismal performance of his athletes at the 17th National Sports Festival in Port Harcourt in July.
He said that the Asoju-Oba Cup was the only grass roots table tennis competition that had remained constant after 42 years, noting that other sponsors were no where to be found.
``Our athletes are training all the time but there are no competitions to show their skills and training without competitions leads athletes no where.
``Most times, the coaches are blamed for athletes’ non-performance but when there are no competitions, how do we measure our performance?`` Olasumbo said.
The coach called on corporate organisations and individuals to stake their money in the game for it to develop.