Friday, March 29, 2024

I want to produce better tennis players for Nigeria – Odizor

…Plans to setting up six tennis centres in Nigeria

Former tennis ace, Nduka Duke Odizor, apparently Nigeria’s most accomplished player, speaks about his foray into sports development in the country. He tells GBOLAHAN DADA that his interest is anchored on the quest for a new generation of tennis players who would surpass his achievement in the sport

Recently, former Nigeria Tennis Federation President, Sani Ndanusa, challenged ex-internationals to come home and give back to the game. Was your recent trip to Nigeria in honour of the call?

I always had the intention to give back to the society and the game. So, it was not an accident that I came to start a good project in that respect.

I was surprised when my friend, partner and manager, Olajide Fashikun called me up to say that the wife of the Ondo State governor, Mrs Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu, wanted  to work with me to develop tennis in the state.

I did a background check on her and found out that she is such a wonderful sponsor and supporter of tennis when they were in Ibadan. I was so impressed. I had no option than to travel down home from the United States. When I arrived Nigeria, we went to Akure to see her. She gave us a very warm welcome. My team and I met and resolved to start the first of my six, planned Duke Odizor International Tennis (Do It) Foundation in Akure. We also resolved to name it after her. Three, she had earlier planned to do a summer clinic in Akure this year, which we are supporting. Four, it is my desire to deliver an international tennis championship yearly to support the campaign against breast and prostrate cancer.

After the Akure visit, what would be your next action?

After the Akure presentation, we the members of the Nigeria Sports Development Fund Inc, comprising former Nigerian athletes like Ruth Ogbeifo-Balofin (Weightlifting), Mary Onyali (Athletics); Nigeria’s individual long jump gold medallist, Chioma Ajunwa; Table tennis duo of Aruna Quadri and Funke Oshonaike; Blessing Okagbare, Taekwondo’s Chika Chukwumerije and the Director General, who was a former Zamalek SC of Egypt player, Fashikun, decided to follow our blue-print on how to bring one million children across the federation to take to sports.

So, we already have a project called Basic Olive Opportunity Sports Training (BOOST). This is a seven-sport community-based project. We have a pilot in a community called Offa in Kwara State. BOOST’s concepts were drawn to drive and deliver the tennis project in Ondo state.

In the first phase, we shall deliver four sports under the tennis project. We shall use six communities as delivery points – two communities per senatorial district of the state. Our ambition is to have 36 communities in the country before December 2018.

One year rudimentary training will be made available to the kids who want to learn to play tennis. Thereafter, we shall establish a club named after the 10 icons. They will play in their community and in the national championships

You are from Kwale in Delta State. Why the choice of Akure in Ondo state as your first port of call for sports development?

Yes, I am from Kwale in Delta state. Two of the top 10 icons of the NSDFI project are also from Delta State – Ruth and Blessing. Of the six centres, each of us is expected to locate a project in our respective communities. The state government is to name three other centres.

Since we were taught that charity starts at home, I decided to bring the first tranche of the N10million tennis equipment as a sign of my commitment to the programme. His Excellency, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa received the equipment when we brought it to the state.

We are working with the state Commissioner for Basic Education, Chiedu Ebie to deliver all the modalities. As soon as that is done, the project will commence.

Before now, it was speculated that you wanted to contest for NTF presidency but later had a change of heart. Was your decision in agreement with the new change of guard in tennis?

For some reasons, I decided to support the new NTF President. I am happy that a tennis businessman, Dayo Akinduro, won the election. I have sent him congratulatory message. When I return later this month, I will meet with him. I will also do all within my reach to support him and the NTF to make a difference. In fact, they will play very active part in the Do It Foundation project. It’s a new future for tennis in Nigeria. All of us must rise to support Dayo to help our game reach the leadership position we aspire to.

I am so thrilled with the exploit of Marylove Edwards in the Central Bank of Nigeria Open. I am also looking forward to know where I will be needed to support her meteoric rise to stardom. She represents the new future for our tennis.

My earlier decision to run for the office of the President of Nigeria Tennis Federation was to see how much I could bring to bear in developing the sport that gave me life, fame and wealth. I was a ball boy. Someone gave me my first racket. And to that fellow, I remain eternally appreciative. The rest is history.

For years, I have brought in thousands of rackets meant to be given to young folks but I found out that these rackets never got to the expected persons. So, when this NSDFI option came my way, since it is well organised and properly delivered, I decided to set up six centres and we will deliver N10million equipment to each centre.

One year rudimentary training will be made available to the kids who want to learn to play tennis. Thereafter, we shall establish a club named after the 10 icons. They will play in their community and in the national championships. This way, I hope to bring up better players, male, female and disabled athletes who I wish can be bigger, bolder and better than I was.

I don’t want to produce another Nduka Odizor. That will mean I have not achieved anything. I rather want to produce better players than me. That is what each of the 10 icons have in principle and that is when we would have achieved anything as individuals and as a team.

How do you intend to sustain the project?

The NSDFI project will be  eight years old this year. Sunday Bada and Shaibu Amodu were active planners of this project before they died. Jide told me how strongly the two gentlemen funded the initial part of the project.

We are recruiting 16 million Nigerians: That is 10 per cent of Nigerians to join and support us. It costs just N200.00 once a year. Go to our website www.nsdfi.com, click on top 10 icons, and pick any icon of your choice to support. Two, we have what is called celebrity endorsement. Three, soon we shall start the lottery process. Four, we would wait until we are a year old before exploring the option of international grant.

This is a project that can employ 3 million professionals: You need to see the details of this programme. More than 3 million Nigerians can earn a living from the project at its optimum delivery. Even sports journalists can become technical managers, financial advisors or sports lawyers. Every child on the programme will have these set of officials.

This is a package worth in excess of N10 billion if we all key into it. Imagine that 16 million Nigerians key into the 10 brands of their choice. At N200.00 each, that is N3.2billion. With that volume, we shall deliver the community projects in the name of the 10 icons.

With the outcome of Offa as pilot, we can raise the one million kids in those 10 communities. When they play in the league, that translates to 10 clubs in each community. Each club will have its own staffers who would be paid. Each of these one million children, having three officials, that is 3 million already.

The project is also designed to be driven by each community. This is what we are up to as people who have seen it, felt it, lived it and want it for our nation’s greater sports glory. It is doable but the nation must rise and support us.

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