Yahaya Ukwenya, the President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF), has urged the Federal Government to reopen non-contact sports as some sports returned to the global stage.
Ukwenya told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja that he expected the government and sports stakeholders to make a pronouncement on the issue of sports.
The NCF boss said the call became necessary because some international events were likely to hold once the pandemic was over or reduced to its barest minimum.
He said it would not augur well for the country if Nigerian athletes who were expected to take part in such events were unfit for the competitions.
“The government is staying on the side of caution when it comes to sports and they have every reason to do that but I would think that some pronouncements on sports should be made.
“I think that some non-contact sports should be allowed to resume training with emphasis on ensuring that COVID-19 precautionary measures are adhered to.
“This is because some international competitions may likely hold before the end of the year, especially as some countries are relaxing lockdown on sporting activities.
“We don’t want a situation where sports in the country is lifted and we will find ourselves at the doorstep of an international competition while our players are not prepared for it.
“For instance, Cricket is a non-contact sport. The bowler, batsmen, fielders and umpires all usually maintain a level of distance.
“We only need to sanitise the balls, bats and other equipment once we are permitted to train,” Ukwenya said.
