By Wale Ayeni

Former Nigerian athlete, Suleiman Moses, has said that the country’s performance at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics Games in Japan would be strongly determine by the level of welfare given to the athletes.

Tokyo Summer Olympics is billed from Friday, July 23 to Sunday, August 8, 2021.

Moses who won Silver medal at the 2012 West Africa University Games, said that there is a need for the federal government to take athletes welfare as top priority on the road to Olympics for podium finish.

Moses who is one of the top candidate contesting for the position of Athletes Representative in the board of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) appealed to stakeholders to rally round the AFN in their quest to do the nation proud at the upcoming International competition.

“Team Nigeria performance at the upcoming Olympics Games will be strongly determined by the level of welfare given to the athletes. I am confident that more Nigerian athletes will qualify for the Olympics.

“We are already blessed with talented athletes in Nigeria, l’m calling on the government and stakeholders to support the athletes and the AFN’s quest to do the nation proud in Tokyo”.

Moses also revealed reasons why his contesting for the AFN’s Athletes Representative position.

“Athletics must be valued and supported by investment and policy; we must create youth-friendly environments through training opportunities, policies and financial investment where young athletes can thrive, bring back athletics’ glamour, fair and transparent athletes selection, improved and robust welfare package, prompt and direct payment of athletes entitlements”.

“If I am given the mandate to be the athletes representative in the AFN’s board, I will ensure that the interest of the athletes comes first because without athletes, there’s no Athletics Federation of Nigeria” he concluded.