The Lagos chapter of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) will honour Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu with its highest award at its 2021 Awards Night on Dec 10.
Chairman of the chapter, Debo Oshundun, disclosed in a statement on Wednesday that Sanwo-Olu would be honoured because he was well-deserving of the award.
“The Award of Excellence for Accelerated Sports Development will be conferred on Gov. Sanwo-Olu for his immense contributions to sports development in the state since he took over as the Executive Governor of Lagos in 2019.
”It is an award that he deserves so much in view of his overall support for sports in the state, thereby elevating the youths and raising the bar of socio-economic development in the state,” he said.
Oshundun said the awards ceremony would be part of activities marking the 2021 Bet9ja/Lagos SWAN Week holding from Friday to Dec. 10.
“Without doubt, since Gov. Sanwo-Olu took over the reins of governance in Lagos, the state has witnessed an unprecedented and accelerated growth with special focus on sports development.
“His effort to reposition sports as a major tool for entertainment and tourism in line with his campaign agenda tagged “THEME,” has, therefore, not gone unnoticed.
“Under his watch, the Mobolaji Olufunso Johnson Sports Centre which recently played host to the Super Falcons’ World Cup qualifiers as well as the Aisha Buhari Cup competition was completed and commissioned.
“It will be noted that the Lagos State Government also facilitated the return of the Super Eagles to their natural habitat of Lagos.
“This was made possible by the regrassing and renovation of the Teslim Balogun stadium which has brought a new lease of life to all stakeholders in the sports and hospitality business,” he added.
The Lagos SWAN Chairman disclosed further that others to be honoured alongside Sanwo-Olu include the Lagos State Sports Commission (LSSC) as a body.
He added that the Chairman of Bet9ja, a leading sports betting company in Nigeria, Kunle Soname, would also be honoured by Lagos SWAN.
“Soname, who is also the owner of Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) side Remo Stars Football Club, is a huge investor in Nigerian sports and he has continued to hugely invest in the industry.
“His company, Bet9ja, has continued to sponsor many sports activities across Nigeria with the latest being the partnership with the League Management Company (LMC) ahead of the 2021/2022 NPFL season.
“His investment in sports is second to none, after completing and commissioning the ultra-modern football village with world-class facilities in Ogun. For this, we feel he deserved an award,” Oshundun said.
The awards ceremony comes up at the Lagos SWAN Secretariat in the National Stadium Complex in Lagos
