University of Ibadan and Tai Solarin University of Education, Ijebu Ode, are among eight tertiary institutions so far registered for the 2021 South West Games (SOWEGA) billed to be hosted by Ogun State between July and August.
Known as Ogun 2021, other schools listed for the competition are Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Yaba College of Technology, Federal University Oye, Ekiti, Ekiti State University, Osun State University and Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye.
According to the organisers, more schools are still being expected to register for the games, which will feature ayo olopon, football, table tennis, basketball, golf, swimming, and taekwondo, as well as track and field events.
The organisers said: “The inclusion of ayo olopon is a deliberate attempt to also revive more of our popular traditional games in the future.”
Chairman, Central Working Committee (CWC) for the games, Babatunde Olokun, added, “the initiative is coming at a time when there is practical no season of games to foster harmony and friendship among our youths, as it used to be in the past with such games as NUGA games or even Principal’s Cup.”
He added that SOWEGA is reiterating its core values, which are “to position sports as the special purpose vehicle (SPV) for achieving zonal development and deepen the integration of people of the zone; to provide constant avenue for inculcating the intrinsic value of sportsmanship in the youth of the zone; to provide avenue for the people of the zone to utilise abundant energy while developing healthy lifestyle; to promote the spirit of leadership; team work and the value of striving to achieve set goals and meeting aspirations through hard work; to enable the youths display sport talents that may be economically viable to them in the world of sport professionalism.”