By Ben Agande, Abuja.
President Goodluck Jonathan has challenged   sports administrators and athletes in the country to ensure that Nigeria gets gold medals at the 2016 Olympics games billed for Brazil.

He gave the challenge while   receiving the medals won by Blessing Okagbare at the 2013 IAAF World Athletic Championship shortly before the commencement of the Federal Executive Council meeting yesterday.

The president who announced a N3Million reward for the athlete and N3.5Million for her coach Daniel Esebinimo added that they would be conferred with national honours.

resident Goodluck Jonathan (R), Blessing Okagbare (m) and Vice President Namadi Sambo moments after a reception in honour of the speedster who brought honour to Nigeria at the World Athletics Championships in Moscow yesterday at the Presidential Villa Abuja.

While congratulating Okagbare for making the nation proud, President Jonathan said “Today is a day that we are all celebrating this young lady, Blessing Okagbare.  We are celebrating success, we are  celebrating dedication, we are celebrating patriotism.

This is to formally congratulate Blessing Okagbare and other young men and women like her who have been working very hard to make this country proud.”

“Sports, we know, is one key event in our country and globally, the success of a nation in sports is a key thing that helps to project that country. Nigeria has been known as a sporting nation, but we slid for sometime.

But we are lucky that we are building up today. I believe that with young ladies and men like Blessing Okagbare, Nigeria will get back to where we belong and even go further” he said.

The Sports Minister, Bolaji Abdullahi in a brief remark attributed Nigeria’s successes in sports in the past two years to the leadership and support of President Jonathan.

Speaking with State House correspondents at the end of the ceremony, Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan who attended the ceremony said: “What’s exciting to me today is the personal recognition by Mr. President of Blessing’s efforts. Whatever you’re given materially, to me is not the major thing.

The major thing is that she is being nationally recognised by Mr. President himself and that is very important.”