By Dickson Omobola

The Minister of Sports Development, Mr John Enoh, has said the ministry is focused on developing sports at the grassroots.

Enoh, who spoke at the Pitstop Lagos Criterium Dolphin Loop, said he intends to create and achieve sports revolution in the country.

According to the minister, his objective is to ensure that talented young men and women at the grassroots are appreciated and provided with a platform to succeed if they work hard.

The former senator also revealed that gifted Nigerians will be given the opportunity to showcase their talents to enable them to represent the country on the global stage.

He said: “The plan is like every other federation. It is to encourage private initiatives of this nature with the hope that what I have watched here in Lagos can be replicated in other cities across the country. Like I said, not just for cycling, but for other sports as well.

“First, our focus is on grassroots sports development. Also, our focus is to see how much more we can do to get our talented young men and women that are largely at the grassroots to appreciate that if they work hard and are determined, there is a future for them. Overall, to see how we can create and achieve a sports revolution in our country.”

On his assessment of the Pitstop Criterium, Enoh said: “I think it has been a great event. I met a community that is very happy with itself. I met people who are excited about the race and the competition. The invitation by the Pitstop community to be part of this monthly cycling race has been revealing in terms of what is going on in our various communities all targeted towards growing grassroots sports.”

Also speaking, the General Manager of Pitstop Lagos, Mr Opeyemi Adegboro, said the criterium was named after the Dolphin estate because it was in front of the loop.

His words: “In cycling, criteriums are short, intense races that go around a particular loop. For this particular one, we named it after the Dolphin estate because it is right in front of the loop. So, it is called Pitstop Criterium Dolphin Loop. Each loop is around 2.6 to 2.8 kilometres. The Criterium is a total of 15 loops, but the first loop is usually ceremonial.

“The Pitstop community is made up of professional cyclists and recreational riders – those who just ride for fun. It is a community that is a perfect mix of both people who want to ride for fun and those who are actual professional cyclists.

“We are trying to develop grassroots cycling. Nigeria has a lot of potential in the sports industry. We are very strong in Nigeria, but we are not maximising this potential. The opportunities are not there so the Pitstop community has created this opportunity for those who want to take cycling as a profession. This competition gives them the platform for consistent training.

“In the criterium, we have individual winners and team winners. Individual winners are the first, second, third and fifth. After the first five, there is a consolation prize for the next 10 cyclists. The first prize is N250,000, the second prize is N150,000, the third prize is 100, the fourth is 50 and the fifth is N40,000. For the team win, it is $1,000.”

On his part, the winner, Mr Isaac Gana, said: “From the start it was somehow difficult because I was kind of scared but as we kept going, I saw that it kept changing. So, I kept concentrating and calculating. I came first and I am glad about it.

“I’m very glad to have won. Right now, I am speechless because I had been trying to win but to no avail. I tried to emerge victorious for a long time, so I kept learning everyday and, today, everything was successful.”