The Project consultant for the Asaba 2018 African Senior Athletics Championships, Bukola Olopade, has promised a world class private sector driven championships.
Olopade, whose company is behind the highly successful Lagos City Marathon, said beyond organising a championships that can compete favourably with the standard of IAAF World Championships in Athletics and other global events, the championships will also be used to sell Asaba, Delta State and indeed Nigeria to the world as a tourism and investment destination.
“In 2013, we were the consultant to the first African Junior Athletics Championships in Warri, also Delta State and it’s now a point of reference for other junior championships. We promise to make Asaba 2018 a reference-point for future African Senior Athletics Championships”.
Olopade said there will be a fund raising dinner and other build-up activities before the championships in 2018.
“Sponsors will get value for their money as there will be build-up activities to the championships from December 2017. It will be like our own Africa Olympics.
“Athletes will be coming from 54 African countries; they have all signified their intention to participate in the Asaba 2018 Championships. The athletes will be competing in over 40 events. That means thousands of athletes, officials, media men and other members of the athletics family that will be in Asaba for the championships, so it is a huge opportunity for brands that want to have continental and global visibility and market’’ said Olopade.
He also revealed that the 2018 edition of the African Athletics will attract the cream of track and field stars from all parts of Africa because it will serve as trials for the IAAF Continental Cup slated for Ostrava, Czech in September 2018.
“The world’s best athletes will represent their continent at the IAAF Continental Cup next year. The trial for African athletes will take place in Asaba, because the continental Cup is highly lucrative, gold medalist get $50,000, so all the best athletes will be in Asaba. This is a huge opportunity for Nigerian companies to associate themselves with some top African athletes who are global brands” said Olopade.
