National Sports Festival 2014: We Are Raising The Bar – Imoke

by crossriverwatch admin

Governor Liyel Imoke (4th from left) flanked by his Deputy, Efiok Cobham and Mercy Nku, Gershom Bassey,
Cross River Commissioner for Sports, Patrick Ugbe (1st from left), next to him is Ntufam John Okon, PDP Chairman CRS during the unveiling of the 2014 National Sports Festival logo, mascot and theme song

Cross River State is not hosting the 19th National Sports Festival just to win, but to give the best and make the event one of the best and one of the most memorable in National Sports Festival hosting in the history of Nigeria.

Senator Liyel Imoke, the Cross River State governor who made the declaration this evening in Calabar while unveiling the mascot, theme song and logo of the 19th National Sports Festival, stated that Cross River State as the home of the festival will be one of the most technologically driven event in the annals of the festival in Nigeria.

He said the state has made giant strides in installing the latest technology in the sporting arena to ensure that transparency and integrity are the watchword in every event to ensure that the outcome of the competition is comparable to any international sporting fest in any part of the world.

Senator Imoke stated that the festival scheduled for the 23rd of November to the 7th of December will not just feature sporting competition but also celebrate the beauty, cultural diversity and warmth of the people of Cross River State.

“We are happy to be hosting the festival in our centenary celebration which is quite significant to us because Calabar was the first capital of Nigeria at amalgamation and this festival gives us the opportunity again to prove that Calabar is the place to be at any time of the year”.

He said sports play an integral role in unifying the people of Nigeria and sports has found a home in Calabar right from Nigeria 99, hosting the under 17 team, and Nigeria’s Super Eagles which have become impenetrable making the team win the Africa Cup of Nations championships.

The governor explained that the mascot, which has the image of Bamba, an African gorilla reflects the states love for flora and fauna and demonstrates its’ commitment to the maintenance of a natural habitat.

Mercy Nku, Cross River born Nigeria’s former Olympian and Commonwealth athletics gold medalist, unveiled the mascot to the admiration of the ecstatic crowd at the Nation’s Arena venue of the event in Calabar.