I Spend More Time With Athletes Than My Daughter – Igali

The President of Nigeria Wrestling Federation, Daniel Igali, has credited the success of Nigerian wrestlers at the 2014 Commonwealth Games to the cordial relationship he shares with them.

Speaking on Channel Television Programme, Sport This Morning, the excited President revealed the level of cordiality between him and his athletes, saying that most of the athletes sleep in his house.

Referring to their relationship as being more of a family affair, he said, “I spend more time with the athletes even more than the way I spend with my daughter.

“Most of them see me more as an elder brother than the President of the Wrestling Federation. My house is like a hotel for the athletes, most of them sleep in my house. Odunayo Adekuoroye, after going to train, spends time in my house”, he revealed.

Igali also spoke on the need to re-brand Wrestling in Nigeria and pointed out that wrestling in Nigeria was growing, but there were still shortcomings.

“Wrestling in Nigeria is growing, although we have not won the Olympic but this will be a next phase of development for the sport in Nigeria.”

He noted that the challenges in wrestling and other sports is the lack of corporate sponsorship.

“We do not have corporate sponsorship, I think that the biggest problem in sport is corporate sponsorship”, he stated.

According to Igali, he was disappointed with the way most sport athletes were treated, pointing out the negligence of most corporate bodies in sponsoring sport and wrestling in Nigeria.

In his opinion, the nurturing of talents is the “catchment area” in the Nigeria Wrestling Federation.