Nigerian artiste, Seun Kuti has criticized the Nigerian government for its lack of investment in sports.

Speaking about the poor performance of the Nigerian team at the recently concluded 2024 Olympics in Paris, Seun Kuti mentioned that Nigerians only participated in sports that did not require much investment.

He stated that sports requiring equipment were not pursued by Nigerians, and those in which Nigerians competed, there were challenges that could have been avoided with proper investment.

Kuti stated that some athletes with Nigerian names competed for other countries and achieved success because those countries invested in them.

“I watched the Olympic games. Look at how poorly we performed. How many sports are we competing in? I saw that it was only sports that did not need investment that Nigerians participated in. We only did sports that needed minimum investment.

“You know, to play football, you need a ball, post and net and in some places, boys would use slippers to create a goalpost. But in sports that need things like rackets, basketball courts, rims and nets where you can’t easily improvise, we weren’t there. We competed in track and field events because it is easy to do running. But we are never in sports that need equipment.

“Nigerians know all these sports and bet on them so how much would it take to create a good league and gift the winners 25 million dollars? Let there be a minimum of a million dollars per year, after all, this is what boys are earning in Europe.

“Nigerians are unable to enjoy their children’s talents, all our big superstars. Which other shows do they play in Nigeria? I was watching the Olympics and I saw a lot of people with Nigerian sounding names doing incredible things for other countries. If Simone Biles can be that great, imagine how many talents that are wasting away because people will not invest in gymnastics and train our children,” he said.
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