IOC Urges Celebration Of The Joy Of Sports As 2024 Int’l Olympic Day Is Marked In Delta

The 2024 Olympic Day was celebrated across the world today in commemoration of the creation of the Olympic Movement by Pierre Coubertin.

At the flag off of the Olympic Day race at the Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba, Delta State, the President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, noted that this year’s celebration was a special one, taking place ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games billed for Paris.

Bach, whose message was presented by the State Governor, Rt. Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, represented by his Chief of Staff, Hon Prince Johnson Erijo, said with the excitement in the air, a new era of Olympic Games was expected.

The IOC President stated that the Games would be younger, more inclusive, more urban and more sustainable, just as it would be the first with full gender parity, and the first fully in line with the Olympic Agenda 

He added that the athletes would inspire the world with their achievements, and by living the Olympic motto: Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together, even as he noted that the Games had always built bridges and brought people together in peace and solidarity.

Earlier, the Director General of the Delta State Sports Commission, Mr. Festus Owhojero, said the event validated the belief that sports was indeed a unifier, barrier breaker and a platform for global peace.

He stated that the Sports Commission was breaking new grounds in talent discovery with the support of the state government and nurturing them to stardom in consonance with the MORE agenda of the Oborevwori administration.

While saying that this year’s Olympic Games would soon kick off in Paris, France, the DG assured that Delta would maintain its leading position in sports in Nigeria.

The highlight of the occasion was the presentation of certificates to the top finishers in the Olympic Day race, as well as officials of the Sports Commission.