By Dadson A. Musa
Athletics is the second- most- popular sport in Sierra Leone and therefore has gone through challenges and transformations. It is the sport that is represented in every Olympic game and most major world competitions. In athletics there is running, jumping and throwing so it is not a contact sport. After serious infighting among the membership which lasted a while, Martin Momoh Bangura is now the duly elected president of the Sierra Leone Athletics Association. He is a cool head who has brought some calm and normalcy in the association.
Every year the association holds its AGM (Annual General Meeting). This AGM coincides with the annual boxing day sport. At the moment Sierra Leone only has two stadia that are fit for national athletics event; one in Freetown at the national stadium and the other in Bo. Before the current president, Martin Momoh Bangura took over the annual boxing day sport and the national trials only took place in Freetown. And for the 95 years of the boxing day sport, the event was held in Freetown only while the last two have been held in the province. That trend seems to give unfair advantage to athletes in the city, Freetown. Under Martin Momoh Bangura tenure that trend has changed.
In 2022, the first boxing day sport was moved to the province precisely in the second city of Bo. When asked why he took this decision, Martin Momoh Bangura said that he ” wants to scout for and nurture talents from every part of Sierra Leone not only from Freetown”. As teams from Freetown had dominated the competition but with this move, provincial athletics teams have started doing well. The association has seen some semblance of calmness and unity unlike before which was manifested in the successful completion of two AGMs without incidence. The president plans ” to use athletics to bring development to Sierra Leone” by uniting the membership. It was also the first time that financial reward was given to athletes in addition to certificates and medals. Going forward, Martin Momoh Bangura is pleased to increase female representation in the executive to achieve gender balance. He has also cautioned executive members so that their attitudes will not affect the performance of athletes.
Sierra Leone Athletics Association (SLAA) is a fully registered member of World Athletics, formerly International Athletics Association and take part in its activities. ” The African representation in the world body is gaining prominence”, according to Mr. Bangura which to him is a sign of hope for Africa and Sierra Leone in particular. Martin Momoh Bangura has held the title of fastest runner in Sierra Leone. There is need for the construction of more stadia across the country if the national outlook of the sport should be achieved. And on their part government should up their support for the sport as football is still getting the lion share of the sport budget. Credit to government as it was the first boxing day sport of last December 2022 that they sponsored financially under Martin Momoh Bangura which needs sustaining. Athletics, as the second most popular in Sierra Leone if given the necessary backing has the potential to unite the country as every tribe, every region and every gender and physical wellbeing is represented. Government due to tight budget has prioritized five sports out of the numerous sports in Sierra Leone and athletics comes in close second. There is also need for training of officials locally which the association has embarked on starting in Bo with the need to replicate it in all the other districts across Sierra Leone.
The welfare of athletes is another issue of serious concern as it enhances their performance. A good number of them are in school while others are in institutions of higher learning. The association managed to secure funding for a selected few as it is not enough to spread around. If Sierra Leone must gain prominence internationally and avoid its athletes defecting to rich countries, more needs to be in terms of the welfare of its athletes. There is need for standard hostels and gyms exclusively for athletes when they go out for national events.
Currently, they are non-existent which exposes them to so much risks and hazards. So much has been done in athletics and there is need for more to be done so that our athletes compete internationally at the highest level.
Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Wednesday, February 21st, 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
