Date: 2019-09-24

Prospective members of the Tug of War Association expressed their joy at the weekend when the national body inaugurated the Ilorin arm of the association in the Kwara State capital.

According to officials of the association, the Kwara State chapter was inaugurated to popularise the sport in the state through schools and local councils.

Speaking at the inauguration held at Sam Smith Hotel, off Offa Road, GRA, Ilorin, the President of the Tug of War Federation, Isaac Osaikhiwu Isaac said the association would enjoy technical and other supports from the federation, towards achieving the objectives.

He described Tug of War as a sport being practiced all over the world, adding that it is also a high medal scoring event with different categories.

"It is a sport that preaches resilience and team work, and it is rewarding, because of the busy programmes, both nationally and internationally," he said. He regretted that the sport was removed from the Olympics because of doping issues, adding that efforts were on to bring it back to the games.

After featuring at the just concluded National Youth Games as demonstration sport, Isaac said Tug of War could possibly feature as a scoring event at the 2020 National Sports Festival (NSF) in Edo state.