In a bid to advance sports development in Nigeria, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, has officially kick-started the 1st Nigeria Police Force Invitational Triathlon Championship.
The ceremonial begining of the Police sporting event, which comprises swimming, running and biking, took place on Saturday, 4 December at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in the nation’s capital, Abuja.
TheFact Nigera notes the various levels on which the sporting event, the first of its kind in the FCT, is expected to make impact on policing services in the country as outlined by the Police Chief. These include: enhancing mutual respect and inter-agency collaboration amongst participating agencies, promoting community policing through stakeholders and multi-agency collaboration which encourages participation for problem solving, identifying talented riathletes for recruitment into the Triathlon National Team in preparation for the Commonwealth Games, Birmingham 2022, amongst other sterling benefits.
The Championship, IGP Baba further disclosed, would also showcase the highlights of a year-long robust and carefully executed sporting calendar on Triathlon development in the Nigeria Police Force aimed at engendering a strong and healthy relationship among officers and men of the Force and the security community.
This is in addition to providing a veritable platform towards the development of Triathlon sports in Nigeria. The championship is organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Development and the Nigerian Triathlon Union.
The IGP further disclosed that in the build-up to the Invitational Triathlon Championship, the Force had organized a 2-day seminar tagged “Sensitization on the rules and regulations of Triathlon” with athletes and officials drawn from the Police, the Para-military and other law enforcement agencies as well as the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Development.
He therefore called on the participating athletes and agencies to put up their best performances, play the games by the rules, as well as engage the spirit of sportsmanship as they compete in the various categories of the games.
The Force, while seeking the cooperation and understanding of the citizenry, particularly motorists and other road users that would most likely experience inconveniences on routes designated for the biking and running events, urges members of the public to feel free to line the route and cheer the Triathletes down to the finishing line.
Among the categories of the sporting event is the Beginners Triathlon which proceeds with 400meters Swimming, 10km biking and a 2.5km run.
