Breaking: Delta to host 2022 National Sports Festival, emerges winner of Edo 2020 with 384 medals

The defending champion and the winners of the 2020 National Sports Festival, Delta State, will host the next edition of the festival in 2022, the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, has said.

Recall that the defending champion, Delta State emerged as the winner of “Edo 2020 NSF” with a total of 384 medals, including 158 gold, 116 silver and 110 bronze emerge festival champions after beating their closest rival, Edo state to a distant second position.

They were followed closely by hosts Edo, with a total of 341 medals including 129 gold, 104 silver and 108 bronze.

Bayelsa State came third to make this year’s festival in an all-South-South affair, with 56 gold, 55 silver and 58 bronze for a total of 169.

The Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, disclosed this while declaring the 20th edition of the festival tagged ‘Edo 2020’ closed on Wednesday.

He said, “Congratulations to Delta State for emerging the overall winner of the Games of the 2020 National sports Festival.

“I’m glad to note that the Federal Government received bids to host the 21st edition of the National Sports Festival in 2022 from 6 states namely: Delta, Ebonyi, Imo, Kaduna, Kano, and Ogun.

“Following the evaluation of the bids and the physical visitation to the prospective States, I hereby announce Delta State as the next host of the National Sports Festival in 2022.

“I congratulate the government and people of Delta State for emerging the preferred State and wish them best of luck in the organisation of the 21st National Sports Festival.”

Meanwhile, the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development also said that they will award the winners of the next edition of the National Sports Festival (NSF) with a new trophy named “Giant Eagle”.

The president of the main organizing committee (MOC), Nebeolisa Anako, revealed this Wednesday by handing over the main festival trophy to Team Delta in Benin.

Anako, who represented the Minister for Youth and Sports Development at the closing ceremony of the Sunday Dare festival, said the new trophy was needed now.

“Delta has now won to keep the current trophy, and the new trophy will be called ‘Giant Eagle’, while the second team will win the ‘Middle Trophy’ and the third team the ‘Eaglet Trophy’.”

In his remarks at the closing ceremony, the President of the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for “Edo 2020”, Philip Shaibu, congratulated the participants and the organizers on the success of the festival.