Oluwatobi Amusan, the winner of the 100-meter hurdles events at the world, Commonwealth, and African championships, would get a house and N5 million in cash from Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, it was revealed on Tuesday.
Amusan was also appointed a sports ambassador for Ogun State by the governor.
In a statement released by his chief press secretary, Kunle Somorin, Abiodun said: “So, you (Amusan) will be our Sports Ambassador; I am happy that you said you are not from any other state. You are from Ogun and not from Lagos and you want to come back home. We also want to ensure that you come back home. We want to assure you that as you come back home, you have a home here in the state. So, in view of that, we are also going to be presenting to you a home in Ijebu-Ode. On top of that, we will be giving you a small token, we will be donating to you the sum of N5m.”
Abiodun stated that his administration was on track to give the Ijebu-Ode Stadium the essential facelift.
The request by Amusan, the women’s 100-meter hurdles world record holder, to train in the stadium anytime she was in the nation, he continued, would further inspire his administration to expedite the stadium’s rehabilitation.
Abiodun added that the passage of a law to ensure the complete emancipation of women in the state would usher in a period in which women would be given more responsibilities. His administration viewed the role of women as being very important in all spheres of human endeavor, according to Abiodun.
The Governor made it clear that his administration saw Amusan as a point of contact for other young people in the nation who no longer believed in a life of sacrifice, perseverance, and assiduity. The Ogun-born athlete’s narrative, he said, would enlighten others who continued to think that combining athletics with education was a waste of time.
Amusan urged the Federal Government to support athletics more in her speech, while also thanking Abiodun for his assistance in her triumph.
“All thanks to my Governor for supporting me and I feel the Federal Government can do the same when it comes to supporting athletes financially,” she said.
The world champion was already giving back to society, according to her coach Abiola Onakoya, who also mentioned the Tobi/Abiola Grassroots Sports Development program in Ogun State, which is a program for the development of athletics.
