Rio Olympics Ticket Scandal: Dalung Distances Self, Summon AFN, FEAD

[caption id="attachment_10241" align="alignnone" width="640"]Solomon Dalung – Minister of Youth and Sports Development[/caption]

Following the ticket scandal that took sports loving Nigerians by surprise over the weekend, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, has summoned the Secretary-General of Athletics Federation of Nigeria Olumide Bamiduro and staff of the Federation of Elite Athletes Department for questioning.

It will be recalled that over the weekend, some Nigerian athletes took to social media pleading for funds to sponsor them to the 2016 Rio Olympics, after it was alleged that Bamiduro sent a mail to the athletes, asking them to send an estimate of what their ticket to Rio may cost, with an assurance that refunds will be given to them if approved by the ministry.

One of such athletes is Regina George who was selected to represent Team Nigeria in the 4 x 400m relay.

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She opened a GoFundMe page seeking for help so that she can represent Nigeria.

She wrote: “To all my family, friends and fans, thanks for being here for me through the good times and bad times.

“This year it’s been hard financially for me but it wouldn’t have been possible without your support.

“I’ve just been told that we will have to pay our own way to the Olympics this year.

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“Sadly this is such short notice for me to come up with the money.

“They also promised a refund but I’m still waiting for many refunds promised in the past.

“I’ve been through a lot of obstacles this year and through it all I got into the Olympic team for the second time.

“I don’t want to stop now after I earned a spot to represent my country in the Olympics. Any donation will help my situation.

“This will not go unnoticed and I’m truly grateful for my supporters. Help spread the word!”

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In a speedy response, the minister has now distanced himself from the mail, stressing that he never instructed anyone to send such an information.

Part of the statement reads, “I hereby restate that no athlete has been authorized or asked to buy his or her ticket to the Olympic Games.

“Whoever that wrote the letter did so on his or her own accord without due consultation with the overseer of sports in the country which is the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

“We are totally committed to the welfare of our athletes and will ensure that they are not psychologically affected by distractions caused by this letter.’’

Meanwhile, Athletes will reportedly start moving to the Games village in Rio on August 1, 2016.

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