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Olakinta DeSouza, an executive member of the Commonwealth Judo Association (CJA) on Tuesday called for capacity enhancement of Judo technical officials toward the development of the sport at the grassroots.
DeSouza told Sports Journalist in Lagos that most Nigerian coaches were not up to date with current techniques, rules and regulations governing the game.
The Nigerian Judo Federation (NJF) board member attributed the poor performances of Nigerian judokas at international competitions to inadequate knowledge of modern techniques and rules governing the sport.
“Other factors affecting the development of judo in Nigeria is lack of regular clinics for coaches.
“Most of our coaches do not understand what they teach their athletes because they are not current with the changing rules in the sport.
“Coaching any sports globally requires scientific methods and for any coach to perform well in any competition, he or she must be in tune with the modern coaching methods,’’ he said.
The international referee, however, urged former athletes to engage in coaching and officiating as a way of developing the sport.
“The experiences and exposure gathered during their active participation will help them as coaches or referees to grow the sport,’’ he said.
DeSouza commended the current board of NJF for updating the capacity of the coaches and promoting the sport at the grassroots.
He tasked the board to always organise coaching clinics for secondary schools students to discover new talents.