The National Sports Commission (NSC) has declared that Nigeria’s renewed engagement with athletes abroad will extend far beyond football, with the country now embarking on an ambitious multi-sport talent identification programme aimed at strengthening Team Nigeria across future international competitions.
The initiative was unveiled during the maiden Nigeria Diaspora Sports and Investment Summit held at the Hertfordshire Sports Village in the United Kingdom, where athletes of Nigerian descent from different sporting disciplines gathered alongside parents, coaches, managers and former international stars.
While football remains one of Nigeria’s strongest sporting exports, Commission officials stressed that the new programme is designed to identify elite Nigerian talent wherever it exists from athletics and basketball to table tennis, combat sports, swimming, rugby and other Olympic disciplines.
The strategy reflects the National Sports Commission’s determination to build a broader and more sustainable talent pipeline capable of delivering medals and international success across multiple sports.
Leading the Nigerian delegation were National Sports Commission Chairman Shehu Dikko and Director General Hon. Bukola Olopade, who reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to ensuring that talented Nigerians abroad are not overlooked.
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According to the Commission, the newly established Nigeria Diaspora Talents Development Committee will coordinate efforts to identify, evaluate and integrate eligible athletes into Nigeria’s high-performance system.
The event also brought together some of Nigeria’s most respected sporting figures, who encouraged the young athletes to embrace opportunities to represent the country.
Among those present were Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador Aminu Dalhatu, Olympic long jump champion Chioma Ajunwa-Oparah, former Super Eagles internationals Carl Ikeme and Seyi Olofinjana, former D’Tigress captain Dr Sarah Ogoke and seven-time Olympian Funke Oshonaike.
Their presence highlighted the Commission’s desire to expose the next generation to athletes who have represented Nigeria with distinction on the global stage.
Exhibition matches and talent assessment sessions formed part of the programme, allowing coaches and technical officials to evaluate promising prospects while giving participants the opportunity to interact with established Nigerian sporting icons.
The Commission believes Nigeria’s global population offers one of the richest untapped talent pools in world sport, with thousands of athletes eligible to compete for the country across different disciplines.
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Rather than waiting for athletes to emerge independently, the NSC says it is creating an organised system that will maintain regular contact with Nigerian communities abroad, youth academies, schools and sports clubs to ensure outstanding talents are identified early.
