Hockey Out of National Sports Festival as Enugu 2026 Qualifiers Announced

Hockey has been dropped from the upcoming 23rd National Sports Festival, Enugu 2026, leaving athletes and fans disappointed. The sport was notably absent from the list of events scheduled for the zonal qualifiers, which are set to begin on September 12 across Nigeria's six geopolitical zones.

The Main Organising Committee, in a letter dated August 24, specified that only basketball, cricket, football, volleyball, and beach volleyball would feature in the qualifiers for both male and female athletes. Hockey and abula, sports that were part of the previous edition in Ogun State, have been excluded.

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The decision to reduce the number of sports to 20 was taken during the National Council of Sports meeting held in Calabar, Cross River State, last year.

Sources suggest the exclusion of hockey is due to the lack of a suitable facility in Enugu, the designated host city. While holding the event in Delta State was reportedly considered as an alternative, the final decision was made to omit the sport entirely.

This move aligns with the National Sports Commission's earlier announcement in May that the Games would feature only 20 sports, a significant reduction from the 39 sports, including demonstration events, contested at the last two editions. Enugu State Commissioner for Sports, Lloyd Ekweremadu, stated that the reduction was decided at a National Council of Sports meeting and is in line with international practices. Enugu is preparing to host the festival in the last quarter of 2024, though specific dates are yet to be announced.

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reducing the number of sports to 20 was in line with international practice