MTN Champs Uyo Grand Final: Over 2,000 Athletes to Vie for Top Honours

The grand finale of MTN Champs Season 3 is set to electrify Uyo from May 6 to 9 at the Godswill Akapbio International Stadium. This event follows the successful Athletics Classics in Benin (March 13–15) and the Continental Relays in Lagos (April 9–12).

At a press conference on May 5, organisers revealed a staggering 5,807 event entries from 2,187 athletes registered for the Uyo final. The participants include 464 Cadets, 777 Youths, 426 Juniors, and 520 Seniors. The Benin Athletics Classics attracted 2,056 entries, while the Lagos Continental Relays saw 2,505 entries.

Emmamoke Ogoro, General Manager, Brand and Communications, MTN Nigeria, shared the vision behind MTN Champs, “The dream of having Nigeria on the world stage is a strong vision that we hold to accomplish,” she said. “We stand for progress for Nigerians, and looking into grassroots development is the foreground of supporting all our youngsters to pursue their dreams.” Since its launch in 2023, MTN Champs has drawn over 15,000 athletes from 900 schools nationwide.

Ogoro expressed excitement about the progress so far, saying, “It gladdens my heart that at these events, we’re beginning to see people breaking their personal records and having records of about ten. When you start having 10 in athletics, it means we’re already on the world stage. We’ve gone around places where we know fully well that there are athletic talents. We’ve also discovered talents in very rural areas. Here in Akwa Ibom state, there are three youngsters representing the state and this is a huge accomplishment. As we kick off season three, we hope to birth future champions from here. The goal is, in the next one year, they should start attending international competitions. And from there in preparation for the Olympics, we should see Nigeria in the USA or in Mexico, representing Nigeria fully.”

The Benin and Lagos legs produced 40 Most Valuable Performers (MVPs) from 30 schools across 10 states, who have been invited to compete as Team MVPs at the Uyo Grand Final. Twenty athletes were selected from each city.

Deji Ogeyingbo, Country Manager, Making of Champions (MoC), explained why Akwa Ibom was chosen to host the grand finale, “The goal is to go across all of the states. Every Nigerian child deserves this opportunity. There are states that stand out, and Akwa Ibom stands out. We came here in season 1 and we knew it was imperative to come here again.” He applauded the state government for maintaining the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, giving young athletes the chance to compete on a world-class stage.

Reflecting on the MoC-MTN partnership, Ogeyingbo added, “MTN Champs started as an idea. We needed a company to believe in this project, and more importantly, believe in Nigeria and the immense talent in this country. From season one till now, we’ve now been to 11 different cities. We’ve made dreams come to pass. We’ve had talents come to compete, talents that never envisaged that they would make this far. MTN Champs is no longer an idea. It’s become a movement.”

The ultimate goal of MTN Champs is to build Nigeria’s future Olympians. Callima Inino, Regional General Manager, Operations, East, MTN Nigeria, said, “There is nothing as comforting as seeing the names of Nigerians on the Olympic stand. We have witnessed young and raw athletes, talents across the country. Through this initiative, every child from every community has the chance to be a champion.”

Inino revealed that 20 exceptional talents discovered through MTN Champs are currently enrolled in an academy in Lagos on a one-year scholarship, “What this Champs is doing through the academy is providing three Es: Education, Exposure and Experience, to allow them build the skills and attitudinal balance needed to grow.”

The MTN Champs Uyo Grand Final is supported by the Akwa Ibom State Government, the Nigeria School Sports Federation (NSSF), and the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN).

Representing the Akwa Ibom state governor, Commissioner of Sports Elder Paul Bassey explained how MTN Champs aligns with the state’s sports development agenda, “We have a mandate to develop sports from the grassroots. Unfortunately for this country, we have lost, at the world stage, renowned athletes, especially in track and field. In previous Olympics I attended, there was no way you would not have a Nigerian in the final in relays and sprints. This is why events like this are events that are after our heart. For 15 broken years, I also anchored the mobile track and field schools athletics championship in the state. We are still ripping the dividends. I want to thank MTN and MoC for taking this a step further.”

Bassey also revealed plans by the Umo Eno Bassey administration to establish a state-of-the-art sports academy to nurture athletes and provide quality education.

MTN Champs, Nigeria’s largest grassroots sports competition, aims to discover and develop local athletic talent. After four days of intense competition, Season 3 will conclude with 10 athletes inducted into the prestigious MoC academy, where they will receive mentorship, scholarships, and opportunities to compete internationally.