The Gov. Godwin Obaseki Kickboxing Championships will be used to assess the preparedness of the kickboxing community for the 2020 National Sports Festival (NSF), the Kickboxing Federation of Nigeria (KBFN) has said.
Nelson Oluigbo, KBFN Board Member, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday that the championships would hold in the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin, from Nov. 5 to Nov. 10.
Oluigbo said that although the championships would be an open event, associations would have completed their annual affiliation fees to the national body as a participation requirement.
“Edo will be hosting the 20th NSF in 2020; we are also organising the first Gov. Obaseki championships to assess state teams’ preparations for the festival.
“It is an open event but we will check records; states that have completed their affiliation fees will have their athletes take part in the championships,’’ he said.
He said that 18 officials had been invited as officiating referees in the competition which would feature all categories.
According to him, KBFN would take advantage of the championships to assess the referees, who recently participated in a technical seminar.
“The idea is to build the confidence of the referees, particularly on current rules taught in the seminar.
“They will be having their first officiating at the championships,” Oluigbo added.
He said that kickboxing activities in the state had not been as active as expected but hoped that the championships would revive the activities held last at the 2016 Agoma National Championships.