Defending champions Delta on Tuesday won more gold medals to gain an unassailable lead on the medals table and put a gap between them and the rest at the 20th National Sports Festival, which will be concluded on Wednesday.
Team Delta took their tally to a total of 298 medals, comprising 124 gold, 91 silver, and 83 bronze, to maintain their lead and emerge champions of the festival with just a few more events to be decided and on the festival’s penultimate day.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that this is based on the medals table released by the festival’s Games Services Unit as at 4:33 p.m. on Tuesday. Hosts Edo, Delta’s nearest challenger, will now need to win 21 gold medals at least to upstage it.
The hosts presently have 103 gold, 97 silver and 85 bronze for a total of 285 medals.
Bayelsa is a distant third with 48 gold, 42 silver and 49 bronze for a total of 139 medals, while Rivers are in fourth place. They have 27 gold, 27 silver, and 47 bronze for a total of 101 medals, ahead of Lagos in fifth place with 22 gold, 27 silver, and 43 bronze medals.
Akwa Ibom is in sixth place with 77 medals, made up of 17 gold, 21 silver, and 39 bronze, edging Oyo state into seventh place with just a two-medal advantage.
Oyo State has 17 gold, 19 silver, and 28 bronze for a total of 64 medals. In the eighth position is Ogun with 13 gold, 14 silver and 31 bronze for a total of 58 medals, while Kano state is ninth-they have 11 gold, 16 silver, and 29 bronze for a total of 56 medals.
Plateau is in 10th place with eight gold, nine silver, and 15 bronze for a total of 32 medals. Abia, Imo, Cross River, FCT, Ondo state, Anambra, Kwara, Nasarawa state, Kaduna state, and Bauchi state occupy the 11th to 20th positions in that order.
Niger, Ebonyi, Enugu state, Ekiti, Borno, Osun, Gombe state, Zamfara, Yobe, Katsina state, Kebbi, Kogi, Adamawa, Sokoto state, Benue, and Taraba also occupy the 21st to 36th positions respectively. Jigawa State brings up the rear with zero medals after 10 days of competition.
NAN reports that the festival, which got underway with the arrival of athletes and officials on April 2, got into competition mode on April 6.
The festival tagged “Edo 2021” will officially end on Wednesday, with all participants scheduled to depart on Thursday.
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