The maiden South West Secondary Schools Games tagged DAWN Games 2014 ended at the weekend with Morayo Okungbowa and Daniel Ibikunle were adjudged the most outstanding athletes of the competition hosted by Lagos State.
12-year-old Okungbowa, a swimmer, a junior class two student of Meadow Hall School, Lekki, won 11 gold, one silver and one bronze medals to emerge at the best female athlete of the tournament, while Ibikunle was adjudged the best male athlete. Ibikunle, a swimmer is 15-year-old senior class two student of Herois Faith College, Kosofe, won seven gold and one silver medals.
Host – Lagos, won the multi-sports championship, which kicked off on May 16 with over 2000 athletes and officials from Lagos, Ekiti, Osun, Oyo and Ogun.
Lagos athletes were outstanding in almost all the sports they competed in by claiming 177 medals made up of 89 gold, 60 silver and 28 bronze medals.
Team Ogun finished second with a total of 77 medals – 15 gold, 29 silver and 33 bronze medals.
In the third position were Team Oyo, which won 68 medals – seven gold, 18 silver and 43 bronze medals.
Team Ekiti were fourth with 33 medals; six gold, six silver and 21 bronze medals, while Team Osun came fifth with 18 medals made up of one gold, six silver and 11 bronze medals.
Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola of Lagos State, who declared the Games closed alongside his deputy, Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, said that Lagos is happy to have had the opportunity to host the first edition of the Games, “I am thankful to my brothers, the Governors of Ekiti, Ogun, Osun and Oyo for supporting this initiative and for sending their states’ athletes to attend and participate.”
According to Fashola, the DAWN Games was born out of the need to create the opportunity for the youths of the south-west to interact, to know themselves, understand their environment and be conscious of its challenges and inspired by its opportunities.
He added: “In order to ensure continuity of the Games, we have resolved to vest ownership of the competition and the hosting rights franchise in the DAWN Commission which is the administrative organ of our partnership under the leadership of the Director General, Dipo Famakinwa.”
