Officials of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the National Sports Council, The National Olympic Committee and concerned associations yesterday met with the Gambian athletes who qualified for the Olympics and Para Olympic Games in Rio De Jenero, Brazil this summer.
The four qualified athletes are 200M sprinter Adama Jammeh, sprinter Gina Bass, Swimmer Pap Dembo Jonga and Sweden-based Judoka Faye Njie.
Deputising for the Minister of Youth and Sports, the Deputy Permanent Secretary Abdoulie Kah congratulated the athletes on booking their tickets to the world showpiece. He noted it is worth celebrating the achievements of these athletes.
Marcel Mendy, Executive Director of the National Sports Council, said the athletes did extremely well leading to their qualification.
Some of the athletes, he said, did not only qualify but set new national records as well.
President of the Gambia National Olympic Committee (GNOC), Alhaji Momodou Dibba, said he was extremely proud having more than one athlete meeting qualification requirement to Brazil.
“Like the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said participating in the Olympics is what matters than winning medals. Participating in the Olympics alone will help to build a legacy for the athletes.”
Dodou Capi Joof and Sulayman Colley, Presidents of The Gambia Athletics Association and The Gambia Paralympic Committee, both thanked the athletes for making it to the Olympics and Paralympics in Rio.
Sprinter Adama Jammeh, who qualified for the 200M event, described the journey as tough. “I always spoke to journalists in my interview that I will make it to Rio without the wild card and I have made sure I stuck to that,” he told the gathering.
by Arfang MS Camara