It is a thing of joy for every athlete to retire with the sense of accomplishment in the field of sports.In the case of Nigeria, this is not the same as some of our sports ambassadors standard of leaving is low resulting to some leaving from hand to mouth. The reason for this plight is the lack of investment opportunities which would have matured on retirement. The government too have a share in the blame as no feasible structure exist in form of policy to cater for their needs and to achieve this. The establishment of a separate welfare schemes for sports men and women are needed as some sports men and women end up retiring at an early age due to injuries and unforeseen eventualities. Education which is very vital is not existing to some of them as events have shown that lack of proper management of funds due to financial recklessness is responsible for the dwindling fortunes of some of our sports men and women. The financial sector should go into partnership with our sports associations to help in managing this funds and the benefits of investing in the schemes made open to them. Insurance companies, Banks and other financial institutions should look into ways of encouraging financial stability and independence for our sports ambassadors and government should contribute to the scheme. The era of our sports men being neglected until their cases reach a bad state should be avoided and every machinery put in place to encourage financial stability. Our sports men should have a well represented association that could have their patrons and matrons from the private sector. One important fact that should not be forgotten is that of proper accountability of funds and resources. These must be done regularly and claims settled as at when due. Sportsmen deserved to be appreciated both in their active and retirement days.
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