Senegal has been selected to host the 2025 Confederation of African Athletics (CAA), Zone II, U-18 and U-20 championships.

This is contained in a statement by the President of the Confederation of African Athletics (CAA), Zone II, Tonobok Okowa, on Tuesday.

Mr Okowa, who is also the president of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria, said Senegal was selected ahead of Nigeria, Guinea and Burkina Faso.

He said that the Francophone country got the nod because CAA Zone II wanted to expand its reach, unite the region through sport and give every West African country a sense of belonging.

Mr Okowa said, “We have hosted CAA Zone II competitions in Benin Republic, Togo and Ghana, which are on the west side of the sub-region. It’s time to give the east side their fair opportunity to create history and add value to a sport we all love and cherish with passion.’’

He added that the good sporting facilities in Senegal, coupled with its rich sporting heritage, were another reason why the CAA Zone II U-18 and U-20 championships would be staged there.

Mr Okowa said he was elated by the choice of Dakar as the host city of the sporting fiesta—a development that followed the Confederation of African Athletics CAA Zone II.

He said that an evaluation of sporting facilities in Senegal showed they were in good state.

“Senegal Athletics is a whole lot of energy, with a lot of resourceful, hospitable and dynamic people who understand and appreciate the issues around hospitality. It is a country with a population that has a lot of diversity. We understand there will be a few concerns. We will give our assurances on all things required to make the event successful. We will ensure adequate security for participants. We will also be supporting Senegal and Senegal Athletics to ensure seamless transportation, accommodation and crowd management. We will do whatever we can to create an enduring experience for the visitors coming to the CAA Zone II events,” Mr Okowa said.

Mr Okowa added that harnessing the sporting potential of the youth was a key component of his administration’s development agenda.

He also said that his administration planned to use athletics and the combined U-18 and U-20 Championships as an engaging tool to create opportunities for young people.

“For us at the Confederation of African Athletics, we will use athletics as an engaging tool to create opportunities for young people to see a growth in their career path. We have started to push this agenda through our member National Associations. We are using athletics as a corrective narrative, an enabler that will make our youths see a brighter tomorrow.”

Mr Okowa described the Senegalese government as a “great promoter” of athletics and sports in general.

About 500 athletes and officials from 16 countries are expected to compete at the championships.

The last weekend in March is the tentative date for the competition, but Mr Okowa said the CAA Zone II secretariat would fine-tune the dates for the event.

(NAN)