Last Friday’s unveiling of Yussuf Alli as the Head of NSC’s Elite Athletes Development and Podium Appearance Board indicates there may be light at the end of the tunnel for Nigeria’s beleaguered sports industry. Olukayode Thomas profiles the man whose sports journey was ordered by fate and how his job will be easier if the NSC can create a vibrant sports economy.
It is fitting that Yussuf Amuda Alli, a former World, Commonwealth, African Champion and former African record holder in the long jump, is the torchbearer of the team that will develop elite athletes and ensure a podium finish.
Alli is expected to ensure that Team Nigeria return from games and championships with medals unlike what happened at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Resilient, disciplinarian, workaholic, and a team player who prioritizes hard work over personal comfort.
Alli’s success as an athlete, coach and as a sports administrator and manager is not just down to the above qualities, but the grace of the Almighty God and fate.
A grade A student in physics, chemistry, biology and mathematics, all Alli wanted in life was to gain admission into the University of Lagos, study any of the science courses and join the Federal Civil Service.
But fate had other plans for him. One weekend, a young neighbour, Isaac Ikhaobomeh, came home with a crate of 7 Up he won at an athletics competition at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.
Young Alli vowed he would join Ikhaobomeh at the next championship, he did and he won a crate of 7 Up.
But Alli won more than a crate of 7 Up, he decided to embrace athletics, a sport that gave him global fame, medals and fortune, and jettison football.
But Alli’s road to global fame, medals and fortune in athletics was not as straight as a rope, it was full of many ups and downs but at each point when the road closes, Allah will intervene.
Akioye, Mama Alli, Omeruah and Fate
Take for instance his journey to the Moscow’80 Olympic Games. Alli had beaten more experienced and illustrious senior colleagues at the National Trial.
But for the athletics coaches and other officials, his performance was not just a flash in the pan, he was just too inexperienced and immature to participate in the Greatest Show on Earth.
But just as Isaac Ikhaobomeh and a crate of 7 Up changed his sports career from football to athletics, another Isaac, this time Isaac Akioye, the greatest sports administrator ever in the history of Nigeria, intervened to change Alli’s story.
In his characteristic manner, Akioye had gone to oversee athletes’ preparation for the Moscow Olympics. He immediately noticed that the young jumper whodid better than his senior colleagues was not among those called to camp.
‘Where is the schoolboy that won the long jump’ Akioye asked his coaches, ‘he has been sent back to school, he is not good enough to go to Moscow’ replied his coaches.
‘No, I won’t take that’ said Akioye empathically, ‘if he is good enough to win the trail, he is good enough to be in Moscow, I want him in camp immediately’’.
Though Akioye’s word was law in the NSC but not in the Alli family. Alli, then was a student of St. Gregory College, Obalende, his ‘A’ level examination coincided with the games.
So when words filter to Mama Alli that her son will be going to Moscow for the Olympic Games at the time he was supposed to be writing his ‘A’ level, she rushed to Obalende to meet the then principal of St. Gregory College Mr. Emeka Omeruah.
Mama Alli told the principal that apart from accompanying her to Mecca that year for Hajj and writing his ‘A’ levels, her son would never go to any Olympics.
All pleas by Omeruah that Mama Alli should not let his son miss the golden opportunity since the Olympics is once in four years and the ‘A’ level is an annual examination did not dissuade Mama Alli, she was adamant her son would never go to the Olympics.
Alli was in this catch-22 situation when fate intervened again. For inexplicable reasons, the WAEC decided to postpone their examination that year and Alli killed three birds with one stone. He went to Hajj, to the Olympics and he also wrote the ‘A’ Level papers.
A few weeks after his examination, he gained admission to the University of Lagos to study for a Bachelor’s degree but after three months, fate intervened again as the University of Missouri offered him a scholarship that would enable him to combine education and athletics.
From Missouri to the World
Alli’s athletics talent blossomed at the University of Missouri under the tutelage of coach Bob Teel. He was a dominant figure in the NCAA in the long jump and the 100m.
Alli was also a regular face in the highly lucrative and competitive IAAF Golden League and Grand Prix now called the World Athletics Diamond.
Alongside Carl Lewis and Mike Powell, Alli was one of the best long jumpers in the world in his era. It was therefore not surprising that he won many African titles in the golden era of athletics in Africa, then athletics on the African continent was highly competitive and lucrative.
He was also the Commonwealth Games champion and he held the African record in the long jump for many years.
Alli was also the national champion in the long jump for many years, he captained Team Nigeria to many games and championships like the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, Athletics World Cup, World Championships, All African Games and African Athletics Championships.
But Alli’s great feat in athletics was in Canada in 1983 at the World University Games.
Then competition at the World University Games was at the level of the World Athletics Championships and the Olympic Games.
It was an era in which American athletes and America as a nation believed it was their birthright to dominate the sprints and jumps.
But they were shocked when Alli and four other Nigerian kids beat America in their ‘own’ events and at their ‘home’ in Canada.
At the games, America lost the most prestigious medal, the century to Chidi Imoh, Innocent Egbunike won the 200m, Sunday Uti the 400m, Ajayi Agbebaku the Triple Jump and Alli the long jump.
Americans quickly called a scientific conference to identify their shortcomings and how to stop Nigeria from becoming a superpower in athletics.
But Nigeria and Nigerians made America and Americans work easy as we went into a deep slumber by killing sports development with our own hands.
We have been in slumber since 1983 and there are no signs that we are ready to wake up from our slumber.
Alli’s transition from jumping to management
Alli’s success in management is something that must interest today’s coaches and competing athletes who intend to be coaches.
Unlike many of today’s athletes who believed that the transition from running to coaching is as easy as ABC, Alli chose another route.
As retirement knocks, Alli went back to school to learn the art and science of coaching and management.
Apart from lessons from the classroom, Alli identified the likes of KAB Olowu, Abdulkareem Amu, MAK Ogun, Smart Akraka and other walking encyclopedias of athletics and learned the practical aspects under them.
As soon as he returned to Nigeria after 16 years of sojourn in the United States, he went to these elder statesmen of athletics daily for tutorials.
So it is not surprising that Alli has been successful in most of his assignments like the Technical Manager of AFN, Technical Director of AFN, AFN Vice-President, Director at COJA, Race Director/General Manager of Aba Marathon, Okpekpe Road Race, Lagos City Marathon and countless events and including his tenure as the Executive Chairman of Edo State Sports Commission (ESSC).
Alli’s new assignment
But I don’t envy Alli in his new assignment because Nigeria has neglected sports development for several decades and the pillars on which Elite Athlete Development and Podium Appearance rest is sports development.
Secondly, apart from the core staff of the NSC on the board who will do the day-to-day work with him and former NBA star Olumide Oyedeji who is coming with a lot of value because of his vast contacts worldwide and passion for excellence like Alli, I can’t speak for other members of the board.
But what I know is Alli will carry members willing to work and learn along with him.
When I joined the board of AFN in 2013, there was a lot of wrangling especially between Solomon Ogba the president then and this writer.
In our first meeting, Alli called me aside and said, ‘Olukayode, you are my junior brother from my area, don’t join all those fighting on board, you won’t see them again after a few weeks because there won’t be seating allowances,if you are ready to contribute, let’s work with Ogba’’.
How prophetic Alli turned out to be, for the four years that I served on the board of AFN it was Alli, Olumide Bamiduro and I who ran the board with financial support from the Ogba.
With Alli’s acumen and financial discipline, we were able to run all the Golden Leagues, the National Trials and other programs.
With Alli, I am positive Nigeria will never experience the kind of failure we had at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games again, we will always make the podium.
But one cannot say the same about the ability of the political heads of NSC to build a vibrant sports economy.
Do they have what it takes to build a vibrant sports economy? Probably yes, probably no, the unpredictability of sports is one of its strongest attractions, so time will tell, but the early signs are not good.
