Lagos zone has seen nine dancers progress to the final of the National Breakdance Championship schedule for November this year ahead of preparations for the 2024 Paris Olympic games where the dance will debut as one of the sport activities in the global showpiece.
The final of the qualifiers held at the Alliance Francaise office in Ikoyi, saw four girls and five boys received the tickets to join 23 finalists already qualified from other zones that include Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kaduna and Kano.
Those who made the journey to the Lagos grand finale include Umanah Victor, Edun Olaide, Uket Isaac, Akinkumi Nancy and Barnabas Angel while others are David Wonderful, Idris Salaam, Adesoye Victoria and Akinbogun Victoria.
Initiator of the competition and Executive Director of FAME Foundation, Aderonke Ogunleye Bello, told journalists that the vision to produce sportsmen men and women for Nigeria to represent the country in the new Olympic approved sport
next year in France began in November 2022.
Aderonke said her vision is to empower Nigerian youths and dissuade them from crime and drug abuse and make them good ambassadors of Nigeria on the global using break dancing sport.
She said, “We are using breakdance to empower the youths. We have been campaigning against drugs, we say no to rape and several social vices. So, breakdance is here to empower the youths. As they are breakdancing, they are sending messages to other youths against thuggery, rape and other vices.”
According to her, “It is a new sport in the Olympics and we have to embrace it and create the awareness in Nigeria that dancing is now sports.”
The former Sports writer affirmed that “At Fame Foundation we have an initiative called ‘Play it, Dream it’, where we use sports as a tool for development, we have used football, handball and Yoga. Now we are using break dance because it captures a certain part of the society that the youths love to follow, we have been doing it for sports followers, now it is for dancers and their fans.”
Some of the youth who spoke to Blueprint expressed optimism to win medals at international break dance championship in France as representatives of Nigeria if they emerge as two of those to adorn the Nigerian colours at the European country.
