The current national amputee football captain, Sarafadeen Olalekan Oyeleke, has advocated for equal opportunities extended to able-bodied and amputee football players in Nigeria.
The Irra-born, powerful defender of the National Amputee Football Team told Sportspro News in an exclusive chat that Amputee Soccer will soon become a household name in Ilorin and other parts of Nigeria.
According to a Computer Engineering graduate from the Federal Polytechnic Offa in Kwara State, the structure on the ground to promote amputee football will soon yield results that will now attract global attention.
Sarafadeen Oyeleke, who has put together his wealth of experience as a national captain, attended several competitions, namely the Cup of African Nations for Amputee Football (CANAF) in Liberia (2008), Ghana (2010), Kenya (2013), Angola (2019), and Tanzania (2022).
He also attended the World Amputee Football Cup in Mexico in 2018 and had a stint of professional amputee football in Turkey with Istanbul Kulubu and Bursa Spor Kulubu between 2015 and 2018, where he scored over 5 goals in the league and promoted Bursa Spor Kulubu to their first Turkish Super League.
He stressed that amputee soccer is beginning to attract patronage from corporate organizations and individuals who believe the game will bridge the gap between the able and the disabled.
Sarafadeen, who is currently serving as a board member of the Nigeria Amputee Football Federation, representing the North Central Zone, disclosed to Sportspro News that the Kwara State Sports Commission has granted the request of the Kwara State Amputee Association to develop a training pitch that will purely house amputee players to build a career in the game.
Meanwhile, a company based in the United States of America has established contacts with the Kwara State Amputee Football Association to support the dream of having a befitting amputee playing field of international standard.
He commended the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq, the Executive Chairman of the Kwara State Sports Commission, Coach Bola Magaji, the Chairman of the Kwara State Amputee Football Association, Engineer AbdulRahman Giwa, and the consultant for amputee football in Kwara State, Bayour Issah of Sportspro News, for developing a strategy for amputee soccer to strive in this challenging time.
Sarafadeen advised amputee soccer players across the state to resume training at the Kwara State Stadium on Monday and Thursday ahead of the Zenith Amputee Football Championship in Lagos State and the forthcoming 2nd edition of the National Para Festival in Abuja.
It will be recalled that the Kwara State Amputee Football Team won the gold medal at the maiden edition of the game after beating their Kano State counterpart in the final in the year 2022.