Relationship between management of Sports facilities and performance of Youth Athletes In Nigeria

Abstract

Youth athletes are naturally energetic, full of life and apparently looking for an avenue to display in born tendency through engaging in one sporting activities as the case may be. This study investigated the relationship between management of sports facilities and performance of youth athletes in Nigeria. Athletes who are exposed to unkept, abandoned sports facilities are likely to perform below expectation among their other counterpart sports championships. The objectives of the study are to; (i) examine the relationship between the state of school sports facilities and the performance of youth athletes; (ii) identify the relationship between the school administrators’ managerial experience and the performance of youth athletes (iii) evaluate the relationship between the management of school sports facilities and the performance of youth athletes in Nigeria. Descriptive research design of survey type was used for this study. The population comprised of 994 male and female athletes who participated at the 2018 National Youth Games, held at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State. Multistage Sampling Technique comprised of proportionate and stratified sampling techniques were employed in selection of the respondents for the study. The researcher’s developed instrument was adopted using moderate four - point Likert type rating scale after validated by three experts in the department of human kinetics education. A reliability of the instrument was tested using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient and Coefficient of 0.80 was obtained which showed that the instrument was reliable enough to carry out the study. The data collected were to subjected appropriate statistical tools of frequency, percentage and mean scores for the demographic data of the respondents while Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient was used to test the hypotheses formulated for the study at 0.05 alpha level. The findings revealed significant relationship between the state of school sport facilities, the school administrators’ managerial experience and management of school sport facilities and performance of youth athletes in Nigeria. Based on the findings, the following were recommended, school sports facilities in most of the public secondary schools should be renovated and upgraded in order to meet the national requirement which will in no measure enhance the performance of the youth athletes’ in Kwara State in particular and the country in general. Certified, experienced and well exposed personnel should be employed and charged with the responsibilities of managing sports facilities in ensuring that the available implements last longer while more funds should be disbursed in ensuring that proper maintenance of sports facilities, procurement of equipment and supply are extended to schools appropriately.