Odegbami, former Eagles Star motivates kids at Cowbell Academy Camp
Lagos, Nigeria, 5 August, 2013: Former Super Eagles Star, Segun Odegbami over the weekend visited the Cowbell Football Academy summer camp to mentor the kids.
Odegbami who was nicknamed Mathematical by the Late Sports Commentator Ernest Okonkwo because of his football dexterity, encouraged the kids at the Academy to take their trainings serious and be confident if they want to be successful.
“You are very lucky at this age to have this opportunity to be trained by experienced coaches, who will take you through the rudiments and then you become stars. In our time we were not that lucky. So I want to encourage you to put in your very best. Listen and learn from your coaches because they have got more experience than you and play with confidence.
He further advised the kids that for them to stand out in football, or in any area of their lives, they should act the part, do the part and they will have the part.
“I have a three word paradigm that guides my life. To become what you want to be, you must first 'Be' the part, that is, start acting like that thing you want to become, 'Do' the part, here you make efforts to become that thing and then you will 'Have' the part. To be number one you have to act like number one. To be outstanding you must put in a little more effort, because it is that little more, that makes you different. It's the little more that gives you an edge over the other players,” he noted.
Cowbell Football Academy (CFA) at the weekend kicked off a 3-week Summer Camp training at the main bowl of the national stadium Lagos to engage kids during the summer season.
Explaining the need for a summer camp, Rector of the academy, Mr. Godwin Dudu-Orumen said the academy which recently celebrated its first year anniversary is organising the camp to help keep the kids out of crime.
Dudu-Orumen noted that the academy realised that most schools were on holidays and rather than letting the kids play and get into all sorts of vices, it decided to organise the Summer Camp training for the kids.
“The aim of the academy is to build sound mind and sound body. It creates a platform for these kids and also empowers them to become better Nigerians. Like we have today, we do not take them through training alone, we bring in professionals to speak to them and empower them, to encourage these kids and to teach them how to balance playing football and education.”
Dudu-Orumen said, “Promasidor has given us a laudable package. It is not just about commending Cowbell but appreciating the fact that they understand and are committed in training these kids. Promasidor's sponsorship goes beyond money, they are part of the process, they compliment us, they encourage us and they are always available. We want to create an institution that will provide for everybody. We want to create opportunities beyond football for these kids.”
Cowbell Football Academy was launched in 2012 as a corporate social responsibilities program by Promasidor Nigeria with the aim of building and developing the nation through sports. The Cowbell Football Academy is committed to preparing young footballers, between ages 3 – 18 years to shine as stars in the future. It's a result of diligent scouting and years of rigorous work to forge a team that played together as a unit and did the nation and our continent proud.
Promasidor Nigeria has continued to inspire young people and support sports annually in different capacity across the country; from schools inter-house sports, fun and excitement of its annual Animal Games for primary schools, iTry Rugby camp for kids, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) volleyball tournament and annual ParaSoccer Tournament for the physically challenged.