AAC 2024: Cyrille Tollo tackles Crépin Nyamsi!

Your media Lattaquant.com presents the statement made by Cyrille Tollo:

“It is important to understand that the organisation of the African Athletics Championships is not the direct responsibility of the Ministry of Sports.

The government allocates the necessary resources and coordinates the event, but it is the Cameroon Athletics Federation and the African Athletics Confederation that bear the main responsibility. MINSEP is not involved in the mobilization, communication, transport and accommodation of the athletes, nor in the technical aspects of the competitions.

The main purpose of the meetings chaired by the Minister is to monitor the progress of the organisation and to report to the hierarchy, bearing in mind that the event is sponsored by the President of the Republic. They also serve to guarantee public health and safety during the competition.

I am delighted to see that MINSEP’s involvement has enabled some Cameroonians to discover athletics, thus diversifying interest beyond football. However, it is essential to stress that the African Cup of Nations remains the only event for which the government is fully responsible for organization, in collaboration with CAF. We successfully organized the African Cup of Nations in January 2022. Other sporting events are the responsibility of the federations.

I’m in favour of the state becoming more involved in the organization of major sporting events. Experience shows that their withdrawal often leads to failure, as observed not only in athletics but also in other disciplines. The State must now take the lead, as we demonstrated during the matches against Cape Verde and Angola, with convincing results”.

These comments clearly reignite the controversy surrounding the much-criticized management of this 23rd edition of the African Athletics Championships, a concern expressed from the outset by some of the participants.