MONROVIA — The Liberia Athletics Federation (LAF) will officially launch the maiden edition of the National Universities Athletics Championship on Friday, May 16, 2025, at the Samuel Kanyon Doe (SKD) Sports Complex in Paynesville.
Ten Monrovia-based universities have signed up to participate in the two-day event, which is expected to feature more than 50 student-athletes in competition.
Participating universities include the University of Liberia, United Methodist University, African Methodist Episcopal University (AMEU), Starz University, BlueCrest University College, Adventist University of West Africa (AUWA), A.M.E. Zion University, Cuttington University, Stella Maris Polytechnic University and Salvation Army Polytechnic University.
Athletes — both male and female — will compete in track events such as the 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, 800 meters, 1,500 meters, 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters.
Field and relay events will include the long jump, high jump, shot put, javelin, 4×100-meter relay, 4×400-meter relay, 4×400-meter mixed relay, and medley relays.
LAF President Mulbah Zaza said the intent of the championship is to create more opportunities for young athletes. He disclosed that the event is being solely sponsored by the federation and called on public and private institutions to support the event financially.
“The goal is to build a national platform where university athletes can compete and grow,” Zaza said. “We need more support to make this sustainable.”
Zaza also announced that the winner of the first National Universities Athletics Championship will represent Liberia at the 2025 World University Games.
The upcoming edition of the games will be held in the Rhine-Ruhr region of Germany from July 16 to 27. The athletics events will take place at the Lohrheidestadion in Bochum.
BlueCrest University College, one of the participating schools, has already announced its team for the championship and emphasized the role of sports in education.
“At BlueCrest, we believe that true education goes beyond the classroom. While academic excellence remains our foundation, we also take great pride in nurturing diverse talents, promoting leadership, discipline, and teamwork through sports and other extracurricular activities,” the school said in a statement.
BlueCrest added that its athletes are “ready to bring home the championship medals,” having trained tirelessly while balancing their academic responsibilities with a passion for athletics.
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