NSC Releases Competition Schedule for Enugu 2026 National Sports Festival
The National Sports Commission (NSC) has released the competition schedule for the 23rd National Sports Festival, Coal City Games 2026, with athletics set to bring the event to a close in Enugu State from December 5 to 11.
The festival will run from November 26 to December 11, with competition beginning on November 28, two days after the opening ceremony.
A total of 17 sports will get underway on the first day of competition, including badminton and para badminton, basketball, beach volleyball, boxing, canoeing and para canoeing, cricket, cycling, darts, football, golf, judo, para shooting, shooting, table tennis and para table tennis, and weightlifting.
Football will run throughout the festival, from November 28 to December 11, making it the longest competition alongside athletics.
Athletics, the flagship event of the festival, will take place from December 5 to 11 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, alongside para athletics.
Several other sports are scheduled to begin on December 4 and run until December 10. They include Ayo, Dambe, Kokowa, gymnastics, mixed martial arts, para powerlifting, swimming, taekwondo, tennis, wheelchair basketball and wrestling.
The NSC also confirmed the venues for the various competitions. The Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium will host athletics, para athletics, para badminton, swimming and gymnastics, while the International Conference Centre will stage para powerlifting, para shooting, shooting, weightlifting and wrestling.
Michael Opara Square will host basketball, volleyball and wheelchair basketball, while Okpara Square will stage beach volleyball, Dambe and Kokowa.
Other venues include Enugu Sports Club for Ayo, golf and tennis; Ugbo Dam in Awgu for canoeing and para canoeing; Enugu-Onitsha Express Road for cycling; the 82 Division Nigerian Army Cantonment for boxing; Base Event Centre for mixed martial arts; and PPSMB Parliament for judo and taekwondo.
