Former Cross River State Governor, Senator Liyel Imoke, has expressed immense pride following the record-breaking performance of Patience Okon George at the ongoing National Sports Festival in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

George, who emerged from Imoke's sports development program implemented during his 2009-2015 governorship tenure, set what has been described as the only outstanding record at the festival so far in the women's 400-meter race.

Taking to his verified social media handle, Imoke shared his delight: "It gave me a lot of joy to see a product of my 2009-2015 sports development programme in Cross River State win and set the only record so far at the National Sports Festival held in Abeokuta in the women's 400-meter race."

The former governor described George as "the epitome of hard work, dedication and focus on continuous improvement," while hailing her as "a legend in the making."

What makes George's achievement even more remarkable, according to Imoke, was the manner of her victory. "The record is more impressive because there was no real competition. She ran her own race in front and paced herself into the record books," he noted.

Statistics indicate that Cross River State has made impressive showings at the Abeokuta festival compared to their performances in recent editions of the national sports competition.

The National Sports Festival, Nigeria's premier multi-sport event, brings together athletes from across the country's 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to compete in various sporting disciplines.