The Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) has sent out condolence messages to the family of its foremost President, Pa Joseph Adebayo Thompson who died on Tuesday aged 99 years.
In the condolence message signed by the the Secretary General of SWAN, Jude Opara, SWAN remembers with nostalgia his huge contributions to the development of sports in the county which prompted him and other like minds to birth the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) in 1964.
He led the Association from 1964-1972 as chairman.
SWAN President, Sir, Honour Sirawoo in his tribute said the late Pa Thompson was a beacon of encouragement who was always on hand to render fatherly advice any time he was called upon.
Sirawoo who also described the deceased as the father of sports journalism in Nigeria even as he regretted that Pa Thompson would have clocked the iconic 100 years on the 30th of April, 2021.
In his journalism career, Pa. Thompson was able to leave his marks starting from his professional career as a Press Reporter at the Labour Champion Newspapers owned by the Nigeria Federation of Labour in 1950.
He was later to work in; the Daily Success Newspapers, the West African Pilot, the Daily Times as well as the Daily Express Newspaper as Sports Editor.
Pa Thompson was indeed a man of many parts; He qualified as a soccer Referee in 1952, after serving as a match official for 14 years, he retired as Grade II Referee. He was a National Secretary of the Nigerian Referees Association (NRA) for four years.
