Sports
Fans Laud Ultimate Commander For Reviving Wrestling
Wrestling fans in Lagos applauded the Africa Wrestling Heavyweight Champion, Osita Offor, aka De Ultimate Commander, for reviving professional wrestling in Nigeria.
In separate interviews with newsmen some of the thrilled fans said they enjoyed every minute of the fights at the Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, tagged “Gathering of Champions.’’.
The seven fights last weekend were a prelude to De Ultimate Commander’s World Heavyweight Wrestling title defence against Shelton Benjamin scheduled to hold at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.
Some of the fans said that hitherto they had thought that professional wrestling bouts were staged to entertain the audience, but watching the fights live had changed their views.
They urged other wrestlers, who had benefited from the country, to emulate Ultimate Commander and support the revival of professional wrestling.
A banker, Abraham Gbadamosi, who said he had been a wrestling fan since his youth, told Tidesport soruce that because he could not get live wrestling to watch, he had resorted to watching them on television.
According to him, watching wrestling live gives him a lot of pleasure and this prompted him to bring his children to experience what they watch on television.
He urged governments and corporate bodies to rally round professional wrestlers like De Ultimate Commander to revive the sport. “I think we should commend Ultimate Commander for bringing world wrestlers to Nigeria in his bid to bring back the good old days of professional wrestling; others should emulate him,’’ Gbadamosi said.
Bukola Arowojobe, a fashion designer, said that when she heard about the championship, she thought it was a hoax.
“Until I got here and saw all these world wrestlers, I did not believe,’’ Arowojobe said.
She, however, wondered why no female wrestlers were featured in the championship, saying that female wrestlers should be given equal opportunity to exhibit their talents.
Kareem Salami, a sports lover, said that sports generally was on the decline in the country, adding that a lot more needed to be done to improve all sports.
He appealed to governments at all levels to shift focus from football and give other sports adequate attention.
“Sport is a lucrative business in other countries but people administering sports in Nigeria do not see it that way and that is why we are not reaping from the gold mine,’’ he said.
About 15 foreign and 13 African wrestlers took part in the championship, which was promoted by Universal Promotional Wrestling Federations (UPWF) in conjunction with The Ultimate Wrestling and Charity Organisation (TUWCO).
In one of the bouts, Reinforcer of USA, weighing 131.9 kg, defeated compatriot, Maximus Fury, 83.91kg; while Jimmy Palm (85 kg) of Nigeria also defeated his Nigerian counterpart, Black Heritage (85 kg).
In the tag team matches, Golden Twins of Congo DR (400 kg) defeated Nigerian Ring Riders (400 kg), while Shelton Benjamin and Val Venis (113.3 kg) USA, defeated Nigeria’s Ultimate Commander and Slam Shady (113.8 kg) of the USA.
Hon Dike who spoke with sports journalists shortly after the flag off the 2024 edition of Chairman’s Football Unity Tournament at Botem Tai in Tai LGA, said the tournament is an annual event to promote peace and unity in Tai as well identify budding talents in the area for global competition.
The opening ceremony of the tournament was more like a carnival was witnessed by huge crowd including prominent indigenes of Ogoni Kingdom, sports lovers and people from all works of life.
The LGA boss revealed that special sports committee will be setup in the area to work out modalities to strengthen sports development in Tai.
He advised the participants in the tournament from various wards in the LGA to play the game by the rules and conduct themselves in a peaceful and orderly manner and use the opportunity to showcase their talents.
Hon Dike further disclosed that his administration will also give priority attention to skills development among the youth to enhance their human capacity and promote enterprise development in the area.
Earlier in his address the Chairman of Tai LGA Football Council, Elder Wisdom Gorgor said the annual football competition has been a unifying factor in Tai LGA that need to be sustained to forge more unity and development in the area.
He urged the participants to see the competition as an opportunity to embrace football as a full career and earn sustainable livelihood.
Elder Gorgor who commended the Chairman of Tai LGA, Hon Dike for his visionary leadership and tremendous development achievements recorded in the LGA under his administration, appealled to the Chairman to build a Mini Sports Stadium in the area to promote sporting activities.
The training was held at the Sani Abacha Stadium Indoor Basketball Court in Kano last Saturday.
According to the Vice President and Head of NBA Nigeria, Gbemisola Abudu, the event was part of the league’s commitment to growing broader basketball ecosystem in Nigeria and making the game more accessible across the country.
“Our first Jr. NBA clinic in Kano speaks to our commitment to growing the game in Nigeria and creating more opportunities for boys and girls to learn and play the game,” Abudu said.
“Nigeria has a rich basketball history and abundance of talent, which is evident every time you watch an NBA game. We look forward to continuing to engage with basketball stakeholders, business leaders and members of the community to further the game’s reach and impact on young people around the country,” she added.
The 2024 basketball initiative clinics of NBA Nigeria also included the league’s inaugural Jr. NBA elite camp for 150 boys and age-16 girls held at the American International School in Lagos in July.
Others include the NBA’s building of 1,000 courts in Africa over the next decade, Nigeria’s Festival Coins and Salubata named the top two winning businesses at NBA Africa Triple-Double Accelerator’s inaugural Demo Day in New York City held last September, and the third edition of “NBA Meets Art,” a curated installation celebrating basketball through the lens of Nigerian art and culture as part of West Africa’s premier art fair Art X Lagos, held in November.
Central to this vision is the federation’s investment in capacity building, evident in the just-concluded one-week Level 1 Badminton World Federation (BWF) Coaching Course, which marked a significant milestone for Nigerian badminton.
Held in Abuja, the course brought together 13 young coaches from across Nigeria. The last time such a course was held in the country was in 2017, making this a historic and transformative step.
The training was facilitated by the Badminton Confederation of Africa (BCA) in partnership with the Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN) and conducted by Dr. Ahmed Radah, the BCA Development Manager.
Radah, impressed by the talent he witnessed, praised Nigeria’s potential.
“Nigeria is blessed with immense talent and a strong badminton tradition. I believe this country has what it takes to dominate on the global stage,” he remarked.