Sports
E’Guinea Opens Nations Cup Stadium
Equatorial Guinea officially opened their new Africa Cup of Nations stadium in Bata at the weekend when taking on South Africa in a friendly.
The 35,700-seater stadium will host the opening game of the Nations Cup when the co-hosts meet Libya on 21 January.
Friday’s match marked the debut of new national coach Gilson Paulo, who only took charge last Tuesday.
The game ended in a 0-0 draw despite the fact that South Africa were reduced to ten men in the second half.
Friday’s inauguration of the Estadio de Bata, which state president, Teodoro Obiang Nguema attended, caps an impressive turnaround of football facilities in Equatorial Guinea.
Until the 15,000-seater arena in the capital Malabo was built eight years ago, the country’s football fans watched games in conditions that were far from ideal.
“In 2003, we had a very small pitch, with a very small capacity for people and tiny stands – and it was a bit dangerous for some spectators,” midfielder Juvenal Ebjogo noted.
“But today, we have a major new stadium. The country has evolved greatly and we are developing more quickly than the rest of Africa.
“I can only approve of this because when you look at the past, we are proud to be able to enjoy today all that we have.”
Ebjogo, who plays for Sabadell in the Spanish second division, was one of a clutch of overseas-based footballers who arrived in Equatorial Guinea last week to a heroes’ reception.
The country’s official news agency reports that captain Rodolfo Bodipo received flowers upon disembarkation from Spain, where he is on Deportivo la Coruna’s books.
The Equatorial Guinea squad met new coach Paulo for the first time last Tuesday, with his first training session taking place the following day.
Despite the fact that he will have had just six days with the players before having to name his 23-man squad for the tournament, Juvenal has been impressed by the Brazilian so far.
“I think the new coach has extensive experience,” Juvenal explained. “I think that he needed more days of training to know (us better) but he will be a good coach for us in future – I have hope.”
After meeting Libya on 21 January, Equatorial Guinea – who will be contesting the Nations Cup for the first time in their history – take on Senegal and Zambia in Group A.
Gabon will stage the Nations Cup final on 12 February in Libreville.
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.
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