Sports
AYE Pepple Independent Soccer Tourney Holds Oct. 1
All is now set for the sec
ond edition of the eagerly awaited 2014 ‘Old Port Harcourt Independence All Stars Soccer Tournament’. Just like last year, the one day tournament holds on October 1st 2014 at the Governor Rotimi Amaechi beautifully reconstructed No 1 field ground between Niger
and Bende Street in old Port Harcourt Township.
The 2014 edition among other things aims to commemorate Nigeria’s 54th Independence Day anniversary celebration.
Sponsored for the second year running by the Rivers state House of Assembly Member Representing Bonny Constituency, Hon. Aye Atamah Pepple (Man 2 Watch), the event is expected to feature eight teams as against six that featured last year. Speaking to newsmen on his choice to sponsor a football tournament in Port Harcourt instead of Bonny, he said, ‘ I also sponsor football competitions every December in Bonny, but however the Old Port Harcourt Independence All Stars Soccer Tournament is somewhat a personal social responsibility in which I decided to embark upon. For the records, I am a core old Port Harcourt township personality and this football event to me provides an opportunity for me to give back to society and the neighbourhood I grew up. It is another way of celebrating Nigeria’s independence with some football funfair, spread the spirit of love because I believe in the biblical doctrine of ‘Love thy neighbor as you love thyself” and to expose our body to some level of physical training among other things.
Further speaking he noted that the tournament will provide an opportunity to unwind and encourage boundless social integration devoid of class, creed or affiliations. “Port Harcourt Township will ever remain green in my memory” he said adding that the tournament is another way to sustain and reflect his deep love and appreciation for an area that saw him through some of his developmental stages in life.
The tournament is expected to spark up intense rivalry, teams expected to lock horns for this year’s tournament include; Kallongii Sports Club, All Stars FC PH, Ex Professionals, Cartel FC, Amalgamated All Stars, Club 58, Crystal Stars and Liverpool FC.
It will be recalled that last year’s tournament was a phenomenal success, as six teams locked horns against each other. The atmosphere was absolutely electric and that the spectators were lamouring for more… This year’s tournament according to Chike Owakah, the Chairman of the organizing committee shall be bigger and better.
He said that the lawmaker has affected an increase in the take home prize money as the winner for this year is expected to cart home a whopping N200,000, while the first and second runners up smile home with N150,000 and N100,000 respectively. “There shall also be lots of individual prizes for the Best Goalkeeper, Highest Goal Scorer, and Most Valuable Player among others” he was quoted as saying. He urged all and sundry to turn out en masse for the one day tourney.
Enyeama in action for Lille of France
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.