Sports
Agege Sports Competition’ll Impact On Youths – Organiser
The 2020 Agege Sports Drive Competition in Lagos State will positively change the narrative perception of youths in the community.
Chairman, Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the competition, Mr Ademola Oni, made the assertion in an interview with newsmen, yesterday.
Oni said that the game slated to begin on February 22 would change the negative perceptions of youths in Agege Community to the outside world.
According to him, what Agege is popularly known for is the production of bread and other social vices among youths in the area.
“We believe we can use sports to change that negative perception of youths in the community.
“The competition will also involve both young and old within the local government area.
“Absolutely, this competition is not only about football, though, is one of the major events, about eight different games are included in the tournament.
“We believe other games that have not been given prominence should be recognised in this year’s competition,” he said.
Oni said that other traditional games like “Ayo Olopon”, Draft and Ludo would also be part of the competition for the women and elderly people categories.
He said that 16 teams from different streets have signed up for the Challenge Cup Tournament involving over 2,000 youths.
According to him, these games are nearly going into extinction, but the LOC has scheduled them in the competition to bring people together like in the old good days.
The “Ayo Olopon” game is earmarked for 50 years and above, Draft Game is for people from 40 years and above, while Ludo Game is positioned mainly for female participants.
“Snooker Game that has also gone into extinction will also be introduced to bring the good time we have had with the game in the olden days,” he added.
The LOC chairman noted that the competition would kick off with 16 streets in Agege where the teams would be represented in all the games in the competition, including football.
The list of streets that have registered for the tournament include: Olarenwaju, Shobowale, Ogunipebi, Ifelodun, Oshungboye, Kosoko, Abeokuta, Suru, Adedosu, Lagos and Stadium United.
Others are: Onafuwa, Powerline, Ijaiye, Emiloju and Kajola Street, which fall under Keke Agege Community in Lagos State.
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.
