Sports
Pinnick Thumbs Up Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium
The President of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick, has described the renovated Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin as a “world class” edifice.
Pinnick made the comment on Monday in Benin during an inspection tour of the facility, and added that it had undergone tremendous improvement since the last time he visited.
Tidesports source gathered that Pinnick was led on the inspection by the Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria are scheduled to play their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers against the Leone Stars of Sierra Leone at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium on November 13, 2020.
Pinnick said his visit was to see things for himself so as to report to members of the NFF Executive Committee.
He said: “There is a tremendous improvement compared to the last time I came, the turf is very brilliant, it’s what you see in world class facilities. I thank the government of Edo State for this facility and we are proud of this achievement.
“The Super Eagles can’t wait to come and play in the state. I’ m in touch with the players, who are all excited to be here to play for the country, especially Ahmed Musa, the captain of the team, whose mother is from Edo State and he is anxious to play for the nation and his state.
“The NFF will move into the state on November 9, while the players will start arriving from November 11 and after the game make preparations to fly to Sierra Leone on Friday or Saturday after the game.
“I will communicate all I have seen here to the Ministry of Youths and Sports and also the Executive Committee. I am happy with what we have seen here today and the Super Eagles will be playing here for a long time.
“We are also going to bring the Super Falcons here to play; they are the most successful team in Africa, you know this is home, like I told you, I made a promise on behalf of the federation, that is promise kept.
“And also, we have always been thankful to Edo State government for being there for Nigeria football federation, and we thank them for that generosity at every point in time because these are very sensitive times.
“We are also working because they have been a lot of people coming into the stadium, we have to observe the COVID-19 protocol to the letter. They have written to us officially, this is about 15, 000 sitting capacity stadium.
“They want about 6,000 to 7, 000 where they will sit out to observe social distancing, so we are going to look at it, we will send a letter to the ministry and also send a letter to Presidential Task Force, once we get the approval within the next two days we will send.
“I have already spoken to CAF, we will send a representative of CAF and I will want a situation whereby people will see decent crowd in the stadium in a very competitive game in Edo.
“We are working towards reducing every mistake humanly and materially possible and ensure we have success.
“The team is like coming home to meet your brother but we will just quietly beat them home and away.”
On the newly-installed Video Assistant Referee (VAR) equipment in the stadium, Pinnick said he had told Governor Godwin Obaseki and his deputy Shaibu to showcase whatever facilities they have in the stadium.
“You have to showcase whatever facilities you have in Samuel Ogbemudia stadium, we have to write to CAF for approval of the usage of the VAR, but we are very excited about it,” he said.
In his remarks, Shaibu assured that the state was excited to host its first international game in the newly-renovated stadium.
“That was what it was intended to achieve, to have both national and international games here, and we are also excited that in the course of building this stadium, we followed international standards.
“We were all in touch with NFF while we were building the stadium to also guide us with all the FIFA necessary facilities we need to put in place.
“What we have here today is an international standard stadium and we are excited that we are having this game here, and don’t forget that we are having a game in this period of COVID-19 pandemic.
“You know that COVID-19 task force in the state is very strong and they are already being recruited to be part of this game so we are going to make sure that COVID-19 protocols are observed in line with international best practices
“I want to use this medium to appeal to Edo people, that there is going to be lots of games here, this one, we will not have full capacity spectators, we are going to admit half into the stadium.
“We are going to make sure that they are well spaced to meet COVID-19 protocols, so we are very ready and excited, only that we are going to appeal to our president so that we can use our VAR facilities, so that the doubting Thomas will know that there is actually VAR in this stadium,” he said.
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.