Sports
Aiteo Cup Game Will Serve As Warm Up – Okon
Rivers Angels FC will begin their participation in the 2021 Aiteo Cup today against Kwara Ladies inside the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium in Benin.
Head coach of the side, Edwin Okon says the encounter will serve as a good tune up for them as they continue preparations for their WAFU B qualifiers in Abidjan, Coted’voire, next week.
The Jewel of Rivers, who were finalists in the last edition lost their chance of securing a record 9th title 5-4 on penalties to Nasarawa Amazons.
They are, however, pumped up this year, following their qualification for the WAFU B with an opportunity to feature at the maiden edition of the CAF Women’s Champions League billed to hold in Egypt later this year.
Kwara Ladies are coming back from an almost two weeks of Nigeria Women Footbal League (NWFL) Championship competition, where they failed to secure promotion back to the Premiership, but Okon believes they would be a good test for his side because according to him, they are in a good match form.
“I am only going to use this game on Thursday to ascertain the level of mental and physical readiness of my girls ahead of the task in front of us,” stated Okon.
“Like I have said before, we are going to meet a team just coming out of a competitive league tournament in Abidjan, so playing Kwara Ladies will be to our advantage.
”I’m not saying we have not had any quality match before now, but you know these things are never enough until you achieve your target,” he added.
Okon, however, reiterated that he was not going to take Thursday’s game lightly because ‘underdogs’ can sometimes be a tough nut to crack.
“We are not going to underrate Kwara Ladies, because experience has taught me how teams like this can make things very difficult for you”, Okon continued.
“I have told the girls to approach the game the same way they would, when they play bigger teams because you don’t want to make headlines for the wrong reason in times like this.
“I equally believe a win will boost their morale and prepare them mentally as well,” he concluded.
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.