Sports
Remo Stars Coach Attributes Success To Good Facilities
Remo Stars’ Head Coach, Olawale Olowookere, who, at the weekend, guided his team to victory in the 2022 MTN/NPFL/La Liga U-15 Championship, has attributed his success to the quality facility the players enjoyed in the competition held in Ikenne, Ogun State.
Remo Stars U-15 team defeated Shooting Stars of Ibadan 2-0 in the final watched by a capacity crowd under floodlight at Remo Stars Stadium, Ikenne.
A brace from tournament’s top scorer, Arierhi Kparobo, gave Remo Stars U-15 team the trophy to end an exciting display of football artistry from young players, who came from across the country. Kparobo scored five goals in the competition.
Speaking with The Tidesports source, Olowookere said the quality of facilities at their disposal at ‘Beyond Limit Academy’ in Ikenne, which is run by the proprietor of Remo Stars, Kunle Soname, played a huge role in the victory.
“I thank God for this victory. I commend my players for their commitment, resilience and dedication throughout this competition. But beyond what happened on the football pitch, the support we got from our proprietor and the quality of facilities we enjoyed here contributed to the success. I thank everyone, including the backroom staff, groundsmen and curators for the success,” Olowookere said.
On his part, Kunle Soname, who is the proprietor of Remo Stars, one of the clubs playing in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), stated that the success recorded at the tournament has laid the foundation for the career of the young players.
“This is part of efforts to have a sustainable structure in our football. Now that we are getting it right at the U-15 level, I am sure a solid foundation is being laid for our U-17 team, the Flying Eagles and the senior national team.”
“I have said it, there is the need to address this issue of today we succeed, tomorrow we fail. I commend all the players and coaches, who took part in this competition,” Soname said.
The Second Vice President of the NFF, Shehu Dikko, who is the Chairman of the League Management Company (LMC) responsible for the management of the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL), told The Tidesports source that players discovered at the tournament would be monitored and nurtured to become the next generation of national team players.
“If you want a sustained success, you have to build the foundation for it. This MTN/NPFL/La Liga U-15 tournament is to discover the young stars that will graduate into the U-17 team. I am happy we discovered a lot of them here. The duty of the NFF now is to ensure these boys are well monitored for them to become the Okochas, Kanus and Musas of tomorrow,” Dikko stated.
The Senior Manager, Sponsorship and Promotions at MTN Nigeria, Osaze Ebueku, also spoke at the end of the tournament on Sunday. He said: “I am so proud of this excellent display of football by our youths. The partnership between MTN, NPFL and La Liga at the youth level is paying off in a big way for Nigerian football. As a sponsor, MTN will continue to play its role in ensuring that talented Nigerian footballers are given a good foundation for their career to flourish”
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.