Sports
Nigeria Wins IHF Women’s Africa Continental Trophy
Nigeria under 18 handball girls team were crowned champion of the IHF Women’s Trophy Africa Continental Phase after they defeated Guinea in the final of the competition.
In a final played at the Centre ivoiro, coréen sports hall in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, the Coach Shittu Adewunmi Agboola’s tutored girls stood tall on all fronts to comfortably defeat Guinea 33-18 to win the continental phase of the 2023 edition of the IHF Women’s Trophy International.The team had earlier defeated Guinea in the first match of the under 18 category with a 30-25 victory and it was expected that the final will be a battle of two Titans but the gallant girls stood out with precise wing shots and taking their chances from nine meters while defending doggedly to overcome to win their opponents,
The victory means that Nigeria will be the only representative of Africa at the IHF Women’s Trophy Intercontinental Phase later in the year.
Nigeria have now gone 8 matches unbeaten; starting from the IHF Women’s Trophy Africa Zone 3 tourney in Accra , Ghana earlier in the year where they emerged champion and then in the continental phase where they are now champion.
Vice president of the Nigeria Olympics Committee (NOC), Chief Solomon Ogba, foremost Sports Marketer and founder of Okpekpe Road Race, Mike Itemuagbor and top Sports Journalist and Media Strategist, Mitchel Obi have lent their voices in support of the Niger Delta Sports Festival (NDSF).
The personalities with backgrounds in sports administration, marketing and media spoke separately in commendation of the festival, an initiative of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) with Dunamis Icon as consultants.
“This is a positive addition to the evolving sports business ecosystem because it is not just a springboard for identifying talents, it also offers a platform to truly hone the skills of those already discovered”, remarked Obi, who served as Special Advisor to a former Sports Minister, late Anthony Ikhazabor.
He said the festival will be a flagship event in the region that would trigger interest in sports among the youths and people of the region.
Edo State-born Itemuagbor commended the NDDC for the decision to add sports in the list of their intervention projects in the region, adding that: “This speaks directly to the problem of youth restiveness which is of great concern to our people.”
Raphael Onyedika has now emerged as a major doubt for the Super Eagles’ must-win 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe later this month.
The midfielder was forced out early from last week’s league game against Standard Liege.
He has not recovered from the injury and so will miss today’s league match against Gent and may also miss a UEFA Champions League Round of 16 clash against Aston Villa yesterday.
The Super Eagles take on Rwanda in Kigali on March 21, before they face Zimbabwe in Uyo four days later in crucial World Cup qualifiers.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles and Al-Khalood defender, William Troost-Ekong, has shared his experience on the difficulties of winning the prestigious Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) while describing it a must win trophy.
The former Watford FC defender has competed in the tournament three times but has yet to lift the trophy.
“I’ve been there three times now, bronze medal, silver medal, but I haven’t had the chance to win it. That remains my ultimate goal,” he told Tidesports source.
“It means so much to me and all the kids growing up in Africa and Nigeria.”