Sports
London 2012: ‘D’Tigers Victory, Makes Case For Other Sports’
The Head Coach of Basketball in Ebonyi State, Kelechi Achu, has said that the recent feats of D’Tigers have made case for adequate attention to be given to other sports in the country.
Achu said this in an interview with newsmen in Abakaliki while reacting to the national senior male basketball team’s win over Tunisia in opening game of the ongoing London Olympic Games.
The team beat reigning African basketball champions Tunisia 60-56 on Sunday to maintain the country’s record of not losing to the North Africans since 1986.
Achu said the team had reignited the passion of fans in the Olympics which waned with the non-qualification of its male and female football teams for the Games.
“I watched the game in a viewing centre and the crowd turnout was as if a football match was being televised.
“With the elimination of the country’s table tennis players from the Games, the fans are looking up to the team to replicate the feats of the male soccer team at Atlanta ‘96’ and Beijing ‘2008’ Olympic Games,” he said.
According to the coach, the team has shown that with dedication and patriotism, Nigerian sports men and women can attain enviable heights in global sporting events.
“The team made history by qualifying for the event three weeks to the Olympics, yet they showed unbridled tenacity to keep their fine form even in the face of apparent fatigue.
“They traversed the length and breadth of the globe in search of the qualification ticket and after securing it, did not feel complacent but re-doubled their efforts for future challenges,” he said.
He urged sports authorities in the country to take a cue from the performance and pay adequate attention to other sports than football.
“At this period when our football has nose-dived, other sports should be encouraged for the country to retain its place in comity of world sports.
“If other sports are given half of the attention football receives, sports would be rapidly enhanced to contribute to overall national development,” he said.
Achu had charged the D’Tigers not be complacent as they confront other opponents in their group.
“The team should ensure it finishes among the best four in their group to stand a chance of playing in the medal-winning series,” 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.