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.
England captain Harry Kane netted a hat-trick to guide Bayern Munich to an impressive victory against Stuttgart.
Kane’s goals, plus one from Kingsley Coman, helped Bayern end a three-game winless run in all competitions.
They faced a tough task against a Stuttgart side who sat back and limited their chances, leading Vincent Kompany’s side to enter the break frustrated and with the deadlock unbroken.
Bayern eventually found a way past Stuttgart’s steely defence when Kane drilled a low effort into the bottom corner from around 30 yards out after Joshua Kimmich overturned possession.
Former Nigeria goalkeeper, Dosu Joseph, is full of thanks to God after he miraculously survived another life-threatening automobile accident recent at Kara, along the Lagos-Ibadan Express Way, where a heavy-duty truck ran into his SUV.
Narrating his ordeal, the 51-year-old, who guided Nigeria to gold in the Men’s Football Tournament of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, broke the news in a statement on his social media handles on Friday.
“To God be the glory, another death escaped by Grace and Mercy of God. Me and my friend SM were at Enyo Filling Station after Ojodu Berger bus stop to get fuel on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, around 6 p.m. when this MACK truck fully loaded with iron, with registration number LND 470 XX, left the road and crushed my car beyond repairs. Thank God for life,” he stated.
This is the second time the soft-spoken club proprietor will cheat death by a whisker, having been involved in an accident in 1997 that ended his career at 23 and left his spinal cord in bad shape.
He helped Julius Berger win the Nigeria FA Cup in November 1997 shortly a memorable Olympic outing by keeping a clean sheet in the finals against Katsina United. The following year, he was involved in the auto along Ikorodu Road, Lagos, which not only cut his career short but also left him almost paralysed, ending his spell at Serie A club Reggiana.
The former Nigeria international, who also kept goal for Julius Berger FC, said the case has been reported to Isheri Police Station, Ogun State, where the driver is currently detained and the truck also seized.
According to him, the owner of the truck said he can’t fix the badly damaged SUV until after a year.
Ex – Super Eagles of Nigeria, Okwuchukwu Waobikeze has observed that sports development in Nigeria is going down.
According to him, grassroots sports is very important, without it, the administrators cannot get it right. So everybody should key into grassroots sports development, he said.
Waobikeze said this last Wednesday in an interview with sports journalists shortly after the Port Harcourt All Stars Independence football festival (OCTOBERFEST) at the Port Harcourt club, Rivers State.
He explained that for sports administrators to get it right, grassroots development is key. “They should be organising competition at the grassroots level to fish out the young ones for different sporting activities.
“Grassroots sports is very important so the administrators have to go back to the grassroots.
” Sports Development in Nigeria is going down we need to go back to the basics.
“Look at the just concluded Paris Olympics, Nigeria did not win any medal.
” Our football team did not even qualify for the Olympics. We are going down.
” If they should go back to the grassroots, they will get young ones in the games and talents will be developed.
” I started from school games, to youth games before playing for the national team. Now everybody wants to fly board to play professional football and a lot do not know the basics of the game.
” A lot of people did not know the little things about the game, they just want to play. It is not done so,” Waobikeze stated.
Kiadum Edookor
