Sports
Wilder Blames Costume For Loss To Fury
Deontay Wilder has blamed his elaborate ring-walk costume for his WBC heavyweight title defeat by Tyson Fury.
The American, 34 said his costume was too heavy and as a result he “didn’t have the legs” for the fight.
Britain’s Fury, 31, produced a dominant display to win the title in Las Vegas on Saturday when Wilder’s corner threw in the towel in the seventh round.
Wilder also told US media he will exercise his rematch clause for a third fight against Fury.
“Fury didn’t hurt me at all, but the simple fact is that my uniform was way too heavy for me,” Wilder told Tidesports source
Wilder said the costume, which featured armour, a mask and a crown, weighed at least 40 pounds (18.1kg) and was a tribute to Black History Month.
Fury was carried to the ring on a throne, while also wearing a crown.
“I didn’t have no legs from the beginning of the fight – in the third round, my legs were just shot all the way through,” added Wilder.
“I was only able to put it on [for the first time] the night before but I didn’t think it was going to be that heavy.
“I wanted it to be good and I guess I put that before anything.”
Fury floored Wilder with a jab and right-hand combination in the third round before a left hand to the body sent the previously unbeaten Wilder down again in the fifth.
Wilder was taken to hospital after the fight but said he did not suffer a concussion, broken ear drum or broken jaw as had been speculated, but did require stitches to close a cut in his ear.
He also criticised assistant trainer Mark Breland for stopping the fight.
“I am upset with Mark for the simple fact that we’ve talked about this many times and it’s not emotional,” he said.
“It is not an emotional thing, it’s a principle thing. We’ve talked about this situation many, many years before this even happened.
“I said as a warrior, as a champion, as a leader, as a ruler, I want to go out on my shield.
“So I told my team to never, ever, no matter what it may look like, to never throw the towel in with me because I’m a special kind. I still had five rounds left. No matter what it looked like, I was still in the fight.”
“I understand he was looking out for me and trying to do what he felt was right, but this is my life and my career and he has to accept my wishes.”
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.
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