Sports
Sports Minister Receives Olympic-Bound Taekwondoist
Few months after securing her place in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr. Sunday Dare last Friday received Elizabeth Anyanacho.
Elizabeth Anyanacho defeated former African champion, Urgence Mouega of Gabon 12-5 points in the -67kg women’s bout at the 2020 Africa Taekwondo Olympic Qualifiers that took place at Complexe sportif Moulay Abdellah (Palais des sports), Rabat City, Morocco.
Enroute to her Tokyo Olympics qualification, she defeated the 5 time African Champion.
The honourable minister emphasised he monitored her progress and he supposed to have received her long time ago but Corona virus caused the delay.
“I appreciate your patience today but more importantly, I knew this is something we wanted to do much more earlier before Covid – 19 pandemic. “We are grateful to God that we are still alive today and after things started opening up, you hinted that you would Iike her to be received and I said absolutely.
“I recalled that I followed her progress, thanks to you for sending the video, presentation of her and I think I met her once at my office at National Stadium.
“I never knew that those that are into taekwondo can also be philosophers and speakers, I have to watch when I see taekwondo people maybe they will have same attribute that you have.
“What we are concerned in sports is youth development in science and technology, and anywhere we find our youth excelling, we want to celebrate them.
“When you look at the condition in which they excel, almost humanly impossible and I think you represent the very essence of our youth .
“You also validate the fact that the youth of our country has potentials, even beyond themselves because these are people that received less support but still excel, how much more if they get the full support daily.
“Whether is basketball, football, athletics, when it comes to sports competitions, you require the same high level of discipline.
“What you require in Teakwondo, are dedication, tactics, discipline, concentration.
“So you can’t look down on anybody that excel, for the fact you made history. That you’ve qualified for the Olympic, do not diminish you in anyway, we will celebrate you because you have done us proud at different continental levels.
“We are happy that you earned a ticket to go to the Olympics. We hope others will join you shortly. We know couple of others that have also qualified .
“I just want to say that you make sure you don’t get rusty because when I see you I remember a wrestler, Odunaya who is also 22 years, you have same height and physique. She has also been training relentlessly.
“I have success, glory and searchlight on the youth and I think this government is making necessary efforts and walking the talk, we received unquantified supports from President Muhammadu Buhari.
“You look at Youth Investment Fund. On National Day for the youth when we celebrate our youth, we still have to celebrate herself and Odunaya come November 1st.
“We are going to celebrate them and they will also be rewarded.
“When you also look at the reclassification of sports from recreation to business, this shows that government means business with sport.
“As the policy is approved we will see more resources coming to sports, our athletes will benefit from that in terms of welfare support, travelling for necessary competitions, etc.
You see a government that is interested in the overall development of sports. I’m sure you are not joking with your education, that is important”, Dare said .
Only Denmark, ranked 21st globally, sits higher among nations that failed to qualify for the tournament, which is being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
England and Chelsea legend John Terry was among those to voice his disappointment, describing Nigeria as a significant loss to a tournament that features 48 nations for the first time.
“Nigeria will be a big miss. This is a World Cup for participants who haven’t had the opportunity to play in the tournament. I would have loved to see a top team like Nigeria there because they’ve got some great individuals. They’re a great nation,” Terry said during a virtual roundtable session organised by SuperSport.
“I think they are a big miss because Nigeria probably would have gone further in the competition, but unfortunately, one side’s loss is another’s gain,” the former England captain added.
Eric Chelle’s side finished second in Group C of the CAF World Cup qualifiers behind South Africa, who secured automatic qualification. Nigeria kept their hopes alive with a playoff semi-final victory over Gabon before falling to the Democratic Republic of Congo on penalties in the decisive playoff final — their second successive absence from the World Cup after also missing the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
The Nigeria Football Federation later challenged DR Congo’s qualification, alleging the use of ineligible players during the campaign, but the appeal was dismissed.
Despite missing the World Cup, the Super Eagles remain Africa’s 3rd highest-ranked team behind Morocco, who sit seventh in the world, and Senegal. Algeria and Egypt complete the continent’s top five.
Defending champions Argentina enter the tournament as the world’s top-ranked side, ahead of Spain, France, England and Portugal. Brazil are sixth, followed by Morocco, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
The next FIFA World Ranking will be released on July 20, a day after the World Cup final.
Chima Akachukwu and Miracle Akhigbe are among the 16 notable stars picked by the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) for the forthcoming Namibia Tour, where the YellowGreens will compete in a T20 and 50-Over Tri-Series, featuring hosts Namibia and Hong Kong China.
Both players make their way back into the YellowGreens fold after periods away from the side and will be eager to contribute their experience and quality as Nigeria pursues success in Namibia.
The NCF said yesterday that the squad, which departs Nigeria today, forms part of the national team’s continued preparations for future international assignments as the YellowGreens seek to build on recent performances and strengthen their standing on the global stage.
Leading the squad is Captain Sulaimon Runsewe, who will spearhead Nigeria’s campaign against two formidable opponents in what promises to be a highly competitive series.
The selected squad combines experienced internationals with emerging talents, providing the technical crew an opportunity to assess player development and team combinations in both the T20 and 50-over formats.
The team will be led on tour by Coaches Leke Oyede and Tamuno John, who will oversee preparations and match operations during the opening phase of the series.
Joining the squad later in Namibia will be the newly appointed Head Coach and High Performance Manager, Stephen Magongo, whose arrival marks another significant step in the Federation’s commitment to strengthening the national team structure and enhancing player development pathways.
Supporting the coaching staff are Team Analyst Jamal Okechukwu, Strength and Conditioning Coach Seye Olympio, and Team Physiotherapist Timothy Adesomowo, forming a well-rounded technical crew focused on maximising player performance and welfare throughout the tour.
The NCF views the Namibia Tri-Series as an important platform for the continued growth of the national team, offering valuable international exposure and competitive match experience against quality opposition. The series will provide the players and technical crew with another opportunity to evaluate progress, fine-tune strategies, and build momentum ahead of future international competitions.
The YellowGreens will face Namibia and Hong Kong China in both T20 and 50-over contests, with the matches expected to test the team’s adaptability, discipline, and resilience in challenging conditions.
Blessing Otu on Monday overcame hard-fighting Kelvin Bebe- Emmanuella in two sets of 6-1, 6-3 to qualify for the second round of the women’s singles of the ongoing 47th Central Bank of Nigeria Senior Tennis Championship, held at the Tennis Courts of the package “B” of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.
Speaking after the round of 32 game, Otu, who will be 19 years old in September, said she capitalised on her opponent’s weaknesses to gain victory, having studied her game very well.
“Bebe is a very good and tough player. But I studied her game and did the job well.
“Although she tried to come back in the second set, I punctured all her tricks to win the match and move on. I wish I could continue like this in the rest of my games,” she said.
Another member of the Otu family, John Out, was also victorious as he defeated Mohammed Abdusalam 2-1 (6-2, 6-7, 6-1) in the men’s singles category to advance into the round of 32.
But the third Otu in the game, Thomas, was not that lucky as he lost by 6-0, 7-5 in two straight sets to Danjuma Isaac.
In other matches, Michael Emmanuel defeated Ibrahim Aminu to advance, while Drimiya Mevi outclassed Seyi Ogunsakin by beating him 2-1 (6-7, 6-3, 6-1). Action continues tomorrow when other top players, including the men’s singles top seed, Abua Cannice, join the chase for honours.