Sports
Sports In The Storm Of Coronavirus
Sports like every other human endeavour has been hit by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Precisely in the month of April, 2020 the sporting world witnessed the cancellation and postponement of major sporting events across the globe, with the Olympics games in Tokyo being the worst hit. From the football loving nation of Brazil to the ever enterprising National Basketball Association in America, One after the other sporting activities were brought to a halt due to the rampaging manner in which the virus was spreading. The prestigious Wimbledon Open was for the first time cancelled since World war II, a development which many in the business described as a huge blow to the sporting world.
It was no doubt a tough decision for organizers of these sporting events to shutdown their activities because of the economic loss it would have on them. However, the health implications posed by the virus not only to the athletes but their families as well leaves them with no choice but to take certain stringent measures to safeguard their lives during the pandemic.
There is no gain saying that sport is an employer of labour in most countries of the world, in fact, in countries like Spain, Brazil, Italy and south Africa to mention but a few, sport accounts for a large percentage of employment and livilyhood of the people and that is why countries that depend largely on earnings from sport would do anything to ensure that the sector is protected at this time. Recently, in Europe, to cushion the effect of the pandemic on footbaH clubs, the European Football Association (UEFA) made available nearly 70 million euros ($75million) of compensation payments to clubs ahead of schedule to deal with the impact of covid 19 related stoppage.
In less known sport like formula One which has suffered greatly among the community of sport, the governing body the FIFA has also set aside some sort of relief to teams to help them stay afloat while the deadly virus continues to spread unabated.
The story is not different in .. frica where medical facilities are in short supply or non- existent to fight the pandemic. In a continent where the sport sector is not so much of a revenue earner the impact on sport has not been colossal when compared to other parts of the world. In Nigeria for instance, the Presidential Taskforce on Covid19 just to show their resentment towards sporting activities played down the important of sport during one of its daily briefing. To further show its lack of interest in the resumption of sporting activities in the country, Chairman of the taskforce and Secretary to the government of the federation, Boss Mustapha took a subtle jibe at the Nigerian Professional football league by suggesting that unlike several European leagues which have returned or have announced definite resumption dates, the Nigeria Professional Football League has no business case for resuming.
The national sport festival which is arguably the biggest sporting showpiece in the land has also suffered similar fate as no date has been fixed for its commencement.
But for the intervention of FIFA, the global football governing body that came to the rescue of teams on the continent, perhaps many football clubs would have gone into administration or liquidated.
As a forthright thinking organization, FIFA made available palliatives to its 211 member associations as a way of reducing the financial burden they might suffer when normal football activities resumes. The Nigerian football federation for example, received from FIFA and CAF about 800,000 dollars to support them in the running of football in the country. It is expected that these kind gesture would be judiciously utilized by the beneficiaries for the overall good of the game.
The question on the lips of many is what will become of sport when normal activities resume and fans allowed to return to watch their favorite athletes take part in their respective sports. Will it still be appealing to the fans? Will investors have faith in putting their money in a sector greatly affected by the deadly pandemic? Only time will tell of what would become of our darling sport when normalcy is restored.
Jamaica writes from Port Harcourt.
Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, in Rivers State, will be at the centre stage on Wednesday as the VC Cup final, both male and female categories will be played at the prestigious Stadium in the school.
The both final matches promises to be exciting, as arrangements have been concluded to watch one of the best VC football Cup finals in the history.
VC Cup tournament is an annual sporting event that involves all students in various facilities.
According to the Chief coach of the University football team, David Egbiri, the female will final will kick off 2pm between faculty of Human Kinetics and Management Sciences, while the male will kick off by 4pm between Social Science and Natural Applied Science
Egbiri, who was former coach of Abiola Babe FC and Concord FC, lauded the Vice Chancellor. Prof. Okechukwu Onuchukwu for releasing funds on sports development, saying that he has never also failed the School in terms of infrastructural development.
“The VC who is also a sports personality has not failed to release funds for this tournament, apart from that he has not also disappointed in terms of developing the school in all ramifications.
“I want to say that my major reason for accepting to coach the school football team is to develop the youth through sports”, Coach Egbiri said.
The former Eagle Cement Coach, explained that he was not encouraged the way and manner the young ones are going about sports because there is no discipline and so much quest for quick money.
” Honestly, the way young players are looking money was just too much. Looking for short cuts always to make money that is more reason some of them don’t go far and end up badly
” In our days we first of all think about how to make name and we are passionate about it. I went to school and saw myself in sports, while my initial intention was to read electrical engineering” he stated.
Tonye Orabere
The Delta State Sports Commission has come under scrutiny following the state’s disappointing performance at the just-concluded National Youth Games (NYG) in Asaba, where Lagos dethroned Delta to clinch top spot.
Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, visibly displeased with both the poor outing of Team Delta and the organizational lapses witnessed during the Games, summoned an emergency meeting with the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) immediately after the closing ceremony.
Delta, which had dominated the NYG by finishing first in the last eight editions, only managed second place this time — a result the governor described as “totally unacceptable,” especially given the state’s significant investment in the event.
According to a reliable source privy to the meeting, Governor Oborevwori expressed deep disappointment, stressing that his administration had provided all necessary support to the Sports Commission and the LOC to ensure Delta retained its traditional top position.
In a decisive move, the governor demoted his Executive Assistant on Sports and former Director-General of the Sports Commission, Festus Owhojero, under whose leadership the Games were organized. Owhojero was reassigned from Executive Assistant (EA) to Senior Special Assistant (SSA) with immediate effect.
The governor’s action, our source revealed, reflects his zero-tolerance stance on incompetence and underperformance within his administration. Mr. Owhojero thus becomes the first high-profile casualty of the governor’s resolve to reposition sports in Delta State.
Furthermore, Oborevwori directed the Sports Commission and LOC officials to submit a detailed report on the Games, outlining what went wrong and providing recommendations for improvement. The governor emphasized the need for urgent reforms to restore Delta’s dominance, especially as the state is set to host the next edition of the Games under an existing memorandum of understanding (MoU).
The Nigeria Football Federation has distanced itself from a post-match statement that criticised some Super Eagles players following the team’s 1-1 draw with South Africa in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier.
The statement, issued by the NFF’s Director of Communications, Ademola Olajire, singled out forward Cyriel Dessers and captain William Troost-Ekong for criticism.
It accused Dessers of being sluggish and faulted Ekong for the own goal that gave Bafana Bafana the lead.
However, NFF General Secretary, Mohammed Sanusi, said on Wednesday that the statement did not represent the official position of the Federation.
“I saw the release just like everyone else did. Nobody in the Federation is happy with it,” Sanusi said.
“The NFF did not authorise that statement. We have great respect for all the players. Blaming an individual for a team result is unfair.”
He added that the Federation regards the South Africa match as a collective effort and will not support attempts to scapegoat any player.
“When we win, it’s a team victory. When we lose, it’s also collective. No player should be singled out,” Sanusi said.
He described the targeted criticism of Troost-Ekong as unjustified, noting that the defender had previously been celebrated as the Most Valuable Player at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Côte d’Ivoire.
“It was an unfortunate own goal. His intention was to clear the ball. Anyone who knows football understands that such things happen,” he said..
Sanusi also expressed confidence in the team’s unity, revealing that efforts were ongoing to regroup and refocus ahead of the remaining qualifiers and AFCON.
“Our house is in order. We’re preparing for the rest of the qualifiers and the AFCON in Morocco,” he said.
“There’s no problem with our players or coaching crew. Our relationship remains cordial. The government and the NFF are proud of the players’ efforts.”
The Federation had initially praised Calvin Bassey for his equalising goal and lamented the team’s failure to convert second-half chances.
But Sanusi made it clear that internal disciplinary action would be taken over the unauthorised release.
“I can assure you the NFF will take action on the matter,” he said.
Nigeria currently sit third in Group C of the CAF World Cup qualifiers with 11 points from eight matches. South Africa lead the group with 17 points.
The Super Eagles must now win their remaining games against Lesotho and Benin Republic and hope other results go their way to secure qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
