Sports
Wheelchair B’ball Federation Holds Coaching Clinic, March
The Nigeria Wheelchair
Basketball Federation is set to organise a two-day coaching clinic.
Captain, National wheelchair basketball team, Mohammed Audu, told newsmen in Lagos that the clinic would hold from March 18 to March 19.
The training programme is tagged “Tope Ogunyemi Wheelchair Basketball Foundation Clinic’’.
He said the clinic will train participants on the skills and rules governing the game.
Audu also said that the two-day clinic would serve as an opportunity for stakeholders in the game to deliberate on a proposed league for the nation.
“We are organising a two-day clinic on wheelchair basketball where participants are expected to come from across the country.
“The federation also wants to use that opportunity to deliberate on the proposed national wheelchair basketball league that can be sued to develop the sport.
“Wheelchair basketball has come to stay in Nigeria because a lot of youths are showing interest in the game.
“We intend to organise a clinic to educate them about the rules and regulation governing the game,’’ Audu said.
According to him, a functional league is important to the development of the sport in the country.
“Hence there is need for a running league in the country even if we have to start with four clubs.
“We have to take off from a point and with time the league can develop and attract sponsors. We just need to give ourselves the opportunity to play and develop.
“We will not wait for sponsors to come before we start the league though to run the league, there is need for sponsorship.
“The federation will continue to do our own thing rather than wait,’’’ he said.
Meanwhile, a wheelchair basketball player, Taiwo Durowoje, has said that players are ready for the exhibition match scheduled for today at the Yaba College of Technology.
Some selected national team players will feature in the exhibition game which will herald the 2015 Rector’s Cup.
“We were happy when we got the invitation to feature in the opening of the Yaba College Technology Rector’s Cup coming up today.
“This is a good development because we hardly get invitation to play in any major competition.
“So, it is an honour to play a friendly match as an exhibition match to commence the football and basketball events of the Rector’s Cup,’’ Taiwo said.
He said the opportunity provided by the exhibition match will help to promote the sport.
A well-known football pundit in the State, Chief Christopher Okonkwo has lauded the efforts and vision of the Super Eagles Coach Eric Chelle for going from one venue of the Nigeria Domestic Nigeria Professional Football League match to the other in monitoring Nigerian players, with a view to invite some exceptional good one discovered into the main stream of the Super Eagles team.
Okonkwo, who made the commendation in an interview at the Port Harcourt Club recently, described the positive move by Coach Chelle as a good step in the right direction, noting that the practice was how its been done in the past among any contracted coach assigned to tinker the Super Eagles team.
“Truly, it has been an old tradition in the country seeing any newly engaged Coach to lead the National team, visiting some our Nigeria League venues during the league matches to spot light some good talents that could be used to beef up some grey areas in the department of Eagles team”
He, however, frowned at the current situation where our coaches had continously been over depending on the use of foreign based players during invitation of players to the National camp, thereby, relegating the domestic home based league players to the background as if they have nothing much to offer to the team.
“I can vividly recall that the likes of great players in the mode of Finidi George, Taribo West, Kanu Nwankwo, Austin Okocha, Richard Owobokiri, Emmanuel Osuigwe among others started from Nigeria football league before they graduated to play in Europe through which they later invited to Super Eagles camp to represent Nigeria”
“Besides, I’m also of the view that going to secondary school football competitive games could equally serves as a a good platform to discover budding talents that could be nurtured to become great stars in near future”, Okonkwo frankly added.
Okonkwo, therefore, prayed that any football coach to be engaged by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to tinker the Super Eagles should be told not to confine himself in staying in big hotel alone but to be visiting some of our local league match venues, with a view to discover some good players that can be drafted into the Super Eagles team.
“Indeed, I stand to be challenged that there some young good players in the Nigeria Professional League. If spotted and exposed, could give the some of the invited foreign based players a stiff competitive fight in securing a postion in the team”, Okonkwo emphatically stated.
Ezechukwu, one of the youngest members of the Nigerian contingent at the championship in Ghana, said her ambition was to win the 100m title in style and cap it with a new personal record.
The fresh secondary school graduate explained that she is fully focused on contributing to Team Nigeria’s medal hopes and is determined to deliver strong performances across her events.
“My main objective in Ghana is to clinch the 100m title and the 4×100m,” Ezechukwu told Tidesports source.
“Nigeria can be assured of my very best and my commitment to the Team. I would love to set a new personal best in Ghana, but anything that comes, I will take it. The spirit in the team is high, and I think we are ready to go,” she said.
Ezechukwu, who was part of Nigeria’s women’s 4x100m relay squad at the World Relays in Botswana, said the experience gained from that competition has strengthened her mindset heading into the continental championships.
She admitted that she learned valuable lessons from her previous outing, including a difficult moment during the relay where an early error affected the team’s rhythm, but said she has used the experience to improve her discipline and composure.
“The secret is just being disciplined, training hard and trusting my coach and believing in God, and the result will show,” she added.
The teenager is part of a 41-member Nigerian team comprising 24 female and 17 male athletes competing at the championships, which begin today at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nigeria are expected to compete across multiple track and field events as they aim for a strong finish against the continent’s elite athletes.
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