The Nigeria Deaf Sports Federation has rejected the National Sports Commission’s claim that it blackmailed the body over the exclusion of Deaf Sports from the National Sports Festival, insisting that it has genuine arguments and facts to back its case.

The federation reacted in a statement signed by its President, Dagbo Suleiman Saka, on behalf of its board and athletes. It followed a protest by Deaf athletes in Lagos on Monday over their exclusion from the  National Sports Festival, which holds in Enugu State from November 27 to December 11.

The commission had defended the exclusion through Michael Obasi, Special Assistant on Media to its Director General, Bukola Olopade, according to the News Agency of Nigeria. Obasi said the commission was adopting an Olympic-style model in which federations must show consistent competitive activity in the states before qualifying for major events. He added that funding constraints also forced a reduction in the number of sports.

“Rather than blackmail the sports commission, they should make genuine arguments for their sport,” Obasi said.

Responding, the federation said it had no reason to blackmail the commission.

“We have no reason to blackmail the NSC, a government institution we respect. We have shown extreme patience and understanding,” the statement read in part.

The federation said it welcomed Obasi’s challenge and listed what it described as proof of its activity. It said it had organised the National Deaf Table Tennis Championships in Lagos and the National Deaf Football Championship in Jos in the last two years. It added that it hosted and won the West Africa Deaf Athletics Championship and the West Africa Deaf Football Championship in Lagos and Abuja.

The federation also accused the commission of giving conflicting reasons for the decision. It said the Director General told the National Council on Sports meeting in Calabar that sports were pruned to follow international best practice and cut costs, but now cited inactivity.

On the claim that it was not active enough, the federation blamed lack of funding.

“How can a Federation organise more activities when our budget was not released. We submit our annual budget as requested by the NSC every year, yet not a single kobo is released to the Federation to organise any programme?” the statement read in part.

The federation also said Nigeria missed last year’s Tokyo Deaflympics because of a suspension by the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf over unpaid debts, and asked what happened to the Deaflympics budget.

On the commission’s call for engagement through official channels, the federation said it had exhausted all options. It said proposals for the fourth National Deaf Games, a Deaf sports manual and a plan to honour retired Deaf athletes were ignored. Saka said he had waited for hours at the Director General’s office on several occasions without being received.

“Deaf Sports has been on the Optional list since 1996,” the statement stated. It said the sport was moved to compulsory status in 2024 at the Calabar meeting, under the then Minister of Sports Development, John Enoh, and asked why the move was reversed without consultation.

The federation said the exclusion was even more painful because Para Sports received five compulsory and two optional sports for the Enugu festival, while Deaf Sports received none.

“Excluding us from our own National Sports Festival sends a very bad signal about Nigeria’s commitment to Equal Opportunity, Inclusion, and Human Rights to the international sports family,” the statement read in part.

It added that the Nigeria National Association of the Deaf, the Deaf Teachers Association of Nigeria, the Deaf Women Association of Nigeria and the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities had written to the commission to plead for inclusion but received no response.

The federation demanded the immediate reinstatement of Deaf Sports as a compulsory sport for the festival and asked why Athletics, Badminton and Table Tennis could not be merged with their Para and Deaf versions, as was done under previous Directors in the commission.

Nigerian football administrator Samson Adamu has been confirmed as the substantive General Secretary of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), becoming the first Nigerian to occupy the position in the organisation’s 70-year history.

The confirmation was announced late last week, with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) congratulating Adamu on his appointment.

The NFF’s acting general secretary, Emmanuel Ikpeme, described the development as a significant moment for Nigerian football administration and expressed confidence in Adamu’s ability to excel in the role.

“This is, indeed, very good news. I am so happy for Samson Adamu on his confirmation, and I know he is going to make Nigeria and Africa proud,” Ikpeme said.

“The NFF is delighted with this appointment, and we will give him all the necessary support as a member association under CAF. We wish him tremendous success in the job,” Ikpeme added.

Adamu joined CAF, the continent’s football governing body headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, as Director of Competitions before becoming Director of Tournaments and Events.

He was appointed acting general secretary on March 29 following the resignation of his predecessor, Veron Mosengo-Omba, a Swiss-Congolese football administrator.

Adamu holds a FIFA Master’s degree in the management, law and humanities of sport. He began his career in football administration by establishing the now-defunct Copa Lagos beach soccer tournament in the early 2010s.

Galatasaray forward, Rafael Leão, has thanked Nigerian striker, Victor Osimhen, for allowing him to take a penalty during the club’s 4-0 victory over Konyaspor in the Turkish Super Lig at the weekend.

Leão scored his first goal for the Turkish champions after Osimhen handed him the opportunity to convert a second-half spot-kick, despite being the club’s regular penalty taker.

The gesture came a day after Osimhen and his partner welcomed their second daughter, Liora Audrey, on Thursday.

Osimhen had earlier opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a header, dedicating the goal to his newborn daughter through his celebration.

Speaking after the match on Galatasaray’s official YouTube channel, Leão revealed that he had encouraged the Nigerian striker to score twice in celebration of the birth of his child.

“Yesterday was the birth of his second child. So I told him, ‘You should score two goals today.’ He could have scored the second goal, but he gave me the ball,” the Portuguese international said.

Leão described Osimhen’s decision as a reflection of the strong team spirit within the Galatasaray dressing room.

“It’s about this kind of attitude. We have a great group, so I’m really happy to have this kind of teammates in the squad,” he added.

The former AC Milan winger also expressed appreciation for Osimhen’s generosity, admitting that the penalty meant a lot to him after waiting to open his goalscoring account for the club.

“I’m very grateful to him. He knows how much I struggled for that goal. I just want to give them back my quality and enjoy my game,” Leão said.

Osimhen’s decision allowed Leão to convert the penalty and make it 4-0, capping a memorable evening for the Portuguese forward.

The Nigerian striker’s contribution also made the occasion special, as he combined his goalscoring performance with a personal celebration following the arrival of his second daughter.

The victory further strengthened Galatasaray’s position in the Turkish Super Lig as the club continues its domestic campaign under manager Okan Buruk.