Sports
Continental Basketball League To Promote Lagos Culture – Organisers
Organisers of the ongoing Continental Basketball League (CBL), which dunked off on Friday in Lagos, Ugo Udueze, has said that he was interested more in promoting the culture of the state through basketball.
The competition which is ongoing at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, is tagged “May Madness Tournament” in celebration of Lagos State at 50.
Udueze told newsmen that the CBL would bring more awareness about the state as a sports hub for the nation and Africa.
The opening game was a spectacle as fans were treated to an awesome ambience which was a scintillating experience.
Younde Giants of Cameroon set the ball rolling as they dismissed Lagos Warriors 104-66 in the opening game of the tournament that was watched by a capacity crowd at the Teslim Balogun Stadium.
Udueze described the experience as “beautiful”, and said that the league promised to bring the best exposure to Lagos State as sports hub of the nation and for Africa.
“This and many other good things coming are what we planned and sincerely the best is yet to come when the whole teams settle down to play quality basketball under good and conducive atmosphere.
“It is about us creating an opportunity where we provide a better atmosphere and service with proper logistics and basically creating something for Africans by Africans.
“This is about us trying to create job opportunities for our youths so that they can earn something and basically creating that opportunity for everybody.
“It is also about creating that sports industry which is very capital intensive and given other business individuals the opportunity to invest and believe in the success that can be achieved.
“We believe in the sports industry and we are in it because it is from an African perspective and not just doing it like the Europeans or like the Americans is in investing in sports, especially sports tourism,” Udueze said.
Godwin Owinjie, the head coach of City Stars, one of the teams that will feature in the competition, said that it was the best thing happening to Lagos and Africa as a whole.
“The best is yet to come and looking at the ambience, the quality of the sports hall, indeed this is what we want to see just as it is done in the U.S. and in Europe,” Owinjie said.
Babatunde Ogunade, the Chairman, Lagos state Basketball Association (LSBBA), said the CBL is structured to project basketball and Lagos State as whole in a positive light.
He said that the league had set the tone of how quality basketball is organised to the delight and comfort of fans and the business community.
“Lagos State has always been in support of individuals’ development that will bring progress to the state and the youth.
“The CBL is a great initiative that seeks to showcase the quality side of the state to the rest of the world and indeed we are proudly backing the innovation,” Ogunade said.
Rawane Ndiaye, a U.S. citizen who plays for Lagos Warriors, told newsmen that coming to play basketball in Nigeria is a great experience for him and that he was looking forward to the whole exercise.
“The atmosphere is beautiful, we are having fun and I am loving every minute of it.
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.
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