Sports
Igali Urges Fed Govt To Review Reward System For Athletes
The President, Nigeria Wrestling Federation (NWF) President, Daniel Igali, has urged the Federal Government to review the reward system of other sports athletes and make it at par with footballers or even more.
He said the sportsmen and women representing Nigeria at the ongoing African Games in Ghana, have excelled in their various events consequently should be recognised just like the Super Eagles were adequately rewarded despite only finishing second at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote ‘d’Ivoire.
The former Olympic champions noted that other sports athletes deserved to be treated better as he called on the Federal Government to reward them fittingly once the African Games is over .
“Let’s treat everybody equally. We cannot treat super millionaires differently from our athletes,” Igali stated matter-of-factly in an interview with Brila FM. “We had footballers that went to the AFCON and won a silver medal and we gave them houses, plots of lands and national honours.
“Replicate the same favour to these athletes too. They didn’t win silver, they won gold medals,” he added.
Speaking after Team Nigeria women’s wrestlers won the six available gold medals on Sunday, Igali called on the sports ministry and well-meaning Nigerians to come to their aid as unavailability of funds may scuttle their desire to participate at this weekend African Championships and the Olympic Games Qualifiers in Alexandria, Egypt.
“I want to appreciate the girls. They were fantastic. I hope they are able to replicate it at the Olympic qualifiers in Alexandria, Egypt,” he continued. “But as I am speaking to you, we don’t know if we are going to be there because we do not have funds yet. We are expected to leave on the 15th of March because we have to attend the African Championships which is the criterion to feature at the Olympics trials. ”
He added: “We are 12th times African Champions in the female wrestling. We lost that briefly three years ago when we only went with six women to the African Championships and Tunisia came with all theirs.
“We will like to go with a full team of our female wrestlers so that we can become 13th time African Champions and then give of the female wrestlers have the chance to qualify for the Olympics.
“We are to leave on the 15th March, the competition starts on the 17th March and the Olympic qualifiers is from the 23rd to the 26th in Alexandria, Egypt. “
Sports
New Eagles Squad Excites WizKids
Nigerian Afrobeats star Ayodeji Balogun, popularly known as Wizkid, has expressed his satisfaction with the Super Eagles’ preparation ahead of their 2026 World Cup qualifier against Rwanda in Kigali.
The team, now under the leadership of newly appointed head coach Eric Chelle, held its first training session on Tuesday afternoon.
Reacting to the new squad, Wizkid took to his X handle on Wednesday, writing, “New Super Eagles team! (I) love the energy,” he wrote.
The crucial qualifier is set to take place at the Amahoro Stadium in Rwanda on Friday, March 21, with kickoff scheduled for 5 pm Nigerian time.
Following the match, Nigeria will return home to face Zimbabwe in Uyo on Tuesday.
The Super Eagles must secure maximum points from both fixtures to strengthen their chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
Nigeria’s current squad features several in-form players, including Galatasaray’s Victor Osimhen, Atalanta’s Ademola Lookman, Genk’s Tolu Arokodare and Fulham’s Calvin Bassey.
The match against Rwanda will be Chelle’s first game in charge of the three-time African champions, who are desperate for a positive result to keep their World Cup qualification hopes alive.
The Super Eagles last played at the Amahoro Stadium in September 2024, where they were held to a goalless draw by Rwanda.
Sports
NLO Tasks Clubs To Complete Players’ Facial Registration
The Nationwide League One (NLO) has mandated the clubs that make up the Division One and U19 Youth League to complete their players’ facial verification process.
The Secretariat of the nation’s third-tier league regulatory body via its media department gave reasons on the essence of exercise as the March 30th players’ registration deadline draws near.
According to the NLO, clubs must complete facial verification for each player during registration to prevent duplicate registrations.
As regards players that have already been registered, the NLO explained that if a player fails verification (already registered with another club), the holding club must release the player. The NLO Admin will confirm the release and allow the verification of such a player for the new club.
The NLO stressed the importance of the release documentation and Registration Window Closure.
Releasing clubs must upload the player’s release document. This document will be reviewed and verified by the NLO Admin.
After the registration window closes, clubs cannot sign new players.
With the introduction of the new facial recognition technology, all clubs must register both their existing and new players.
These updates ensure a fair and transparent registration system. For assistance, clubs should contact NLO support.
Sports
Aruna Up For $275k WTT Chennai
Nigeria table tennis star, Quadri Aruna, will contest in the maiden WTT Contender Chennai in India after he was picked as a replacement for German star, Dimitrij Ovtcharov.
The WTT Contender Chennai is the fifth WTT event of the year and marks the first staging of the series in the City.
The event which has a prize purse of $270,000 will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai, India from March 25 to 30.
Aruna and nine other players have been confirmed for the men’s singles including his African rival, Egypt’s Omar Assar.3.
Other players confirmed so far include Denmark’s Jonathan Groth (17), Hugo Calderano of Brazil (6) and world number four Tomokazu Harimoto of Japan.
The 36-year-old has played in two WTT events this year.
In January, he made it as far as the semi-finals in the WTT Star Contender in Doha where he lost in straight sets to Japanese sensation Tomokazu Harimoto.
Last Wednesday, the world number 19 crashed out of the WTT Champions Chongqing 2025 after suffering a comprehensive 3-0 defeat to world number two Wang Chuqin of China in their round of 32 clash.
Aruna will hope to put up a more commanding show in India, as he has been tipped to shine by the world body.
“Stay tuned. There’s more to come from Quadri Aruna in India,” WTT captioned Aruna’s video on Monday after announcing his participation.
WTT Executive Director of Events Mounir Bessah also said the competition is a bold step forward as they expect Aruna and other players to deliver a memorable spectacle.
“Chennai’s inclusion in the WTT Series calendar underscores our mission to expand the reach of table tennis globally while honouring the sport’s passionate fanbase in India. With a venue like the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium and the support of Tamil Nadu’s government, we are ready to deliver an unforgettable spectacle for players and fans.”
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