Category: Sports

Nigeria defender Taye Taiwo hopes his performances for Ukrainian side Dynamo Kiev will be enough to earn him an international recall. Frozen out at Italian giants AC Milan, the left back moved to Ukraine on loan in June.

Taiwo won the last of his 59 caps for Nigeria in a 0-0 Nations Cup qualifying draw to Rwanda in February. He is hoping his improved displays in European competitions will earn an international recall.

“My form was below average after being left out of games in Italy and maybe that’s why I was dropped from the national team,” Taiwo told BBC Sport.

“But I’ve recovered my form with my new club in Ukraine and dream of playing in South Africa. I played the tournament in 2006, 2008 and 2010. It will be a great honour to represent the country again. I desperately would love to. The selection will be decided by the coach but I hope I have done enough to make the Nations Cup squad.”

Nigeria coach, Stephen Keshi, is expected to name his provisional squad for the tournament in the coming days, and appears to have left the door open for the likes of Taiwo.

“I have been following players like [Taye] Taiwo, Sone Aluko, Dickson Etuhu, Victor Anichebe and several others who have not been given a chance,” said Keshi.

“There’s no sentiment when it comes to selection for Nigeria because we need our best players to represent us. He [Taiwo] has a chance like others but must earn it. Has he done enough? That’s something I will have to consider when the time comes.”

The Super Eagles will play friendly matches against Angola – in Portugal – and Catalonia in the build-up to the Nations Cup.

“I know the locally-based players that will make the final cut and those who are just not ready yet. We have a couple of foreign-based players who were not with us but I will look at giving them a chance during the friendlies and see if they can stake a claim,” Keshi said.

Nigeria begin their Nations Cup campaign against Burkina Faso on 21 January and then face Zambia and Ethiopia in Group C.

The Universal principle as opined by some scholars in relation to the recipe for elite athlete’s development has been coined to be catch them young hence, in most developed climes authorities of sport have ensured that they develop a standard criterion that will serve as a precondition to be met by interested parties in the establishment of sport academies within their given territory.

Developing an athlete from a raw stage into a World Champion requires a corresponding investment into the training and development of such an athlete and such training is expected to be carried out in a well structured environment that is regulated and created for the set objective of making a champion out of an athlete. Achieving this feat of making a champion or world class athlete is no mere achievement when eventually gotten.

Sadly enough, Nigeria as a nation cannot pride itself in the area of having a developed a standard criterion that will apply to the establishment of sport academies in Nigeria. We have failed to develop and also implement the certification of sport academies across the country. It is worthy to state here that my comments are not intended to reduce the well spirited efforts by some very interested Nigerians who are keen in the development of sport academies in Nigeria.

A comparism between Ghana and Nigeria in relation to setting the needed standards for the establishment of a sport academy is nothing to discuss in today’s write up because Ghana is now able to attract Direct Foreign Investment in the establishment, management and development of sport academies in Ghana and some of these Sport Academies I am reliably informed that some of these academies operate what is referred to exchange programmes or collaborative ventures with other Academies based in Europe or the Americas wherein young talented athletes are all given the opportunity to go to school and play their sport abroad.

One can infer that it is long overdue for us as a Nation not to have developed a working document that will clearly state the standard criteria for the establishment of sports academies in Nigeria. Also we need to remind ourselves about the concerted effort by the National Institute of Sport here in Nigeria to establish what may be regarded as an athlete high performance centre to be situated in Abuja. This centre was originally designed to cater for young talented athletes that are identified and recruited to be properly trained before they are launched into the competitive arena.

Regrettably, lack of adequate funding as widely canvassed truncated the eventual translation of such noble and attractive venture which has the capacity to be a national standard for sport academies in Nigeria as the athletes were all engage going to schools while also participating in a rigorous sport training. Today there are academies in Nigeria without any form of registration or certification by sport governing authorities either at federation level or at the National Sports Commission level. We have no Enforcement and Compliance Department as it relates to the monitoring of of Sport Academies in Nigeria.

This scenario must be stopped and corrected because it is worrisome and calls for serious reflection on the part of the operators and managers of our sports In Nigeria . We need to develop a well defined standard for the establishment of sport academies in Nigeria. The government as al;ways is expected to drive this process by enacting laws empowering the National Sports Commission to act according to its mandate.

The lack of such policies have created a system whereby we find some owners of substandard academies organizing foreign training tours abroad all in the bid to sell players which were not properly developed for such transfer or sale. Some organize make shift traning sessions and are also regarded as a sport academy this I must say must be checked if we intend to move sport development to the next level.

Today I urge the National Sports Commission to critically look into the area of developing a standard criteria for the establishment of sport academies within Nigeria while also ensuring that they safe the country from the current enigma which she finds herself. The establishment of a standard criterion for the control, development and eventual issuance of certification license to interested operators of sport academies can only be achieved after the establishment of the standard criterion.

If we must catch them young and training them to becoming world class athletes we need to develop and appropriately regulate our sport academies as well as be determined to enforce compliance to standards and rules of engagement. Now is the time for us to take Sport Business Seriously and develop scientific approach to all athletes training and development such as is witnessed in other Countries that are standard complaints in relation to sport academies. We need not to be seen as having any reason whatsoever on why till date we have not been able to make public a guiding document for the establishment of sport academies in Nigeria.

Finally I hope among all other things that we ensure that technocrats, experts and practitioners are conscripted to help develop such criteria without necessarily altering the current focus of the National Sports Development in Nigeria. Long live Nigeria!

Moses Balogun, President, Handball Referees Association, on Thursday urged the Nigeria Handball Federation (NHF) to develop sustainable programmes for the 60 handball players discovered at the just-concluded 18th National Sports Festival.

Balogun told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the male and female players identified at the Games could reposition the nation’s handball, with proper follow-up.

“The young players with good height advantage who are neither in league or professional teams displayed high standard of skills at the festival. There is no doubt that if properly followed up, they can redeem the country’s image in handball at even the Olympics level, “ he said.

The HFN referees president, who is also a member of the NHF technical committee, also urged coaches to regularly update themselves with the international rules of the game.

“If we must move forward at all, coaches must update their knowledge regularly because lots of technical rules keep changing. Let them watch cassettes of international championships, read and study the dos and don’ts of handball because the more they do it, the better their future. Everything is not training; coaches need experience too and nobody buys experience, it is acquired,’’ he said.

Balogun equally urged the newly-discovered talents not to relent in training and watching of international handball games. He added that they must be disciplined and have control over whatever they drink and eat.

NAN reports that the federation discovered about 30 male and 30 female players with high potential at the biennial tournament concluded on Dec. 9 in Lagos.

The 18th National Sports Festival, tagged “Eko 2012,’’ may have come and gone but its memories will linger for long with the Nigeria Swimming Federation (NSF) because it new records were set at the Games.

The NSF will also remember the festival because of the 10 swimmers discovered, including a 13-year-old who won three silver medals. The Games helped to ensure the refurbishing of the swimming pool at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, which happened to be the major facility used by the NSF for the competition since the one at the National Stadium was dilapidated.

The organisers, who said that Nigeria was returning to the centre-stage in swimming in the continent, noted that no injury was recorded during the competition. Since the 2006 National Sports Festival in Ogun State, tagged “Gateway Games,’’ where the last national record in swimming was set, new festival records were also set at the 18th edition, tagged “Eko 2012,’’ which was concluded in Lagos on Dec. 9.

But the Nigeria Swimming Federation (NSF) has said that national records can only be broken when elite and local swimmers participate together in the sports festival.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that three swimmers, Akina Kpiliboh, Kingsley Forcados and Victoria Ajakaye, broke festival records which had long been set in 2007, 2008 and 1991, respectively. Kpiliboh, who represented Ondo State, set a new record of 1:02:66 secs, against 1:03:72 of 2007 in the 100m freestyle for women.

Forcados of Delta set a record of 2:20:94 secs, against 2:22:46 secs of 2008 in the 200m individual medley for men, while Ajakaye set a new record of 31:30 secs, as against 31:34 secs of 1991, in the women 50m butterfly.

Also, the Lagos State Swimming Association discovered a 13-year-old swimmer, Ayomide Bello, who won three silver medals for the state. Bello won the medals in the women’s 50m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 200m breaststroke events in swimming in 27.18 secs, 33.18 secs and 3 mins, 21.86 secs, respectively

The NSF national coach, Monsuru Obadina, told NAN that he was impressed with the records set by the swimmers whom, he noted, had increased their speed too. Obadina said that most of the national swimmers were ageing and needed replacement for the country to return to her old days of winning at

international competitions,

He said that the federation fielded young swimmers at the Eko 2012 Games to discover young swimmers who would take over from the ageing ones. Obadina concluded that the Games had achieved its purpose as 10 potential swimmers were discovered.

According to Obadina, the discovered talents will be further trained for them to be in good stead of winning laurels at international championships.

“I think the sports festival has achieved its purpose; we now have an array of fast swimmers and also identified talents who can write the country’s name again on the world swimming map,’’ Obadina said.

Dr Akin George, the Chief Medical Director of the just-concluded 18th National Sport Festival (NSF) in Lagos, says a comprehensive medical report of activities at the games will be released soon.

George told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday that proper documentation of medical activities at the festival would take time to compile because the relevant officials would come from the various centres where they were deployed to.

According to him, all centres have been urged to ensure that reports were properly collated to serve as guide for future events.

“We have been able to gather the data from all the venues now, which as I have shown you, they are being analysed for a proper documentation. And I think this will take some time because you can imagine the number of people that we have seen. A place like UNILAG sees an average of 150 patients a day, throughout the competition.

“Even up to this morning when the camps are supposed to have been closed, we still had people coming in, I had to tell them that the festival was over and we have to go back to our various institutions to do our normal work. You will get the proper analysis of this when they are ready.”

George also commended doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, paramedics and all other support personnel for their various and collective contributions to a successful medicare delivery during the festival.

Sulley Muntari has endorsed the decision by coach Kwesi Appiah to exclude him from Ghana’s 2013 Africa Cup of Nations squad.

The AC Milan midfielder is unhappy he is not part of the Black Stars team for Africa’s flagship tournament because the coach has taken the decision in the best interest of the country.

Muntari was excluded from the Black Stars 26-man squad for next month’s tournament in South Africa on Thursday.

This came on the day he returned to action for his Italian Serie A side AC Milan after a six-month injury-induced absence. The decision to exclude Muntari has been condemned by a section of the Black Stars fans but the midfielder insists only fully fit players must play for the national team.

“It’s better that the national team coach takes players to the African Cup of Nations who are 100% fit and I’ll stay here. I’m sorry to be out of the national side but it’d be impossible to be out for 6 months and then go straight to the African Cup of Nations,” Muntari said.

Muntari will stay to play for AC Milan when the tournament starts in South Africa on 19 January. Ghana have been drawn in Group B to face DR Congo, Mali and Niger.

Holland-based defender Kenneth Omeruo will join the Eagles AFCON training camp in Faro, Portugal, on December 29.

“Kenneth is very excited with this opportunity and he will join the Eagles camp on December 29. It’s a just reward of all his hard work and being his first Eagles invitation he hopes to make the most of it,” a top representative of the player informed MTNFootball.com.

The 19-year-old highly promising player is expected to play his final game of the year for Dutch club ADO Den Haag at home against NEC on December 22 and after a week-long holiday in Nigeria will join the Eagles in Faro.

Nigeria U-20 star Omeruo is on loan from Chelsea to Dutch club ADO Den Haag and he has become the mainstay of the team playing at right full position even though he is better known as a central defender.

After the stinker Godfrey Oboabona posted against Liberia in Monrovia in September in that position, coach Stephen Keshi is shopping for a player who can best play that role at the AFCON.

The Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) benefited from the refurbishment of its facilities by the Lagos State Government ahead of the just-concluded 18th National Sports Festival (NSF), an official said on Thursday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that YABATECH hostels were among three venues used as Games Villages by athletes during the festival. Some of the institution’s facilities were also used for training.

Fredrick Yamala, Director of Sports, YABATECH, told NAN in Lagos that the selection of the institution as one of the Games Villages was a blessing in disguise.

According to him, our hostels and the sports complex are now wearing new looks because of the facelift given to them ahead of the commencement of the Games. He also said that the institution had no regrets whatsoever, stressing that the authority was grateful to the state government for fulfilling its promise of renovating the hostels and the sports complex.

Yamala also said that in addition, some food vendors and retail shop owners on the campus made high sales from participants during the Games. Yamala said that the state of the sports complex would no doubt, inspire students to take to sports, stressing they hope to put the facility to good use.

NAN reports that hostels like the PostGraduate, Augustus Aikhomu, Moshood Abiola, Akata and Bakassi halls, were re-painted, while their defective plumbing, electricity wirings and toilets were also fixed. The volleyball and handball courts were refurbished while the football pitch was also re-grassed.

CAF Africa Cup of Nations veteran Claude Le Roy has downplayed his Congo DR side’s prospects at the 2013 edition starting next month in South Africa.

Frenchman Le Roy knows what it takes to claim the continental showpiece, having guided Cameroon to take the 1988 title and then helped Ghana into third place on home soil in 2008.

Assessing his 2013 Cup of Nations chances in his second stint as coach of The Leopards, the 64-year-old tactician said on Monday: “We’re not favourites, far from it.”

I’m not here to hand out presents to anyone but to put together what I believe is the best team possible.Claude Le Roy

Le Roy, who had a brief two month spell in charge of Syria’s national team in 2011 before linking up with DRC, and his Nations Cup squad left Kinshasa Monday for the South African Indian Ocean port city of Port Elizabeth for a pre-Cup training camp.

Before leaving he said: “We’re taking 41 players for 23 places, the battle will be tough and it’s for the players to show that they want above all to take part in the 2013 Nations Cup,” he said. “I’m not here to hand out presents to anyone but to put together what I believe is the best team possible.”

Le Roy’s side are drawn in Group B with his former team and 2012 semi-finalists Ghana, Mali and Niger. The competition runs from 19 January to 10 Feburary.