The Nation Newspaper

Category: Sports

  • EKEJI TIPS EAGLES FOR AFCON TITLE

    EKEJI TIPS EAGLES FOR AFCON TITLE

    •Restates confidence in Keshi crew

    DIRECTOR General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Dr Patrick Ekeji, was the surprise guest Friday evening at one of the work out of the national team ahead of the international friendly against Venezuela on Wednesday in Miami, the United States.

    Ekeji, who is a former national team skipper and coach, declared at the session that he was impressed by the modern day training techniques of the technical crew of the Super Eagles and wishes that all the sessions be recorded for review on a daily basis as that will help players and officials know areas that mistakes have been made.

    He said Sports Minister, Bolaji Abdulahi and President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan are committed to the team excelling at the African Nations Cup, and therefore support for the team will not be lacking, declaring that it was actually the Minister that sent him to monitor proceedings at the national team.

    “I believe that we have a team that can win the Nations Cup in South Africa and we equally have a technical crew that can excel with the team and support from government is there, so there is nothing that should stop us from bring the Afcon 2013 trophy home,” he said.

  • EKO 2012 SPORTS FESTIVAL Adele promises Lagosians Kick-boxing gold medals

    EKO 2012 SPORTS FESTIVAL Adele promises Lagosians Kick-boxing gold medals

    ADEGBOYEGA Adele, the Technical Director, Lagos State Kickboxing Association, has restated the association’s determination to win gold medals in the event at the 18th National Sports Festival.

    Adele, who made the pledge during an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Lagos, said the state’s kick boxers were 100 per cent ready.

    “We have all the facilities we need to train and have a good outing at the festival. The government has done a lot for us and we are assuring the people of Lagos that we will deliver.

    “By my assessment, we are completely ready for the festival and we will certainly do the state proud,’’ he said.

    Adele lauded the Lagos State Government for the attention given to sports development at the grassroots.

    “Government has done much for these athletes by providing new kits and equipment to aid their preparation so as to excel at the festival. Our kick boxers are in high spirits now with their morale boosted. They are ready to clinch gold medals,’’ he said.

    Adele added that the refresher course for all the technical officials organised by the Nigeria Kickboxing Federation had also helped to fine-tune the preparation of the athletes.

    “I am expecting to see the effect of the training in the performances of our athletes during the festival. We are not going to leave any stone unturned to actualise our dream,’’ he said.

    Adele, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria Kickboxing Referees Association, advised the officials to adhere strictly to the rules for officiating at the Games.

    The director, who urged athletes to be medically fit, called on the Federal Government to focus on the provision of equipment and regular training for technical officials to transform sports nationwide.

  • Oyegbile’s book for presentation

    Oyegbile’s book for presentation

    The Governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, is to be the special guest of honour at the public presentation of the book, Home Away From Home…History of Ogbomoso people in Jos on Tuesday, November 13, at Eko FM Multipurpose Hall, Ikeja at 11 am.

    The book written by Olayinka Oyegbile, Deputy Editor, The Nation on Sunday, is a chronicle of the history of Jos through the eyes of Ogbomoso people who arrived there as traders in the 19th century. It takes a dispassionate look at the development the city has witnessed and how Ogbomoso people through their business acumen helped develop the city. It also took a cursory look at the Action Group (AG) crisis which erupted in Jos in 1961 involving the late Chief Ladoke Akintola, the then Premier of the Western Region and a prominent son of Ogbomoso and the late Obafemi Awolowo, the Leader of Opposition.

    The presentation is to be chaired by Senator Ayo Adeseun, Chairman, Senate Committee on Capital Market, while the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Oladunni Oyewumi, is the Royal Father of the Day. Others expected at the event are Hon. Mulikat Akande-Adeola, Majority Leader, House of Representatives, former Governor of Oyo State, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala. The Chief Presenter is Prince Abidoye Ayoola, while the five local government chairmen in Ogbomosoland are co-presenters.

  • N7.5M UPAID WAGES CAS queries Ismaily over Owoeri

    N7.5M UPAID WAGES CAS queries Ismaily over Owoeri

    JOHN OWOERI has reportedly completed his switch from CAF Champions League semi-finalists Sunshine Stars to Warri Wolves. However, he has unfinished business with his past Egyptian club Ismaily.

    According to Ismaily Online , the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland has written Ismaily to respond to a complaint that Owoeri is being owed $50,000 (about N7.5m) in unpaid entitlements. The club must respond to that query on or before November 15.

    It would be recalled that Owoeri unilaterally terminated his contract with Ismaily citing the club’s empty treasury and the security situation in Egypt.

    He would later travel to the United States to test with a plethora of clubs in the MLS – Columbus Crew, Montreal Impact, Kansas City and Chivas USA – but talks collapsed after he failed to produce his International Transfer Certificate.

    In FIFA’s earlier ruling last March, authority was given to Owoeri to terminate his contract and leave the club as a free agent.

  • Three cities bubble for EMUfest

    EniObanke Music Festival (EMUfest), the brainchild of Nigeria’s foremost contemporary folk and roots musician, Beautiful Nubia, enters its third year with events planned to hold from November 13 – 18, 2012. Live music concerts are scheduled for Lagos, Ile-Ife and Ibadan and will feature many established and emerging artistes including the host Beautiful Nubia, and other legendary figures such as Jimi Solanke, Orlando Julius Ekemode and Pa Chris Ajilo. The organisers are throwing the gates open for all music lovers to attend all the events for free. This is generating a lot of excitement amongst fans, especially youths, on social media.

    While live performance has always been the main focus of the festival, there is a little twist this year with the addition of a festival roundtable discussion focusing on new income streams for the modern musician which will hold on November 13, a songwriting workshop to be led by Beautiful Nubia on November 14, a Talent Night for showcasing and discovering new artistes on November 15 and a celebrity soccer match between arts/entertainment journalists and celebrities from the music and film world on November 14. All these are to be hosted at EniObanke Arts Centre, 19 Adekunle Fajuyi Way, Ikeja GRA.

    The festival proper begins with a concert at the Amphitheatre, OAU, Ile-Ife on Friday, November 16, followed by another in Ibadan a day later at Alliance Francaise, Iyaganku. Both events will run from 4 – 9pm each day. The festival will be rounded off with a grand concert on Sunday, November 18 at the EniObanke Arts Centre. Two prominent journalists are slated to receive awards for their long time support to the music industry at this grand finale, which will start at 1pm and end at 10pm.

    EniObanke Music Festival (EMUfest) is the first ever folk and roots music festival to be held in Nigeria. Its main purpose is to celebrate, showcase and re-position authentic Nigerian and African music, and to promote the use of music as a tool for societal reformation and economic growth. Commenced in 2010 with performance by 10 music artistes/groups at 3 different venues, EMUfest is poised to become the most innovative, youth-oriented, grassroots music festival in these climes.

    As part of the show this year, the EniObanke Lifetime Achievement Award will be given to Pa Benson Idonije, a foremost music critic and writer and Late Ogbonna Amadi of The Vanguard Newspapers for his contributions to entertainment reporting in Nigeria. The award night will hold in Lagos on the 18th of November.

    There will also be a workshop on songwriting and a roundtable discussion on the essence of the festival. The talent hunt night is to discover and encourage budding artistes who want to take to music. Beautiful Nubia said all these are to be done in order to create more awareness and opportunities in the entertainment industry in the country. “The youths need to be encouraged to be at their best,” he said.

  • VENEZUELA FRIENDLY 12 Eagles get US visas

    VENEZUELA FRIENDLY 12 Eagles get US visas

    All 12 NPL stars and Eagles officials were Friday granted entry visas to the US ahead of a friendly against Venezuela in Miami.

    “I’m totally shocked and positively excited at the treatment meted to us at the US embassy and I will convey this to our head coach Stephen Keshi,”said Eagles assistant coach Daniel Amokachi after the warm reception the team received at the embassy in Abuja.

    Fears that the embassy may deny the Eagles entry visas to the country ahead of Wednesday’s warm-up vanished as quickly as they came as the national team were accorded a befitting reception by the Embassy and all players and officials granted visas on Friday morning when the team appeared to procure travelling documents for the friendly.

    Led by Amokachi, the team got to the 1075, Diplomatic Drive, CBD, Abuja , offices of the Embassy as early as 7:45am and were initially made to follow due protocols of the embassy, but all that changed once the 12 players and officials got into the Embassy building, as officials of embassy led by the Ambassador had reportedly passed instructions for the team to be promptly attended to.

    The embassy officials still followed due protocols but all members of the team were shocked at the convivial reception that the team got as both Americans and Nigerian staff of the embassy swarmed the team for pictures, autographs and pleasantries.

    Officials also wished the team well in the game against Venezuela and later at the South Africa 2013 Nations Cup.

    Later the team was ushered into the US Embassy library, where an official of the ‘Education USA’ programme that seeks to empower all with good education revealed that footballers of Nigerian extraction should educate themselves in preparations for life after football.

    “There are even opportunities for scholarship if such players and the general Nigerian public tap into the opportunities that are available,”she said.

    Brochures of the various programme available at the embassy were thereafter freely distributed to players and officials of the team, before they departed the venue for their Bolton White Apartment camp.

  • Amokachi: We’re not desperate for win

    Amokachi: We’re not desperate for win

    Super Eagles Assistant Coach, Dan ‘The Bull’ Amokachi, has declared that the team will not be desperate for victory in the international friendly against Venezuela next Wednesday, November 14, but will also not want to be defeated.

    Speaking when officials of the US Embassy led by former Mighty Jets of Jos star, Sanni Mohammed, grilled him on the new focus of the team, Amokachi, said there is a new focus in the team and that is to return the team to its glory days when Nigerians will sleep easy when the national team has any important game. “We want to win but we are not desperate. We don’t also want to lose the game because we want to keep a good frame of mind ahead of the Nations Cup in 2013 and that is why we are starting with home based players, discovering new stars and then joining them up with our foreign based stars to give Nigerian football lovers what they want at the Nations Cup. We hope we can do well at the Nations Cup and probably play in the final and make Nigerians happy again, that is the target of the Head Coach and the entire team”, he declared.

    Excited officials and staff of the Embassy thereafter had a field day taking pictures and autographs with players and officials of the team and as expected questions about the 1994 Super Eagles kept reverberating. When will the Super Eagles return to the top five in world rankings, why is Keshi not here (he’s an American citizen), can this present team win the CAN 2013 Championships?. So many questions, begging to be answered in the coming months of a hectic season for the Super Eagles of Nigeria, but only time will tell.

    Meanwhile this morning the national team will tackle Water FC of Abuja at the Training Pitch of the Abuja National Stadium, as part of preparation for the friendly against Venezuela. The match will come up at 7am prompt.

  • Yobo wins with Fenerbahce

    Yobo wins with Fenerbahce

    Super Eagles captain Joseph Yobo has recovered fully from knee injury as he featured for Fenerbahce in a Europa League game against AEL Limassol on Thursday.

    Yobo was on for the entire duration of the game as his team beat the Cypriot team 2-0.

    His club are top of Group C with 10 points. In Portugal, John Ogu Ugochukwu was an unused substitute as his team Academica Coimbra shocked holders Athletico Madrid 2-0.

  • Apam is unfit

    Despite been listed by Super Eaghles Head Coach, Stephen Keshi for the November 14 friendly against Venezuela, Rennes centre back Onyekachi Apam faces a tough battle to stage a comeback to the national team after Ligue 1 side, declared that the ex-Enugu Rangers ace is still recuperating from a thigh injury picked up two weeks ago during training.

    Apam was listed alongside 10 other professionals for the game against South Americans but Rennes officially acknowledged during the week that Apam’s rehabilitation is far from being complete.

    ”If Apam is not selected with Nigeria next winter, there are still big questions about him. Since his knee injury, the player is struggling to play matches. If his technical qualities are well above John Boye, the Nigerian constantly suffers muscle relapses.

    ”His 18 months without competition have left traces. Despite his unwavering commitment to return to the field after such a long ordeal, there is still a way to go to be in the frame of a Rennes player,” a release in the club’s official website read in part.

    Apam has managed just two Ligue 1 appearances against Lyon (August 11) and Montpellier (October 20) this campaign.

  • Legends sign up for Football Festival

    Legends sign up for Football Festival

    Soccerex is pleased to announce the teams competing in this year’s Football Festival on the iconic Copacabana beach as part of the Soccerex Global Convention in Rio de Janeiro on 24-28 November.

    After last year’s comprehensive win by the Brazilian team, who are now unbeaten since 2010, there has been a strong response from all of the teams involved. The newly fashioned “Rest of World” team will feature the likes of Gaizka Mendieta, Jay-Jay Okocha and Victor Baia. After defeat in last year’s final, the Dutch have assembled one of their strongest squads to date to challenge the Brazilians; the team will include striker Pierre van Hooijdonk, midfielders Phillip Cocu, Rob Witschge, defender Arthur Numan as well reinforcements in Aron Winter and Ronald de Boer.

    Hoping to improve from last year’s performance will be the Latin American All-Stars who will be led by legendary ex-Valencia and Argentina captain Roberto Ayala, Marcelo Salas and Freddy Rincon. Looking to defend their title and remain unbeaten on home soil, the Brazilian team will include multiple World Cup winners, including 2002 FIFA World CupTM winner Juliano Belletti and 1994 FIFA World CupTM winner Zetti, as well as the star of last year’s tournament and the world’s leading Futsal player Falcão, making it one of the most exciting tournaments in Soccerex history.

    The Soccerex Football Festival is a two day event which marks the launch of the Global Convention. It‘s a celebration which combines colourful local entertainment with a host of football revelry provided by youth players, freestylers and football legends from around the world. The festival is enjoyed by both Soccerex attendees and locals alike before business begins with the 3-day conference and exhibition.