The Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), in partnership with the Badminton World Federation (BWF), has confirmed that the 2025 Lagos International Badminton Classic will take place from August 27–30 at the Teslim Balogun Indoor Sports Hall, Surulere, Lagos.
Now one of Africa’s leading badminton tournaments, the Classic is sanctioned by the BWF and offers players crucial ranking points for the World Championships and Olympic Games.
Over 200 athletes from 31 countries—including powerhouses India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and Indonesia—will compete, alongside teams from the U.S., Canada, France, Egypt, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
BFN President Francis Orbih described the event as a “cornerstone of Nigeria’s sports calendar,” adding that it enhances global exposure for Nigerian athletes while cementing Lagos as a hub for badminton in Africa.
The championship is organised by the BFN with support from the BWF, the Badminton Confederation of Africa, Lagos State Government, and corporate sponsors. Organisers highlight its role in youth engagement, sports development, and strengthening Nigeria’s presence in global badminton.
Fans can expect four days of high-speed action. Entry is free, with matches also streamed live on the federation’s social media platforms.
For Francis Orbih, President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), the outgoing Year 2024 brought so much to cheer for badminton despite not finishing on the podium at the Paris Olympics with initial expectations. Going forward, the erstwhile chairman of Lagos State Badminton Association of Nigeria (LSBA) believes badminton and, indeed, Nigerian sports can break new grounds with more painstaking efforts in this conversation with MORAKINYO ABODUNRIN…
After some ground-breaking efforts as chairman of Lagos State Badminton Association of Nigeria (LSBA), Francis Orbih in 2017 took a giant leap and was elected the President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN).
Seven years down the line, the sport of badminton has not been the same in the country, with some of the country’s badmintonists such as Anuoluwapo Opeyori and Eniola Bolaji staking their claims for glory on the African continental and global sphere.
Reviewing 2024, Orbih would be the first to admit that there were many cheerful moments as far as badminton is concerned, adding that failure of the country to win a medal at both the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics and Paris 2024 Paralympics was not for lack of efforts.
“My best memories (of 2024) are Eniola Bolaji’s history-making bronze medal at the Paralympics, becoming the first African to win a medal in badminton at the Olympics or Paralympics,” Orbih, who instituted the Lagos International Badminton Classics, stated. “Also, Anuoluwapo Opeyori’s performance at the Olympics where even though he lost 21-17, 21-17 to China’s world number 6, his performance was adjudged one of the best by any African player.
“Eniola ended on the podium with a bronze medal, becoming the first African to do so in badminton or Para badminton. Even though I was disappointed that Anu didn’t make the podium, I was satisfied with his performance and the fact that he became the first badminton player to captain team Nigeria to the Olympics.”
Regarded as one of the astute administrators in the current Nigeria’s sporting ecosystem, Orbih, who is also a council member of the Badminton Confederation Africa (BCA), said he was not totally disappointed about the turn of events at Paris 2024 because he had a modest expectation going to the quadrennial games that was held with pomp and ceremony by France.
“I told everyone who cared to listen that we were not expecting a podium finish at the Olympics but was optimistic about one at the Paralympics, which is what happened,” he noted.
“I can say we managed our expectations and were realistic. Definitely, we would have done better if we were better prepared. Preparation was inadequate.”
One of the issues that have befuddled sports in Nigeria for many decades has been lack of adequate preparations before major global events such as the Olympic Games.
But Orbih reckoned it was on the basis of this poor preparation palaver that the Badminton Confederation Africa recently launched its campaign towards podium finish as the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games in Abuja.
“Nigeria was picked by the Badminton Confederation Africa as the host of its media launch of the Road to LA2028 because of Eniola Bolaji’s achievement at the Paralympics,“ a proud Orbih, a lawyer, enthused. “The whole essence of the launch is to trigger early preparation by supporting players with attendance of tournaments and training camps way ahead of the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics.”
Under Orbih’s observatory, the BFN over the years has begun to popularise badminton with a catch-them-young programme at school level and he admitted that is one of the ways to go in order to erase the notion that the sport is only for the elites.
“It is an on-going project and we believe, in a matter of time, the results will become very evident. We gave the programme more attention in 2023 and I can tell you that we have covered a lot of grounds,” Orbih said of the badminton-to-school programme, adding that some budding talents will soon be taking the courts by storm. “Yes, we have new players coming up and what they need is more support to get them to attend more tournaments that will get them exposed and garner more world ranking points.”
He added that the BFN was also exploring other frontiers in order to improve the standard of badminton in Nigeria.
“Of course, we are seeking other ways of improvement,” he explained. “The technical aspect of the game in the area of coaching and officiating is also very important.
“This is one of the major reasons we just organised a Para-badminton training camp and a BWF Grade level 1 coaching course which just ended a few days ago.
“The technical department of the game needs a boost. It is a fundamental foundation for the growth and development of the game,” he added. Post Paris 2024, sports in Nigeria are now undergoing some sort of revival under the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ of President Bola Tinubu which saw the scrapping of the Ministry of Sports Development to a return to the National Sports Commission (NSC).
The vastly experienced Orbih said he was in agreement with President Tinubu by the appointment of both Mallam Shehu Dikko and Honourable Bukola Olopade as the Chairman and Director General of the NSC respectively, but not without a caveat in order to rejuvenate Nigerian sports in all ramifications.
He said on the way forward for both the NSC and Nigerian sports: “Having been part of the sports sector for a long time, I believe they are both grounded and have a good idea of what the fundamental challenges are.
“Be that as it may, I would advise that they focus more on grassroots development rather than participation in events alone.
“Whenever we have to participate in events, more attention should be paid to adequate preparation. Also, they need to give more attention to the decay of our sport infrastructure.
“Finally, they should give priority to the implementation of the National Sports Industry Policy that was passed some time ago,” he concluded.
The Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN) has opened its training camp ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games holding between July 26th and August 11th.
Two-time African Games Champion and four-time African Senior Champion, Anuoluwapo Opeyori is Nigeria’s sole representative in the badminton event at the Games.
President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria, Francis Orbih revealed that Anuoluwapo Opeyori is paired with two national team players, Victor Ikechukwu and Emmanuel Joseph at the Badminton section facility at Ikoyi Club 1938.
Orbih said the Federation has concluded plans for the second stage of camping for Opeyori in Italy.
“Before the announcement of the ministry’s camping programme, the BFN decided to put our qualified athlete, Anuoluwapo Opeyori in camp alongside two national team players, Victor Ikechukwu and Emmanuel Joseph at the Ikoyi Club 1938 in Lagos,’” Orbih said.
“ The Federation chose Ikoyi Club because it has one of the best badminton facilities in the country and the Federation has been in a collaborative partnership with the Club.
“The players are currently being handled by Coach Ben Orakpor who is one of our experienced coaches in the country. There is no time to waste because we have less than two months until the Paris 2024 Olympics and the Federation wants to ensure Opeyori is in top shape.
“Opeyori only has 10 days in Nigeria before he departs for his first phase of the foreign training camp in Italy. We want him to have access to world-class facilities and play against some top-ranked players in Europe”.
Orbih noted that the African Champion will join the foreign camp organised by the Federal Ministry of Sports in Germany from the 1st to 21st July.
He said: “We have agreed that Anuoluwapo Opeyori will join the foreign camp organised by the Federal Ministry of Sports in Germany from the 1st to 21st of July and in between play the Mauritius international from 11th to 14th July. The Badminton Federation of Nigeria will continue to monitor the progress of Opeyori and hope he surpasses his previous record at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.”
21-year-old bronze medalist at the just-concluded 2023 All African Games in Ghana with the Nigerian Badminton squad OBASANMI CHRISTIANAH OLAJUMOKE spoke with DAVID BOLARINWA about her experience in Ghana and how Badminton has been helpful in her life’s journey.
Why did you choose Badminton of all Sports ?
All I can say is that is just God’s will because I have started playing from my primary school days and i was discovered by my coach then, he came to my primary school to teach us about badminton.
Who trained you from scratch before joining the national team?
Coach Tunmise from Ondo state, he trained me from scratch to what i am today, he was just assigned recently as one of the junior National coach.
How do you feel like representing the whole of Nigeria for competitions ?
So excited actually, because it’s a privileged and I can say is from hardwork.
How has Badminton paved way for you in life?
Badminton made me like this, If not for God and Badminton I seriously don’t know where I will be today
Do your parents support you in your career?
Yes, alot, if not for them, i might not be where i am today.
Asides representing Nigeria at the All African Games, what other grand stage have you played in?
I represented Nigeria at All Africa senior games in Egypt
What are your aspirations as a Badminton player?
To represent Nigeria on bigger stages and win more awards, personal awards too.
What other sports do you like of would have gone for asides badminton?
I wouldn’t have gone for any other sport aside from badminton, but I like basketball, i play basketball once in a while.
Has it just been luck or there is something you are going that has kept you these far?
Hard work, patience, determination, prayer, consistency, so many factors.
Do you feel you are at the peak of your career now that you are on the national team?
No, i have not gotten there at all, I still have a long way
No, I don’t think i can sit behind a player and train him/her, it’s so stressful, but I don’t know what the future holds.
What do you think about the state of badminton in nigeria?
Badminton in Nigeria is not in a good state actually
Because compared to other countries they participate in more tournament than Nigeria
As a badminton player in Nigeria if you don’t have a self sponsor you cannot go for tournament outside Nigeria
So what’s your advice to the Badminton governing body in Nigeria?
They should please help us look for sponsors, so that we can also participate in more international tournament, this can also boost our ranking in international level and it will make our future qualification to Olympics more easy.
President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria, Francis Orbih, is excited about the performance of Team Nigeria contingent to the just concluded African Senior Badminton Championship in Cairo.
Orbih hailed the performance of the Nigeria’s representatives despite team’s losses in the final of the men’s team events.
“We were so close after getting the first two games in our favour, but we understand that in games as in life, anything can happen. We are grateful to and appreciative of our players and their performances,” Orbih said as he praised the Minister for Sport Development, Senator John Owan Enoh for the ministry’s support to the team.
He stressed the plans were afoot to resume preparations for the upcoming badminton event at the African Games holding in Ghana between March 7th and 24th.
At the All Africa Senior Badminton Championship in Cairo, Nigeria claimed seven medals with the country’s number one badminton player, Anuoluwapo Opeyori clinching his fifth African title and the third back-to-back.
Anuoluwapo had earlier won the All Africa Senior Championships Men’s Singles title in Port Harcourt, Nigeria in 2019, the All Africa Games MS title in Morocco in 2019, the All Africa Senior Championships MS title in Uganda 2022, the All Africa Senior Championships in South Africa 2023 and now in Egypt 2024.
Nigeria narrowly lost to Algeria in the men’s finals even after securing the first two of five games, thereby settling for Silver. The Women’s team picked a valuable bronze after losing the Semifinals to the Ugandan Women’s team.
In the Individual event, Opeyori stormed through to the finals by beating compatriot Victor Ikechukwu 21-13, 19-21, 21-9 to rekindle an old rivalry with Mauritian Georges Julien Paul where he again asserted his dominance by beating Paul 23-21, 11-21, 21-16 to take the coveted MS crown for the third time in a row and his fifth African title.
The relatively new pair of Yunusa Momoh Godwin Olofua did the country proud by beating Mauritius duo of Melvin Appiah and Tejraj Pultoo 21-17, 21-15 to reach the Finals.
They were, however, unable to subdue the duo of Africa’s number one pair of Algeria’s Kociela Mammeri and Sabri Medel, thereby losing 12-21, 8-21 to clinch the Silver in the Men’s Doubles event.
In the Women’s Doubles, Dorcas Ajoke Adesokan paired with a new partner, Sofiyat Obanishola to lose out narrowly to Ugandan’s Husina Kobugabe and Gladys Mbabazi 21-18, 19-21, 18-21 after fighting gallantly in the Semifinals to get a spot on the podium for the bronze medal.
In the Mixed Doubles event, yet another fresh pair of Aliyu Alhaji Shehu and Deborah Ukeh-Divine lost the Semifinal match to home team of Adham Hatem Gamel and Doha Hany of Egypt 9-21, 12-21 (0-2) to take the bronze medal for their efforts.
In all, Nigeria was able to take home an impressive total of one gold, two silver and four bronze medals for relatively new pairs in all the doubles categories.
The second edition of the Bet9ja South East Senior Zonal Badminton Championship holding in Owerri, the Imo State capital , ends today.
The prize money at stake is Seven Hundred And Seventy Naira (N770,000) only.
The championship is a South East Zonal tournament which is to be rotated round the five South Eastern States. The first edition was held in Enugu, now Owerri, next Anambra, Abia and Ebonyi.
There are 10 players comprising six men, four women from each of the five South East States, bringing the total figure players for the event to 50 senior players.
It will be recalled that Jovita Anikwe is the defending champion of the men’s singles while the women’s singles defending champion is Queen Sunday.
The championship events to be competed for are Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles.
The third edition of the Ikoyi Club Badminton Classics climaxed last Saturday with a first time experience for most of the winners.
Last held 24 years ago, it means most of the players were not born when the tournament was last held in 1999 and it turned a worthwhile experience with only ranked players were eligible to participate.
In this case, only the first 16 ranked players were involved. It was a thriller from beginning to the end. The opening round was a round-robin leading to the quarter-finals which produced the usual suspects – Anuoluwapo Opeyori Juwon (Lagos), Hansen Bello (Oyo), Victor Ikechukwu (Rivers) and Aliyu A.Shehu (Niger) – who proceeded to the semi-finals in the Men’s Singles.
The Women’s Singles event was equally thrilling as Dorcas Ajoke Adesokan (Ogun), Ruth Chinenye Over (Edo), Sofiyat Arinola Obanishola (Rivers) and Deborah Ukeh Divine (Edo) were the survivors in the quarter finals who clichéd the semi-final berths.
At this stage, experience spoke loud as Juwon secured a comfortable win over Habeeb Temitope Bello (Oyo) 21-8, 21-7 (2-0) while Ikechukwu was able to overcome Shehu 21-18, 21-19 (2-0) to proceed to the title match in the Men’s Singles.
In the Woman’s Semifinals, Adesokan won over Ruth C.Ibere 21-13, 21-15 (2-0) while Obanishola triumphed over Divine 21-18, 21-10 (2-0) to book a spot in the final.
The title fights were titanic but Juwon (Lagos) was able to edge out Ikechukwu (Rivers) 23-21, 17-21, 21-11 (2-1) to win the Men’s Singles title.
In the Women’s Singles, Adesokan (Ogun) prevailed over Obanishola of Rivers to win the gold.
During the prize giving, awards and presentations that followed, Oba Adedapo Tejuoso was inducted into the Nigerian Badminton Hall of Fame as the first inductee in recognition of his unwavering dedication and invaluable contribution to the development of badminton in Nigeria and Africa.
One of the sponsors of the event, Mirror Homes Investment gave title documents for half plots of land in their estate in Lagos to each of the Men’s and Women’s singles winners.
The President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria, Francis Orbih, expressed his delight at the resounding success of the championship where over five million naira was shared in prize moneys in both the men’s and women’s events .
As he conveyed the appreciation and gratitude of the Badminton Federation under his leadership and of the players for this great support, Orbih reiterated the Board’s resolve to go the extra mile in making all avenues of development of the game and players are explored.
The two-day Shuttle Time Programme organized by the Badminton Federation of Nigeria in conjunction with the Edo State Badminton Association ends today in Benin, Edo State.
According to Onome Obruthe, Chairman of the Edo State Badminton Association, the initiative is staged for Nigeria Secondary Schools Physical & Education teachers and it is deliberately designed for the grassroots.
The indoor Sports Complex, Etete at Off Limits Road, Benin is the venue of the event with 25 secondary schools in Benin participating along with 25 P.E and games masters and mistresses.
Obruthe noted that the training program is supported by BFN’s partner, Community Sport Educational Development (CSED) Initiative.
He said: “The Shuttle Time Nigeria Project is a grassroots badminton project designed by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to teach P.E. teachers and Games masters/ mistresses, the basic skills of badminton. The teachers would in turn discover and train the students in their various schools, imparting the knowledge and skills acquired to their students.
“Equipment which includes rackets, nets and shuttles are distributed to participating schools to ensure as well as encourage practical establishment of the game in the schools. This equipment is courtesy Community Sport Educational Development (CSED) Initiative.”
The Vice Chairman of the Edo Badminton Association, Mrs. Amaka Onwuka, told our correspondent at the venue on Tuesday that the state’s badminton body would continue to stage quality events to take the game to another level.
“We are hoping to bring out future champions in the state and that is why we are starting with the trainers. So that they can impact basic modern knowledge in the game to the young ones under them,” Onwuka said.
Team Nigeria have established their dominance on the continent after they clear the stable to emerge champions of the 2019 All Africa Senior Badminton Championships which ended in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Sunday.
Nigeria won four gold medals, two silver and one bronze to top the medal table.
The team had earlier secured the most coveted gold medal in the team event on Thursday and followed that up with further three gold medals in the individual championships.
Top stars Anuoluwapo Opeyori and Dorcas Adesokan produced the most stunning shows after they dethroned Georges Paul and Kate Foo Kune from Mauritius in the men’s and women’s singles respectively.
Mauritius’ Kune had reigned as African champion since 2014; she even beat Adesokan in the final of the last edition in Algeria, but she met a determined Nigerian this time, who showed grit to hand down to her a 21-12, 21-13 defeat in the final of women’s singles.
In the men’s singles, Godwin Olofua, ranked third in Africa, had shockingly defeated top seed, Paul, in the semifinals to set up all Nigerian affairs final with Opeyori.
It was a thrilling encounter between two friends and mates but Opeyori won 21-17, 16-21, 21-17 to claim his maiden African title.
It was also an Nigerian affairs in the women’s doubles as the pair of Adesokan and Deborah Ukeh defeated Amin Christopher and Chinenye Ibere.
In the mixed doubles, Algeria’s duo of Koceila Mammeri and Linda Mazri successfully defended the title they won last year at home when they defeated Nigeria’s Enejo Abbah and Peace Orji 15-21, 21-16, 21-18.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, has expressed satisfaction with the organisation of the tournament and the performance of Team Nigeria.
He announced a reward of $100,00 for Team Nigeria for their efforts in the competition.
“The President of the Badminton Confederation of Africa just told me that this is the best tournament they have ever conducted; that’s is a every encouraging one. We are happy to grab the opportunity of hosting this event and our government will continue to support badminton and of course sports in general,” he said.
However, the President of the Nigeria Badminton Federation, Francis Orbih, on behalf of the board, announced the conferment of Wike as the Patron of the BFN.
Adesokan described her performance as the best in her career. “Anytime I want to play against her I was always jittery but I told myself that had to change this time. I have done it, Kate will never beat me again,” she said.
Team Nigeria will present the largest contingent as the All Africa Senior Badminton Championships will begin today in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. The events end on Sunday.
Team Nigeria with 18 players will feature in the male and female category. The men’s team is made up of Nigeria’s number one Anuoluwapo Opeyori, Godwin Olofua, Eneojo Abah, Clement Krobakpo, Habeeb Bello, Aliyu Shehu, Gideon Babalola, Kayode Mope and Isaac Minaphee.
The women’s team has Dorcas Adesokan, Deborah Ukeh, Peace Orji, Chinenye Ibere, Amin Christopher, Sofiat 0banisola, Ramatu Yakubu, Zainab Alabi and Augustina Sunday.
Eighteen countries are also expected to take part in showpiece event, which will see the best male and female Badminton players on the African continent compete for glory. These countries include; Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Congo, Congo DRC, Eritrea, Egypt Ghana and Ivory Coast. Other participating countries include; Kenya, Mauritius, Seychelles, South Africa, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe and host Nigeria.
The team event will take place in the first three days of the competition, while the individual event will hold after.
Head Coach, Benjamin Orakpo told newsmen yesterday that the Nigerian team was ready for the championships and that all the players were aware of the important nature of the tournament.
“We are very prepared. We have trained together over the last few weeks and we are ready to do well at these championship. It is an Olympic-point scoring event and the Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN) is ready to get some of the players to the Tokyo Olympics next year.
“Opeyori and Olofua are second and third respectively in Africa, while they are number one in the doubles event. We hope they can amass enough points to make it to Tokyo. It is a tough task but the players have the wherewithal to berth in Tokyo,” Orakpo added.
He also said the Diette Spiff indoor hall was ready with six new mats already laid for the championship.
