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Tag: NTF

  • NTF targets  hitch-free Davis Cup Tourney in Abuja

    NTF targets  hitch-free Davis Cup Tourney in Abuja

    The Nigeria Tennis Federation is working round the clock to ensure a hitch-free and successful hosting of 2024 Davis Cup Africa Group III Championship in Abuja  serving off on July 15th .

    Secretary General of the Nigeria Tennis Federation Sharmmah Makpa  said as much while highlighting the arrangements being put on ground to host the upcoming Davis Cup.

    Host Nigeria alongside Zimbabwe, Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire,  Benin Republic and Ghana will take part in the championship where the best three teams will be promoted to the Group II stage of the championship.

    Speaking in an interview ahead of the 6-nation tennis championship that is billed to take place at the Tennis Court of the Package B of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja, Makpa said the federation  was working tirelessly to stage a befitting and hitch free event.

     “Absolutely, in terms of hosting from the federation angle, we will do all our best to ensure that the location is prepared, the facilities are in good condition, and all the equipment needed for events and contests is available,” Makpa said.

     “This is our first time hosting the Group iii in Abuja, NTF have been preparing for this assignment from the very beginning up to this moment and we will make sure everything runs according to schedule, goes as planned for a successful hosting of the competition.”

    Read Also; NTF confirms Bulus, five  others for David Cup

    The former Secretary General of Cycling Federation of Nigeria, Makpa, further assured that Nigeria representatives at the tournament will have a very good outing in the championship.

    ”Regarding the participation, Nigeria tennis players are in camp, we have between six and eight players training morning and evening.

     “We are doing well and are confident that, with God blessings, everything will go according to plan so that we might have a flawless and fruitful 2024 Davis Cup Africa Group III qualifying rounds.”

    Top seed David Ekpenyong, Daniel Adeleye, Uche Oparaoji, Michael Emmanuel and Christopher Bulus will represent Nigeria at the 2024 Davis Cup Africa Group III Championship in Abuja.

  • NTF names team for Davis Cup

    The Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF) has named a four-man team for this month’s Davis Cup Championships holding in Nairobi, Kenya.

    Nigeria will be competing in Africa Zone Division III alongside host – Kenya; Algeria, Benin Republic, Cameroun, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda and Uganda between June 18 to 23, on clay outdoor at the Nairobi Club.

    Davis Cup veteran – Abdul-mumin Babalola will be the non-playing captain, while others are Christian Paul, Joseph Imeh Ubon and Sylvester Emmanuel.

    Aside from Christian Paul who replaces Clifford Enosoregbe from the team that finished fifth at 2017 edition held in Egypt, the team remains intact and is expected to commence camping this week in Ibadan in readiness for a promotion quest this year.

    To finish fifth in 2017, the team defeated Algeria 2-0 after losing 3-0 and 2-1 to Zimbabwe in Pool A to miss out from the promotion race. But the team managed to beat Rwanda 3-0 to set up a classification clash against Algeria who also finished third in Pool B.

    For 2018, the team will be making another attempt at getting back to the elite division again this year after several attempts in the last five years.

    NTF President, Dayo Akindoju has assured that the team would get the needed support to excel in the tournament. “We are expecting the team to open camp in Ibadan where they will get used to the clay court, which they will play on in Kenya. We hope they can stay in camp before they depart for the tournament in Kenya. We are also hopeful that the selected players will do the nation proud this year,” the NTF boss stated.

    The best outing for Nigeria at the Davis Cup was in 1988 and 1989 when the team reached the Group I semifinals.

  • I want to break Serena Williams’ record – Quadre

    I want to break Serena Williams’ record – Quadre

    Nigerian Tennis rave of the moment, 13-year-old Oyinlomo Quadre is setting a tall dream for herself after watching American Serena Williams surpass Steff Graf’s glam slam record at the 2017 Australian Open. The tennis prodigy will return to the International Tennis Federation (ITF) High Performance Centre in Morocco to continue to hone her skills and the West and Central Africa U-14 champion said her modest dream is to dwarf Williams’ sister global feat.

    At the just concluded ITF/CAT West and Central African Junior Tennis Championship held in Lome, Togo, Nigeria’s prodigy, Oyinlomo Quadre shone like a star among her contemporaries. Back-to-back, she claimed the U-14 girls’ title and she became the cynosure of all eyes in the competition.

    However, the player is not ready to be carried away by the Togo feat, while hoping that she can claim more laurels outside the continent.

    “My dream in tennis is to break Serena Williams and Steffi Graf’s record of grand slam titles, as well as to set up a tennis academy in Nigeria. Apart from this, I will want to practice as a lawyer,” she said.

    Despite the laurels, Quadre admitted that the successes did not come on a platter of gold. “I cannot say that it has been easy because as an athlete, you don’t want to keep losing, you want to lose today and go back to improve and win next time. So every year, it’s new challenge for me, which also helps me improve too. Mainly, I want to be myself, have my own style that other people can admire. But I admire Roger Federer because of his calmness, fighting spirit and personality, which distinguishes him from others,” she added.

    Recalling her sojourn into tennis, Quadre said: “I started playing tennis at the age of four, having grown up in Lagos Lawn Tennis Club where I played tennis every day and also watched my siblings play. I am sure that by God’s grace and with hard work, I can achieve all my dreams.”

    Having trained outside Nigeria, the youngster admitted that combining sports with education is not an easy task. “When I was in Nigeria, it was not easy combining school and tennis because I had to miss a lot of tournaments because my education is more important than tennis. But right now, I live in Morocco where I study online and also play tennis. This has really been helpful for me to combine the two activities,” she admitted.

    “As a player, you can never relax and just thinking that you are at the top of your game because no matter how good you are, there will always be something left to work on. There will always be one of your strokes that need more power to spin. So every day that I train there is always something I work and improve on.”

    Quadre would remain grateful to people that have fanned her dream, which she singled out the late Chris Enahoro, whom he described as a mentor.

    “I am getting the highest level of support morally, physically and financially from my family and I am so thankful to them. I am also getting a lot of support from some tennis Lovers, members of my club – Lagos Lawn Tennis Club, Sterling Bank and my mentor, Late Chris Enahoro who had been very supportive through the Chevron Project before his demise recently. I will continue to work down in order not to let them down,” she explained.

    In September 2016, Oyinlomo Quadre was nowhere near the world ranking, talkless of an African rating, but this week, she has become the highest ranked Nigerian junior tennis player listed among the top 400 in the world. She is now ranked 371 in the latest ranking released by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

    Also, the 13-year-old is considered the sixth rated U-14 female player in Africa while her profile continue to soar as she brace up to return to the International Tennis Federation (ITF) High Performance Centre n Morocco.

    Quadre amassed 125 points to rank 371 in the world ranking of junior female players being the highest point any Nigerian had achieved in recent times.

    However, national junior coach, Mohammed Ubale believes with more support, Quadre has the potential to become the first Nigerian to win a gram slam.
    According to national junior coach, Mohammed Ubale, the performance of Quadre has continued to bring glory to the country.

    “I am so excited about the feat achieved by Oyinlomo Quadre because she has been consistent since she started competing at international level. She hopes to return to the ITF High Performance Centre in Morocco and this was facilitated by the immense support of the President, Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF), Engr. Sani Ndanusa who agreed to offset more than 60percent of the fund she needed to return to the Centre while her family raised the remaining 40percent,” he said.

    “I must admit that she is a special player with rare talent. This kind of success recorded will surely inspire more players to aim high. In any world tennis ranking, this is the best Nigeria ever achieved at any level in recent times. I must commend the NTF for their efforts at ensuring that our junior players are exposed to world class tournaments and the ranking of Quadre is the result of the support we are getting from the federation,” he added.

  • NTF condemns death of tennis player, Beauty McLeod

    NTF condemns death of tennis player, Beauty McLeod

    The president, Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF), Sani Ndanusa on Thursday condemned the death of Beauty McLeod the mother of 14-year-old rising tennis star, Angel McLeod.

    Ndanusa, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said that the demise of the deceased was a “big loss to the federation.’’ He said that McLeod’s death was the latest in the series of deaths recorded in the federation in recent times.

    “This is in addition to the death of another player, Gladys O’Malley, who died after child birth. A referee, Cosmos Ntemuse, also died recently. Indeed, this is a very dark period for Nigerian tennis. McLeod is one players that has been helping in the development of the game at the grassroots. she (Angel) is one of our brightest juniors.

    “We are deeply shocked by her death; McLeod has been a clear example of NTF’s crusade for parents’ support for their children in tennis. This really helped her to become one of the most promising junior players in Africa,’’ he said.

    Godwin Kienka, the Director, International Tennis Academy (ITA), described the death of McLeod as a great loss to the NTF and also to the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

    “I am still in shock over her death because she was someone that was very dedicated to what she does and she has exhibited this in her life and that of her daughter, Angel.

    “Angel had participated at the SNEPCo junior tennis championship in 2014, where she gave a good account of herself. I am sure that Angel’s talent will not waste, regardless of the loss,’’ he said.

    Late Macleod was allegedly killed by a mobile police officer after an altercation on Oct. 26 at the Emperors Place, a guest house on Victoria Island, Lagos.

    The Lagos State Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni, condemned the killing, promising that the policeman would be appearing in court on a charge of murder.

  • NTF names team for Davis Cup in Egypt

    Majority of theplayers that represented Nigeria at the last African Games in Congo Brazzaville has been named by the Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF) as part of the four-man team for this year’s Davis Cup Group III Championship holding this month in Cairo, Egypt.

    The list of players published on the website of Davis Cup tournament, CBN Open Champion, Thomas Otu made the cut while he will be joined  by Clifford Enosoregbe, Christian Paul and Emmanuel Audu, while the non-playing captain is Rotimi Akinloye.

    The team will contend against host – Egypt (106) as well as the highest ranked team in the group, Algeria (88), Benin (97) and Namibia (97) who are all rated higher than Nigeria. Other teams in the group are Mozambique (108), Ghana (112) and Tunisia (114).

    According to the President of NTF, Sani Ndanusa, the team would be supported to do well in Egypt as plans are in top gear to commence camping for the team.

    “We will surely take part in the Davis Cup and we hope to assemble a formidable team. I believe the experience that I have had during the African Games by playing on clay court would surely be helpful to the team. But we are working to get funds from the National Sports Commission (NSC) and our sponsors so that the team can start preparation for the championship,” Ndanusa said.

    Meanwhile, SportingLife leant yesterday that the team may begin camping this week in readiness for the championship holding between October 26 and 31.

    It will be recalled that in 2014, Nigeria failed to make it to Group II and according to the rules of the tournament released by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the tournament will be played on a round-robin basis with the teams drawn into two pools.

    The winners of each pool will engage in a play-off against the runner’s up to determine the two nations that will be promoted to Europe/Africa Zone Group II in 2016.

    For the positional play-offs, teams will compete in the classification to determine the relegated teams. Smash Tennis Academy in Cairo will host the one-week tournament.

    Nigeria’s maiden appearance in the Davis Cup was in 1974 while the best outing of the team was reaching the Group I semifinals in 1988 and 1989.

  • NTF highlights benefits of code of conduct to players

    NTF highlights benefits of code of conduct to players

    The Nigeria Tennis Federation has stated that its newly introduced code of conduct for players that will be featuring in this year’s Central Bank of Nigeria Open Tennis Championship will be of immense benefit to Nigerian players.

    NTF’s 1st Vice President, Yemi Owoseni said the move becomes imperative to check the excesses of some of the players who he pointed have exhibited some arrogance in the past.

    “We don’t want to condone indiscipline and any other negative attitude from our players any longer. Some ofd our players have been so lawless and there is need to put them in check” Owoseni, who stood in for NTF boss Sani Ndanusa said at a press briefing in Lagos on Wednesday.

    He pointed that as part of benefits, the new rule will enhance the players’ prowess which he stressed rub on their game to become a better player.

    “When these players have inculcated the discipline which the code of conduct is designed towards, it makes them more responsible even beyond tennis.

    “It also makes them more responsible if they go out on international event like the Davis Cup, All African Games and others.

    Meanwhile, NTF Secretary-General, Mrs Gloria Ekwuempu has expressed optimism that the standard of the championship will be high.

    She said, “The CBN Open has been the foundation of which Nigerian tennis is laid and considering the performance of Nigerian players at the Tombim Abuja Futures which was held last week, I can only say we will have a very high standard on display this year.”

    The preliminary matches for the tournament served off on Thursday.

    The champions in the men and women singles will get N700, 000 while finalists will get N500,000.

  • NTF names team for Scotland

    The Nigeria Taekwondo Federation (NTF) has named a 16-man team for next month’s Commonwealth Taekwondo Championships holding in Edinburgh, Scotland.

    In the list made available to SportingLife, 2008 Beijing Olympics medalist, Chika Chukwumerije and his sibling, Uche, will lead the team to the two-day tournament coming up on November 15 and 16 at the Meadowbank Stadium in Edinburgh.

    Also on the team are 2011 All Africa Games medalists – Jamilu Mohammed, Sunday Onofe and Joy Ekhator.

    According to the President of NTF, George Ashiru, the list of the athletes has been confirmed by the organizers of the championship, while the team would continue to prepare ahead of the tournament.

    His words: “The Nigerian team to the 2014 Commonwealth Taekwondo Championships is grateful for the passion with which the Minister for Sports and the Director General of the National Sports Commission (NSC) have supported and encouraged the wholesome participation of the team. I believe wholeheartedly in the High Performance initiative of the NSC, and thank all the concerned actors in this dream of the NTF unfolding positively”

    He added: “Taekwondo, being one of only five sports that have won Olympic medals (Silver 1992, Bronze 2008), the renewal of investments in the podium potential for the sport is a worthy action by the NSC. As the first NTF President to be leading the national team to this important event, I am grateful for the support of Minister Tammy Danagogo and NSC’s DG, Gbenga Elegbeleye.”

    Over 500 taekwondists from the 64 Commonwealth federations are expected at the Championships that will feature Kyorugi (fighting), Poomsae (a defined set of movements incorporating blocking, kicking and striking techniques) and, for the first time, Para-taekwondo.

    The biennial competition is expecting large national teams from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, India and Malaysia, as well as the host nations.

    Taekwondo Scotland chairman, William Darlington said: “I’ve been looking forward to this for over 10 years since my colleagues and I started lobbying vigorously for taekwondo to become a fully-fledged Commonwealth Games sport. Recently we achieved the breakthrough by becoming a Category 2 Commonwealth Games sport and we may feature in future Commonwealth Games, but unfortunately that decision came too late for Glasgow 2014. But we’re delighted to invite top players to come to Scotland in the Commonwealth Games year.

    He added: “I’m looking forward to welcoming the national teams from around the world to the capital this winter for what promises to be an unforgettable event.”

    The Commonwealth Taekwondo Championships are held every two years, in every year the Commonwealth and Olympic Games are held. They are sanctioned by the Commonwealth Taekwondo Union, the Commonwealth Games Federation and the World Taekwondo Federation and involve world class competitors, making them a major event in Taekwondo.

    Organisers hope the event will strengthen taekwondo’s bid to be included on the programme of sports for the 2022 Commonwealth Games, to be held in either Durban in South Africa, or Edmonton in Canada.

  • 2014 CBN Junior Tennis Championships in retrospect

    2014 CBN Junior Tennis Championships in retrospect

    The just-ended 8th edition of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Junior Tennis Championships can be said to have been successful as no fewer than 162 players from 10 states participated.

    The 7th edition of the championships had 115 participants in attendance. The event was organised by CBN in conjunction with the Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF) and the International Tennis Academy (ITA).

    The event which held from Feb. 24 to March 1, took place at the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club (LTTC) and featured seven categories. The competition provided opportunity for potential talents in the sport the platform to showcase their skills.

    The championships also provided an avenue for the discovery of talents in the build up to the 19th National Sports Festival (NSF) slated for Calabar, Cross River from Nov. 27 to Dec. 3. The competition provided a forum for coaches across the length and breadth of the country to converge and keep abreast with the recent developments in the sport in the one-week competition.

    More than anything else, it provided a platform to promote the new talents who graced the event using their skills to stun the spectators that graced the event.

    At the end of the competition, Kaduna-based Sylvester Emmanuel, 16, won the boys’ U-16 category, while Zainab Oladimeji, 15, from Ondo State emerged winner in the girls’ U-16 event.

    In the girls’ U-12, Marylove Edwards, 8, from Lagos State prevailed, while in the girls’ U-10, Anambra-born Chidinma, 10, won the title. The boys’ U-14 category was won by Christopher Itodo, while 11-year-old Gabriel Friday from Kaduna State won the boys’ U-12.

    Finally, in the boys’ U-10 event, Ogun-based Usman Kushimo, 12, won the category.

    A member of the NTF, Bala Amisu, while expressing his delight at the success of the championships, said it was used to gauge compliance by officials in applying the rules.

    “I give kudos to the organisers for the competition, I say well done, they have stood by the NTF in promoting the sport. I am glad that this competition has brought about more talents and also the fulfillment of adhering to the rules of the sport,” he said.

    Godwin Kienka, the coordinator of the event and director of the ITA, said that more of such local competitions would bring about a well-grounded improvement in the sport.

    “I am glad that it was a success; I hope we have more of such competitions all the year because it will be about the development of the sports. The coaches and players will improve on their game and this in turn will take the sport to greater heights.

    “For the players which I am particular about, they have shown that the sky is just a stepping stone. I am confident that the massive investment in junior tennis will soon produce world-class tennis players,” he said.

    Abel Ubiebi, a certified International Tennis Registry (ITR) coach, said organising such a competition would help to churn out more grassroots talents to the fore.

    “It has brought me great joy to see that these talents are improving in the sport. Indeed, I am glad to have witnessed it; such competitions will be only to build for a better tennis in future. The competition has improved the quality of budding grassroots talents,” he said.

  • Taekwondo scribe sure of bright future

    Femi Ajao, the Secretary of the Nigeria Taekwondo Federation (NTF), on Tuesday assured of a bright future for the sport in the country.

    Ajao told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that everything possible would be done to take the sport to the next level.

    The secretary spoke against the backdrop of the just-concluded second edition of Chika Chukwumerije Sports Foundation (CCSF) International Taekwondo Open. The competition held from Oct. 19 to Oct. 20 in Abuja.

    NAN reports that the two-day tournament featured 302 fighters for the N2.8million prize. Participants were drawn from Mali, Gabon and Cote d’Ivoire and host Nigeria.

    Ajao said the event was a graceful one that held much potential for the federation and the sport in Nigeria.

    “We just had the second edition of the CCSF taekwondo open in Abuja and I must say I am highly impressed by the event. It shows that taekwondo has so many prospects in Nigeria. The turnout was very impressive; so we are going somewhere’’, he said.

    The secretary also said the major highpoints of the competition was the participation of 32 kids and the discovery of remarkable talents.

    “Taekwondo is of part of the five major sports in Nigeria and I know that we will live up to expectations’’, Ajao said.

  • NTF endorses CCSF International Taekwondo Open

    NTF endorses CCSF International Taekwondo Open

    • Teams, athletes arrive

    The Nigeria Taekwondo Federation (NTF) has endorsed the annual Chika Chukwumerije Sports Foundation (CCSF) International Taekwondo Open, as teams and athletes have started arriving in Abuja for the tournament holding this weekend.

    According to the President of NTF, George Ashiru, the federation has sanctioned the tournament, as the quality of organisation of the tournament has indeed been impressive.

    “The CCSF is an affiliate of the NTF, and so the tournament is sanctioned by the NTF. Beyond this, the NTF provides support equipment and licensed referees and technical support to make this a world-class event. It is in our vision to partner with affiliated Taekwondo NGOs to organise quality programmes to meet international standards,” Ashiru said.

    He, however, expressed optimism that the CCSF would soon receive the backing of the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).

    The NTF boss added: “I think my expectation is to improve on last year’s superlative event as we have amassed more than 85 personnel both technical and administrative to make this an even greater championships. With more prizes at stake and eight countries, we are gradually getting to the point that we can organise official international championships sanctioned by the WTF. That’s our ultimate goal with this tournament, to host WTF sanctioned events like world and continental championships.”

    Listing the gains for Nigerian athletes, Ashiru said: “Exposure! Our athletes, especially the ones who can’t afford to travel abroad to compete, will have the opportunity of matching their skills with their counterparts from other nations and therefore influence their preparation for major events like the All Africa Games.

    Meanwhile, teams and athletes within and outside Nigeria have started arriving Abuja in readiness for the two-day competition while Mali and Niger Republic arrived yesterday and they had intensified their training.

    Over N2.8million will be at stake at the tournament with gold medalists in eight events made of male and female getting N150, 000 each while eight silver medalists will cart home N100, 000 each while 16 bronze medalists will also get N50, 000 each for their efforts.

    Aside the cash reward, the 200 athletes that registered for the championship will get equipment like uniform, kicking pads and skipping ropes valued at N1.7m.

    Over 340 athletes have been confirmed for the tournament with 36 competitors coming from seven African countries including Mali, Gabon, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana, Togo, Niger Republic and Cote D’Ivoire.

    Also, 24 Nigeria states, Nigeria Police, Nigeria Customs, Nigeria Immigration, six clubs and 23 individual registrations have been listed for the international tournament meant to be a fertile hotbed for discovery of future Olympians.