SPORTS
Kenya, Ethiopia Win Medals as Nigeria Breaks Records
At the end of Day 9 of the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon, there were spectacular performances from African countries who won a cumulative six medals in three events, but it wasn’t just the medals that generated all the discourse; two African records tumbled to cap off what had been a good day for the continent.
After years of toiling hard, Kenya’s Emmanuel Korir finally has a World title to his name, galloping with speed in the home straight and bolting his way to glory in the men’s 800m final.
The Olympic champion had fallen short three years ago in Doha, but he wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip from his grasp, digging deep to produce the much needed win.Korir finished strongly ahead of the impressive Marco Arop who had set the pace for him, but he went down an extra gear crossing the line in a Season’s Best of 1:43.71. Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati also finished strongly, running hard to get Silver in 1:44.14, his country’s first medal at these World Championships.
In what was a tactical battle in the women’s 5000m, Gudaf Tsegay had more to cheer for after clinching gold, the first time she will be winning a World title. The Ethiopian set her stall early, sharing leads with her compatriot Letesenbet Gidey, and they even played mind-games with each other, talking to themselves mid-race.
But it was Tsegay who outwitted the field, sprinting out from the final bend, en route winning gold in a time of 14:46.29. Kenya’s Beatrice Chebet got the Silver in 14:46.75, while Dawit Seyaum held on to Bronze in 14:47.36 to complete an Ethiopian 1-3 on the podium.
Meanwhile in the field events, Hugues Fabrice Zango is a gift that keeps giving for Burkina Faso. For the umpteenth time he became his country’s sole medallist at a major championship, leaping a distance of 17.55m to clinch Silver in the men’s triple jump event.
Prior to the 2019 World Championships, no athlete from Burkina Faso had ever won a World Championships medal, but Zango successfully ensured his country got on the podium yet again, winning his second consecutive World Championships medal.
Zango isn’t just repping the Green, Red and yellow star of the Burkinabe flag, he was sailing on the wings of the African continent, being the only African athlete who made it to the final of this event. In fact, he was one of only two African athletes who even qualified for the Triple Jump in Eugene.
Perhaps one of the best performances of the day came in women’s 100m Hurdles, where Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan led qualifications across heats, racing to yet another African Record of 12.40s to emerge fastest in all the six heats. Amusan was blistering, flying over the hurdles in quick pace to suggest that she is in a good shape to finally exorcise the demons of not having won a global medal.
“I did not know I was going that fast. The aim was just to qualify. At these championships, I am aiming on the podium for sure and want to take the fastest time, trying to execute well. I trust my hard work so I am just going to come out here and do what I have to do-” Amusan said after the race.
She has now broken the African Record three times in a space of 10months, indicative of a lady in the form of her life and what she is capable of. It might still be early days with two more rounds left on Sunday, but going into the semis with the fastest time ahead of your closest challenger at 12.48s, should give her a big boost.
On the other hand, a Nigerian team was also at the end of another African Record, this time women’s 4x100m, who broke the 30-year-old record of 42.39s set at the Barcelona 1992 Olympics, racing to a new AR of 42.22s.
The quartet of Joy Udo-Gabriel, Favour Ofili, Rosemary Chukwuma & Grace Nwokocha got the stick round in 4th place, almost making it to the podium, but narrowly missed out to Germany who got the Bronze.
Nasarawa United Football Club of Lafia on Saturday defeated Lobi Stars of Makurdi 1-0 in a pulsating North Central derby.
The matchday 16 fixture of the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premiere Football League (NPFL) was played at the Lafia Township Stadium, Nasarawa State capital.
The Makurdi side had adopted the Lafia Township Stadium as their home ground for the 2024/2025 NPFL season.
The only goal of the match was scored by Qamar Adegoke in the 12th minute of the match to give all three points to the Lafia side.
Adegoke’s goal, who joined the Lafia team recently, was his second in four matches.
The Nasarawa attacker capitalised on a defensive error by the opponent’s backline and hit the back of the net to give Nasarawa United the advantage.
In a post-match interview, Kabir Dogo, Technical Adviser of Nasarawa United, hailed his players for taking all three points.
He explained that his team had improved by scoring five goals in their last three matches and expressed optimism that they would do better in subsequent games.
“We had a problem in the area of goal scoring in the past, but this has changed in our last three games,” he said.
With the win, Nasarawa United climbed to 14th on the NPFL table, while Lobi Stars remain on 17th position. (NAN)
The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) is organising a two-day National Coaching Seminar, with the theme: “Leadership and Management Skills”.
The event will take place from Dec. 17 to Dec. 18, at the Additional Sports and Entertainment (ASEP) Pro Limited, in Mowe, Ogun State.
The seminar will enhance the capabilities of Nigerian table tennis coaches, with a particular emphasis on female coaches, aligning with the International Table Tennis Federation’s (ITTF) Gender Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (GEDI) Initiative.
A statement issued by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, on Tuesday, said that the seminar was part of the one-week sports and leadership boot camp titled “Awaken the Giant, She Can 4.
0,” proudly supported by NTTF.“This seminar will also represent the third stage of the 2024 “My Gender, My Strength” programme, which has table tennis star Abosede Akinsete, as a beneficiary.
“NTTF President,Tikon Ishaku, Vice President, Adesoji Tayo, and other board members are dedicated to initiatives that support the development of coaches.
“Wahid Enitan-Oshodi, ITTF Executive Vice President, and President of ITTF-Africa, reaffirms his commitment to empowering women in sports, in line with the GEDI Initiative.
He explained that the seminar would feature people, who would speak on leadership and management skills, to enhance the abilities of coaches to identify and develop talents, as well as encourage the development of high-performance table tennis players capable of competing globally. (NAN)
Rivers United Football Club of Port Harcourt on Sunday returned to the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) summit as strong rivals Remo Stars FC faltered on Match Day 13.
Report says that Rivers United beat visiting Abia Warriors of Umuahia 1-0 after an Ndifreke Effiong 58th minute goal from the penalty kick spot.
Effiong’s goal in the match at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium helped them to move to 25 points from 13 matches, after seven wins, four draws and two losses.
Former leaders Remo Stars dropped to second with 23 points from 13 matches after seven wins, two draws and four losses, following a 0-2 loss to hosts Katsina United.
Plateau United of Jos beat visiting Nasarawa United of Lafia 2-0 to bolster their position.
Shooting Stars Sports Club also struggled to a 1-0 win over visiting Bayelsa United of Yenago.
A 15th minute goal by Anthony Okachi at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan gave them the win.
El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri had on Saturday beaten Akwa United of Uyo 1-0 to move into third place on the table with 22 points from 13 games.
Enyimba International of Aba remained in fourth place with 20 points from 12 matches, with their week 13 game against Sunshine Stars of Akure on hold.
Rangers International of Enugu are in fifth place with 20 points also, after a goalless draw with hosts Heartland FC ain Owerri on Saturday.
Bendel Insurance of Benin had also beaten Kwara United of Ilorin 3-1, while Lobi Stars of Makurdi drew 2-2 with visiting Kano Pillars in Lafia.
NAN reports that the league will enter Match Day 14 on Wednesday.(NAN)
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