SPORTS
Kwara United Eyes Volleyball Premier League
The Coach of Kwara United Men Volleyball Team, Adewale Badamosi, on Sunday, said the team was eyeing promotion to the premier league.
Badamosi spoke at the ongoing Volleyball Division One League tournament holding in Abuja.
The match played at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Kwara United defeated Caliphate Spikers of Sokoto, 3-0, having trounced their opponents, 25-22, 25-15 and 25-12 in the three sets.
The coach said his focus was to win all the matches and move to next league in the second phase of the ongoing National Volleyball Division One tournament.
“This is not the first time of meeting Caliphate Spikers, we met them during the first phase and we defeated them 3-0.
“This is the second time we are meeting them and we also defeated them; my boys are here to show their fitness and experience in the game.
“We need to win all our remaining matches. We earlier on tied with Bauchi and we have to win more games to qualify.
“We have to win all our remaining matches so that we can qualify for the premier League,” Badamosi said.
Ibrahim Abdullahi, the Coach of Caliphate Spikers of Sokoto, said that his players did well in spite of the fact that they lost.
“There must be a winning side and losing side in any game.
“We have played two games out of seven. In our next game, we are going to do better than what we did now,” he said.
In another match, Kada Kings of Kaduna defeated Oyo’s Oluyole Spikers, 25-20, 25-20 and 25-13.
The Head Coach of Kada Kings, Jonathan David, said it was “an interesting“ match.
“We have defeated them before in the first phase and definitely we knew that we were going to beat them in the second phase.
“We prepared well for this league and we intend to deliver better results,” he said.
He said his team would be meeting ABM of Katsina on Monday and looking forward to doing well.
“It is quite difficult for a team to get to the top and more difficult to stay on top. To stay at the top we will prepare more, we are not going to take Katsina for granted,” he said.
A total of 10 teams are participating in the league.
The men’s teams are Kada Kings of Kaduna, Wikki Spikers of Bauchi , Kwara United, ABM of Kastina, Oluyole Spikers of Oyo, Spartans Spikers of Yola, Caliphate Spikers of Sokoto and Equity Spikers of Kebbi.
In the female category are Kwara United and Zamfara Babes.
The second phase of the National Volleyball Division One League, which started on Nov. 20, will end on Nov. 28. (NAN)
SPORTS
2028 Olympic Games Qualifier: Super Falcons to Discover Opponents Today
Nigeria’s Super Falcons will find out their opponents for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games women’s football qualifiers this week.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced on Tuesday that the draw for the African qualifying series will take place on Wednesday at its headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.
The ceremony is scheduled to begin at 12 noon and will be streamed live on CAF TV.
A total of 35 national teams, including Super Falcons will participate in the qualifiers, which will be played over five rounds.
The other countries are; Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea.
Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe are the other countries that will take part in the qualifiers.
Two teams will earn Africa’s slots at the women’s football tournament of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
The Super Falcons and Copper Queens of Zambia represented the continent at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.
SPORTS
LBHF Tournament Honours Edun at 70 with Thrilling Bouts
The Lagos Boxing Hall of Fame (LBHF) monthly tournament returns on Saturday, celebrating founder Wale Edun’s 70th birthday marked on Monday, April 20.
“This special edition honours our founder’s enduring legacy,” said Mr David Mohamed, LBHF Director, in a statement issued on Thursday.
The tournament will be held at Agege Stadium in Lagos State.
Founded in 2010 by Edun, LBHF is widely regarded as Nigeria’s and Africa’s longest-running amateur boxing tournament.
Until Tuesday, Edun was the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, before resigning his post on health grounds.
“The initiative provides a platform for young boxers to train and gain exposure,” Mohamed said, noting its role in grassroots boxing development.
As a non-profit organisation, LBHF has nurtured talents who have achieved national and international success.
“This edition doubles as a tribute to Edun, whose vision has shaped many boxing careers,” Mohamed added.
Action begins with Fatade Juwon facing Abiodun Yusuf in the men’s 50kg category.
Tajudeen Yekini will then confront Adele Faruq in the 55kg division.
In the men’s 60kg category, Tajudeen Rasheed meets Ogunleye Aliazeem, while Mosuru Adedeji battles Innocent Prosper.
Exhibition bouts will feature Princess Adeola against Zainab Ibrahim in the women’s 28kg category, and Adeseye Kalid versus Saliu Razak in the men’s 34kg division.
The sole women’s main-card clash will see Oluwatoyin Amirat face Aminashaun Raheemo in the 48kg division.
Wahab Ramadan will meet Lawal Opeyemi in the men’s 70kg bout, before Makinde Mohamed faces Ibadiaro Idris in the 75kg category.
The event concludes with Lawal Mohammed against Oluwapo Oluwaseun in the men’s 80kg title bout.
Over the years, LBHF has developed talents like Taiwo “Esepo” Agbaje, producing fighters who have represented Nigeria with distinction.
“This celebration reinforces our mission to sustain boxing as a pathway for young Nigerians,” Mohamed said.
SPORTS
Man City, Inter, Chelsea, Juventus Face Off in Hong Kong for Preseason
English and Italian football giants Manchester City, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Juventus will square up for pre-season friendlies in Hong Kong in August, the clubs announced yesterday.
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, currently arm-wrestling Arsenal for the Premier League title, will take on Inter Milan on Saturday, August 1, spearheaded by their Norwegian goal machine Erling Haaland.
The match will kick off the “Hong Kong Football Festival” at the city’s futuristic 50,000-seat Kai Tak stadium.
The gleaming arena opened a year ago, featuring a roof that can be closed and air-conditioning to combat the fierce summer heat and humidity in Hong Kong.
Chelsea will play Juventus on Wednesday August 5 to round off the mini-tournament.

