Friday, April 28, 2017
EXTRATIME
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Nestle Milo Basketball tourney enters crucial stage ANDREW EKEJIUBA
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estlé Nigeria announced that 74 schools from across the 36 states of the federation, including the FCT, Abuja have qualified for the Conference Stage of the 19th Milo Basketball Championship which dunked off in four geographical zones - Central Conference, Confluence Conference, Equatorial and Western Conference - on the 27th of April 2017. The 74 schools, represented by 37 male and 37 female teams emerged State champions at the State preliminaries of the competition and are competing at the conference stage. The conference matches will run back-to-back until the 25th of May 2017 at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Abuja National Stadium, the Confluence Stadium, Lokoja, the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu and the Akure Township Stadium. Speaking on this year’s tournament, the Managing Director of Nestle Nigeria Plc, Mr. Mauricio Alarcon, remarked that Milo’s com-
mitment to the project stems from the brand’s desire to give the Nigerian teens a platform to showcase their basketball talents while acquiring useful skills that will help shape their future. “The Milo brand is passionate about tomorrow’s champions and has adopted the game of Basketball to help youth learn valuable life lessons such as how to work together, how to be disciplined and how to be respectful. The demands of professional Basketball also pushes them to do better in each game and above all, it is a healthy and fun way to stay physically and mentally active in order to also excel in the classroom,” Alarcon said. The Milo Basketball Championship has been at the forefront of Nigerian Sports development for 19 years, producing numerous basketball talents, some of whom now play both in the national teams as well as leagues across the world. Some of the notable talents include Nkechi Akwashili, Chioma Udiaja, Upe Atusu, Nkem Akaraiwe and Patience Nene Upe who all play for the female national team, D’Tigress.
L – R: Col. Sam Ahmedu, President, International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Africa Zone 3; Mr. Mauricio Alarcon, MD/CEO, Nestle Nigeria Plc; Mrs Omobola Babs-Akinyeye; Director of Co-curricular Services and representative of the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Education; Mr. Olufemi Akintola, Category Manager, Beverages, Nestle Nigeria Plc and Mallam Ibrahim Muhammad, President, Nigeria School Sports Federation (NSSF) during the 19th edition of the Milo Basketball Championship Press Conference, which held in Lagos.
Akinola nets gamewinner for USA in WCQ
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oronto FC starlet Ayo Akinola scored for the second game running as United States U17s sealed a historic 4-3 win over Mexico in their second game of the 2017 CONCACAF U-17 Championship. The win was the first time United States will beat Mexico in the World Cup qualifiers at this level and ended their 25game unbeaten run in the tourney. As Mexico desperately searched for an equalizer, Akinola finished off a brilliant counter attack move, to give the Americans a 4-2 lead in the 84th minute, before an own goal in the first minute of stoppage time settled the outcome of the contest. The 17-year-old was the star of the show when the Americans thrashed Jamaica 5-0 in their opener after scoring a brace and providing a helper. In the race for the tournament Golden Boot award, Ayo Akinola is the joint-top scorer along with teammate Josh Sargent and Honduras ace Carlos Mejia. 1995 FIFA World Player of the Year and former Chelsea superstar George Weah was among the important guests at the Estadio Maracana de Panama on Wednesday. Weah came to watch his son, PSG striker Timothy Weah, who came off the bench in the 75th minute.
Tombim, Dayak, GSL Tennis Open light up Abuja ANDREW EKEJIUBA
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igeria’s capital, Abuja will come under global spotlight among tennis fans as three ITF Futures Championships namely Tombim Abuja Open, Dayak Tennis Championship, and GSL Open, hold at the National Stadium, Abuja, from May 1st - 21st, 2017. According to the organizers, the coming on board of GSL Open, increases the number of ITF Futures in Nigeria to four; three of which is in Abuja while the Lagos Governor’s Cup completes the country’s presence on the ITF Calendar. It’s the third successive year that the number of ITF Futures tournament in Nigeria is increasing as the Tombim Abuja Open is in its third straight year, while the Dayak Championship would be marking its second edition.
“We are pleased to say that this objective has been partially fulfilled as Gladiator Systems Limited, impressed by the success of the Tombim and Dayak championships last year, has decided to join the list of sponsors by sponsoring the GSL Open,” Tournament Director, Ikani Agabi stated, adding the objective is to have as many as 10 ITF Futures tournaments in Nigeria in the next few years. The Tombim Abuja Open holds from May 1st – 6th while the Dayak Championship will run from May 8th -13th. The GSL Open will round off a seemingly tennis festival from May 13th21st. Each of the tournaments has a $25,000.00 prizemoney, while the competition has 35 ATP points up for grabs for each week. The winner of all three legs has
the potential to jump from not being ranked at all in the world, to being ranked in the top 500 in the world. Entries have been received from Russia, the United States, Uzbekistan, Brazil, India, Argentina, South Africa, Croatia, Spain, Zimbabwe, Canada, Uganda, Togo, France, Moldova, Ghana, Zambia, Germany, the UK and a host of other countries. “The competition is borne out of a desire to provide opportunities for Nigerian players to collect vital ATP points, and to attract some of the best up-and- coming players in the world to play in Nigeria. The organizers also want to use the competition to show that Nigeria is not as bad as it is portrayed around the world. We are honest, hardworking, friendly and peace-loving people, who are very hospitable to foreigners,” Agabi added.