Sports
Nigeria Wins International Cricket Council Global Impact Award as Abuja Hosts World Cup Qualifiers
Nigeria has been awarded the International Cricket Council best Global Impact rating award for the tremendous achievement of the Nigeria Cricket Federation in using sports to promote youth and social development.
This information was contained in the message delivered to the Minister of Youth and Sport Development, Sunday Dare, on Tuesday, when top officials of the International Cricket Council visited him in his office in Abuja ahead of the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup Africa Division 2 qualifiers to be hosted at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja from Friday, September 30th, 2022.
ICC Global Development Manager William Glenwright and Patricia Karambami, head of Africa Development, were led by the President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation, Uyi Akpata on the visit.
Elated by the recognition of the strides made by the ICC, the Minister appreciated them for their support, “As a government, we are thankful to the ICC for the recognition and for granting Nigeria the rights to host the U19 World Cup Qualifiers.”
He also commended the Federation on their developmental efforts, “I also want to commend the leadership of the NCF for being deliberate, strategic and tactical with their programmes.
“These outlined programmes also speak to the core mandate of the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development. As we develop sports, we also ensure there is youth development.”
In his earlier remarks, Glenwright, who had visited cricket facilities in Lagos and Edo States before the visit to the Honourable Minister said: “The ICC is pleased with Nigeria and wants to commend the sports authorities for these achievements. Surely, Nigeria has now opened itself up for more support from the ICC for the expansion of the sport in Nigeria.”
Adding that, “Nigeria’s rising profile in cricket has been amazing. The progress made by the sport in Nigeria needs to be studied and the template adopted for some other countries.
“How Nigeria moved from the almost zero awareness and low commitment to the sport a few years ago to being a force and a country that is now qualifying for the World Cup is remarkable.”
Nigeria Cricket Federation President, Uyi Akpata at the meeting informed that his team had set the ambitious goal of cricket recruitment of 250, 000 kids which is being met through strategic implementation and the enabling environment that the ministry had encouraged.
His words: “We thank the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development for providing a conducive environment for the development of Cricket in Nigeria. Nigeria is one of the two countries in the world with the fastest growth rate for cricket. Nigeria is number one in the world in the ICC Global Impact rating. We moved the game to the IDPs and got about 250, 000 youth involved in the sport.
“The number one State in Nigeria for Cricket is Zamfara State and most of those involved in the sport are women.
“We have been strategic, very deliberate and also tactical in our approach and that explains the results we have been getting.
“The ICC gave us the rights to host the U19 World Cup Qualifiers because of the giant strides we have taken in Cricket in recent times and the support we have received from the Ministry.
“The encouragement and charge of the Minister that we should engage private sector support also helped us a great deal.”
Nigeria and and seven other countries are participating in the World Cup qualifiers.
The other participants, already in Abuja are Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Malawi, Mozambique, Botswana, Ghana and Kenya.
Sports
Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Crowned Champions at HFN North Central Division One Tourney
Joel Ajayi
The President of the Handball Federation of Nigeria (HFN), Jibril Seidu, has said the federation will continue to intensify its grassroots talent development drive through zonal competitions across the country.
Seidu stated this on Saturday in Abuja at the finals of the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship, where Plateau Vipers defeated Suleja Shooters 29-24 to emerge champions in the men’s category.
In the women’s final, Benue Queens of Makurdi defeated City Queens of Suleja to claim the title.
The eight-day tournament featured teams from across the North Central Zone, with Plateau Vipers of Jos, Confluence Stars of Lokoja, Unity Boys of Abuja, Suleja Shooters and Nasarawa Ambassadors of Lafia competing in the men’s category.
In the women’s category, Nuela Handball Academy of Ilorin, Inikpi Babes of Idah, Benue Queens of Makurdi and City Queens of Suleja competed for honours.
At the end of the competition, four teams — two male and two female — emerged as the North Central Zone’s representatives for the national Division One league.
According to Seidu, the tournament was organised as part of the federation’s deliberate strategy to take handball development back to the regions and discover talents that might otherwise remain unnoticed.
He said the HFN board, inaugurated on October 25, 2025, resolved that grassroots development was essential to creating a sustainable pipeline of players for national and international competitions.
“All the teams you have seen here are from the North Central Zone of the country, and every state is represented with an academy or state team,” he said.
Seidu explained that the new approach marked a departure from the previous system, where talent identification was largely centred on the federation’s major league competitions.
He said taking competitions to the regions would provide young players with greater opportunities to showcase their abilities while strengthening the foundation of handball across the country.
The HFN president also linked the grassroots initiative to Nigeria’s recent achievements in international handball, stressing the need to develop younger players who can eventually replace members of the current national teams.
He noted that Nigeria had qualified for the 2027 Men’s Junior Handball World Championship in North Macedonia, describing the achievement as evidence of the potential within the country’s handball system.
“How do we replace these players with upcoming players? This is the avenue for us to get players,” he said.
Seidu added that the federation was determined to make handball more visible and accessible, describing it as one of Nigeria’s major sporting disciplines with significant potential for growth.
The North Central tournament is part of a wider zonal programme designed to decentralise handball development across Nigeria.
According to the federation, similar competitions are being organised across other zones, including the South East, North East, North West and South South, with qualifiers from each zone expected to converge at a designated venue for the next stage of the competition.
The federation also appealed for greater support from sponsors, stakeholders and state associations to sustain its grassroots development programme.
It expressed appreciation to the participating states, academies, team sponsors and other stakeholders for their support and commitment to the growth of handball in Nigeria.
The federation said the initiative would provide a platform for discovering the next generation of Nigerian handball stars while expanding the sport’s reach beyond its traditional centres.
While Speaking the elated coach of Benue Queen Godwin Tondo has promised a stronger and more tactical performance after guiding the team to victory at the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship in Abuja.
He attributed the success to the team’s long-term youth development programme, noting that the squad was built through a deliberate process of identifying and nurturing young talents.
According to him, the programme began with the selection of 92 girls from secondary schools, who were subsequently trained and developed over a four-year period.
He said the team’s success was a product of sustained hard work and commitment despite the challenges encountered during preparations for the tournament.
“I feel very pleased being a champion today. The road to this stage was very, very hard, but I am very happy that we have got the result from all the toughness of the game,” he said.
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