Sports

Highlights: Chinese FM Briefs media on foreign policy, relations

Published

4 years ago

March 7, 2023

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang held a press conference Tuesday on the sidelines of the first session of the 14th National People’s Congress in Beijing.

“As the world is undergoing major changes unseen in a century, China will continue to pursue the independent foreign policy of peace and continue to implement the mutually beneficial strategy of opening-up,” Qin said in the opening remarks.

China will always be a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a defender of the international order, he said.

Here are some of the highlights of the press conference.

Chinese modernization

Chinese modernization offers solutions to many challenges facing human development, Qin said.

Achieving the modernization of a country of more than 1.4 billion people will be an unprecedented feat in human history, one of profound global significance in itself, he told reporters.

“It busts the myth that modernization is westernization. It creates a new form of human advancement, and it provides an important source of inspiration for the world, especially developing countries,” he said.

China-Russia ties

The relationship between China and Russia is based on the principles of non-alliance, non-confrontation and non-targeting of third parties, Qin said.

With China and Russia working together, the world will have the driving force toward multipolarity and greater democracy in international relations, and global strategic balance and stability will be better ensured, he added.

China-U.S. relations

The U.S. perception and views toward China are seriously distorted, Qin said.

China hopes the United States will explore the right way to get along with China to the benefit of both countries and the entire world.

Taiwan question

How to resolve the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese people and no other country has the right to interfere in it, Qin said.

“We will work with the greatest sincerity and exert utmost efforts to achieve peaceful reunification, but will reserve the option of taking all necessary measures,” he added.

Ukraine crisis

Qin called for “calmness, rationality and dialogue” to solve the Ukraine crisis, which he termed a tragedy that could have been avoided.

Qin said the Ukraine crisis has come to a critical juncture, and conflict, sanctions and pressure won’t solve it. China chooses peace over war, dialogue over sanctions, and lowering the temperature over fanning the flame, he said.

Belt and Road Initiative

The Belt and Road Initiative is a high-quality public good initiated by China and jointly built by all partners, whose benefits are shared by the world, Qin said, adding that it is never China that should be accused of creating the so-called debt traps.

The Belt and Road Initiative has attracted the participation of over three-fourths of countries in the world and 32 international organizations, created some 420,000 jobs in countries along the routes and helped lift nearly 40 million people out of poverty over the past decade, he added.

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Sports

Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Crowned Champions at HFN North Central Division One Tourney

Published

16 hours ago

October 3, 2026

The Gleamer

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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