Sports

NTF optimistic of good outing at 2024 BJK cup Africa in Kenya

Published

2 years ago

April 29, 2024

Jemi Ojo

The Nigeria Tennis Federation ( NTF) says it is optimistic of Nigeria good outing at the upcoming 2024 Billie Jean King ( BJK) Cup Africa in Kenya in June .

Shammah Makpa, the Secretary General of NTF, made the call in an interview in Abuja.

Makpa confidence is charged by the spirit of displayed by the national team players at the just concluded Africa games in Ghana.
“ Our athletes had a strong showing at the recently finished African Games in Ghana. It was excellent, and we are happy with the players who gave it their all.
“ You can see the players’ professionalism, patriotism, and dedication. We were able to reach the performer podium.
“ During the African Games, over 23 countries competed in the tennis competition, with Nigeria setting a record among those who won medals during the game. That was a decent one, then, ” he said.

He said NTF went with four male and four female players. We end up having one sliver and one bronze medal.
“ We are happy with the players’ performance, they gave a strong showing,” he said.
He said the next agenda of the NTF is to ensure that we increase the number of competition across the country.

“ We have the 2024 BJK cup Africa coming up in less than two month from June 10 to June 15.

“ This competition is like the World Cup ,a tournament between national teams in women’s tennis and Nigeria is featuring this year in the Group lll.

“ Our target is to be able to get promotion to the Group ll .With this player, I believe that we will be able to do that.
“ We should be able to do much better even the last BJK Cup Africa that we went in 2023 ,We finished third in the group.

“ With their performance displayed in Ghana, this would help them to do well , I strongly believe we’ll have a good outing at the upcoming 2024 BJK Cup Africa,” he said.
While the male category, the players will not lack home support in the 2024 Davis Cup Africa Group II qualifying rounds after the country ( Nigeria) secured rights to host the event to be staged in Abuja from July 15 to July 20 .
“ Our players qualified from Group IV to Group lll of the Davis Cup alongside Ghana, following a superb run in Kigali, Rwanda, in 2023.
“ In this Group ll is one of the biggest , where players going to compete with the European countries, that is our target ,” he said.

The reports that six nations will grace the tournament Namibia, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Cote d’Ivoire, Benin and Nigeria (host)
and will be competing for two slots in Group II during the qualifying round.

Also reports that Kenya will host the 2024 BJK Cup Africa Group III for the second consecutive year after pipping Burundi during the bidding process.
Kenya and Burundi were the only countries to bid for the tournament to be staged from June 10 to June 15.

The winner will be promoted to the BJK Cup Europe /Africa Group II tournament in 2025.

12 nations will grace the tournament; Botswana, Burundi, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Tunisia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

The teams will be split into three pools of four with the top four sides meeting in the semifinals

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Sports

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

Published

11 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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