Sports

Gov Uba Sani Unity cup: Tijani Babangida appoints Ahmed Lawal, Dahiru Sadi, others as technical committee members

Published

3 years ago

November 2, 2023

Chairman of the Governor Uba Sani Unity cup, Tijani Babangida has appointed former Nigerian International, Dahiru Sadi, current head coach of the Nations U-17 team,Ahmed Lawal as members of the technical committee for the event which is billed to commence November 17, 2023.

Other members of the think tank committee, include current assistant coach to coach Nduka Ugbade, a man popularly known as Morinho, Ahmadu lawal Ofoje. He is also with the football collage, Abuja. The other person in the group is current U-15 chief coach, Patrick Bassey.

The rest are Gidi Mohammed, a former Ranchers bees captain who is also a state coach with sport council in Kaduna state, Al Amin, a talented youth coach, also with Kaduna state sports council, and Hassan Abdallah, former coach with heartland fc of Owerri, who also worked with coach Samson Siasia as a national scout for the Nations U-23 team.

According to Babangida who himself was a former Nigerian international noted that the technical team is expected to move round the venues with a view to identifing very talented players that would be selected to form the new football club for the state.

Meanwhile, the draws for the tournament was held on Tuesday in the city of Kaduna, and the twenty three local governments were divided into four centers which are:

GROUPINGS
ZONE 1 – KUDAN CENTRE
GROUP A

ZARIA
SOBA
KUDAN
IKARA

ZONE 1 – KUDAN CENTRE
GROUP B

S/GARI
LERE
MAKARFI
KUBAU

ZONE 2 – KADUNA CENTRE
GROUP A

K/NORTH
CHIKUN
B/GWARI
IGABI

ZONE 2 – KADUNA CENTRE
GROUP B

KAJURU
GIWA
K/SOUTH

ZONE 3 – KAFANCHAN CENTRE
GROUP A

A. KACHIA
B. KAGARKO
C. JABA
D. Z/KATAF

ZONE 3 – KAFANCHAN CENTRE
GROUP B

JAMA’A
KAURU
KAURA
SANGA

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Sports

Gang James Makes History Despite Second-Place Finish in Abuja Half Marathon

Published

3 mins ago

November 15, 2026

The Gleamer

Cyril Ogar

Ethiopia’s Gemechu Tolosa Daba on Saturday emerged winner of the men’s elite race at the third edition of the PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon, finishing ahead of Nigeria’s Gang James, who set a new national record.

Tolosa crossed the finish line in an impressive time of 1:01:56 to claim the top prize of $8,000 in the 21km race, while Nigeria’s James finished second in 1:01:58, setting a new Nigerian national record.

James also emerged as the best Nigerian runner, earning $6,000 for his second-place finish in the international category, alongside ₦1.5 million as the winner of the local runners’ category.

Kenya’s Lampard Kingoo finished third in 1:01:59, while compatriot Enos Kipruto came fourth in 1:02:06. Uganda’s Julius Ochieng completed the top five with a time of 1:02:27.

The race, which attracted more than 5,000 participants, started opposite the Federal Fire Service on Mohammed Buhari Way and ended at the Velodrome of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.

Speaking after the race, James expressed delight at setting a new national record in front of his home crowd, describing the achievement as a reward for his hard work and dedication.

“I am very happy to break the National Record. I worked so hard for this moment, and to do it here in Abuja, in front of my people, makes it even more special,” he said.

He added that competing against some of Africa’s finest long-distance runners inspired him to deliver his best performance.

“Running against Gemechu and the Kenyans pushed me to give my best. I knew I had to stay with them till the end. This record is just the beginning for me,” James said.

The third edition of the competition attracted elite athletes from Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, among other countries, with about 50 international elite runners participating.

The event, sponsored by PremiumTrust Bank and organised by Nilayo Sports Management, recorded increased international participation compared with previous editions.

The competition offered prizes ranging from $8,000 to $500 for international participants, while Nigerian athletes received cash rewards ranging from ₦50,000 to ₦2 million.

The successful outing further highlighted Abuja’s growing potential as a destination for international road-running competitions, while providing Nigerian athletes with an opportunity to compete against some of the continent’s best long-distance runners.

The colourful event also featured musical performances by Nigerian artistes, entertaining athletes, guests and spectators before, during and after the presentation of prizes to the winners.

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