Sports

New Era For FCT SWAN, As Football Association Set To Empower Members

Published

5 years ago

June 28, 2021

Since the June 4th Election that produced Bunmi Haruna-Led FCT SWAN Exco, the fortunes is keeping coming the way of the association as the the Chairman FCT Football Association (FA), Adam Mohammed Mouktar revealed football association is ready to partner with chapter’s Sport Writers’ Association of Nigeria in reviving the SWAN Awards, refreshers course others.

Mouktar, made this promise at weekend when FCT SWAN chapter paid him a courtesy visit at the FA’s office Old Parade Ground, Area 10 Abuja.

fondily called “digital chairman” Mouktar while speaking promised to send some sports journalists abroad for refresher courses, revive the SWAN award amongst others.

According to him, we are extremely thrilled that such a gentleman like Bunmi Haruna has emerged and I am pretty much sure that the process was free, fair and transparent and that’s why I have not heard any rancour.

“So, Bunmi congratulations not only for your victory as chairman but having these set off very important personalities in sports in your ExCo,” Mouhktar said.

“We want to create a critical relationship with the FCT SWAN that will enhance sports development in the territory and beyond.

“I believe that the SWAN Awards is prestigious and we will be glad to partner with you to resuscitate it.

“I also want to use this opportunity to say I’ll like to partner with you to train journalists. It could be at home or on the continent. We are ready to help train journalists to better their trade.”

The FCT Hearts FC Proprietor, who is also celebrating his two years in the office, seized the opportunity to enumerate some of his laudable achievements since he took over the running of football in the territory.

“From day one, the expectations were high, many people were waiting to see what we will do. For the first time in FCT, we sponsored 50 coaches to coaching courses. We did seminars for referees and coaches in health. We did the U-15 Area Council tournament, organized the FCT League which was adjudged the best, even Lagos agreed it was the best, because it was live on TV,” he added.

“We brought Bayern Munich to Abuja with the Bundesliga trophy and they conducted a coaching course for coaches in the territory. We attracted a Federal Government project, the Buhari stadium which is under construction. For the first time we had the Area Council elections.”

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Sports

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

Published

15 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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