Sports
Why Falconets Overstayed At Istanbul Airport-NFF
Joel Ajayi
The Nigeria Football Federation on Wednesday explained that a number of factors, including the inability to secure transit visas for players and officials of the U20 Girls National Team, Falconets, at the Istanbul Airport, led to the team having to stay 24 hours at the airport in Turkey on their way from the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup.
In a statement issued by the NFF Director of Communication Ademola Olajire stated that: “The NFF did not book the team’s tickets from Costa Rica; FIFA did. FIFA also did not envisage the hitches that saw the team delayed for more than three hours in Bogota, and another one hour in Panama. By the time the team got to Istanbul, the flight to Abuja had left.
“Our officials pleaded for compassionate transit visas so as to take the players and officials to a hotel inside the town, but this was not possible as they were informed that Nigeria had been removed from the list of countries whose citizens were issued visa-on-arrival in Turkey. The airline then took the team to a sleeping area at the airport and gave them tickets to have meals every five hours. This situation has nothing to do with NFF, who had made arrangements to receive the team in Abuja before the complications in travel arrangements,” NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, explained.
It would be recalled that the NFF had implored world-governing body, FIFA to intervene with the Embassy of Germany to issue the team transit visas before their departure from Nigeria, in order for the team to be able to travel through Germany. This did not happen.
On the issue of body-wear, Sanusi said: “The players were handed three sets of green jerseys and two sets of white jerseys, several house-wear types and training jerseys. The players opted to wash only their jersey top (no other stuff) because when the first set of body-wear was sent to the laundry people at the hotel, it returned with some FIFA and NFF badges at the front and names at the back peeled by the machine.”
Sports
VIP Spikers unveil Veronica Gyamfi following successful surgery after career-threatening injury
VIP Spikers have unveiled Veronica Gyamfi as their player, pledging to support her welfare and recovery after an injury sustained during last season’s CGC Volleyball Premier League.
The unveiling took place on Saturday, October 24, 2026, at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja, with Samuel Onikeku, Head of Sports, Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), performing the ceremony.
Gyamfi sustained the injury while representing Wikki during last season’s CGC Volleyball Premier League.
In a swift response, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Dr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi (MFR), and the President of Vipers sponsored her surgery at Dala Orthopedic Hospital in Kano, where she spent two weeks receiving medical attention.
Her signing by Vipers and Partners VC, popularly known as VIP Spikers, is expected to provide her with continued care and support as she progresses through recovery and works towards returning to competitive volleyball.
Meanwhile, Gyamfi was presented a brand new ASICS canvas and a branded jersey of VIP Spikers as it is believed she would return to play after completing her rehabilitation.
The intervention reflects the importance of athlete welfare in Nigerian sports, particularly the need to ensure that players who sustain injuries while representing their teams receive appropriate medical attention and rehabilitation support.
The sponsorship of Gyamfi’s surgery by the Comptroller-General, followed by her signing by VIP Spikers, highlights the potential impact of collaboration between sports authorities, competition sponsors and clubs in safeguarding athletes’ careers.
After the surgery Gyamfi has been undergoing physiotherapy sessions at the 44 Military Reference hospital in Kaduna as the Sporting Club is supporting her education at Kaduna State Polytechnic.
Gyamfi’s story offers an encouraging example of support for an athlete facing a difficult period in her career.
Her unveiling reinforces the message that volleyball development goes beyond competitions and trophies to include protecting players’ welfare and helping them return to the sport they love.
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