Sports
Women International Day Football Tourney: Sports Minister Seeks More Attention For Women
…. Urges women, youth inclusiveness
Joel Ajayi
The Minister of Youth of Youth and Sports Development Sunday Dare, has urged all Stakeholders in the country to leave no stone unturned to ensure more support is given to women for them to excel the most in life.
He gave this advice on Wednesday in Abuja when he kicked-off the 2023 Women’s International Day Football Tournament courtesy of FAME Foundation amid pop and excitement in the FCT.
The International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.
It’s also a day to mark a call to action for accelerating gender parity, women’s achievements and rally for women’s equality.
Speaking at the event on Wednesday at the venue the Minister called on all stakeholders to give more support to women in the country.
According to him, the narrative has since change and we must pay attention to women, I think they are getting a better share, they are getting better opportunities the doors are opening to them, they just need our women and young ones to work through that door, the best we can do as a, country, as a community to open more doors for young women in the country and they need to walk through because they are equip to do it.”
He commended the FAME foundation for their efforts toward empowering women: “We have watched closely the effort in the last five years and I am glad that it’s paying off. We can all see the enthusiasm displayed here is massive and commendable.
“I want to use this medium to call on other NGO to take the cue from the FAME foundation to be in the vanguard of championing the course of women that is important.”
He congratulated all Nigeria women on the international women’s day.
While speaking, the Elated Founder of FAME foundation who has been using all her energy to championing the course of women for equity and Justice, Aderonke Ogunleye Bello expressed that she is happy to be putting smile on the faces of many Nigerians and she will not relent in fighting for women equality.
She said: “As of today female athletes don’t get the support male counterparts get and it is so sad that the new administration should look and work together with relevant organizations to improve the welfare of female athletes.”
When asked why using sports to project the course of women in the country and beyond? She replied: “As we know Nigeria is heterogeneous in nature and what brings Nigeria together is sports at the same time, we can use it for development and we have been doing it for the past five years. This is the fifth edition.”
FAME Foundation boss, however urged all Stakeholders to channel their energy on the initiative that will empower as well as charting a way forward on many issues affecting them.
Sports
Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Crowned Champions at HFN North Central Division One Tourney
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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