Basketball
NIGERIA BASKETBALL FEDERATION CHIEFTAIN, OGUNADE TASKS CORPORATE ORGANIZATIONS ON SPORTS INVESTMENT
Nigeria Basketball Federation Vice President, Babatunde Ogunade has tasked Corporate Organizations in Nigeria to key into the ongoing revolution in the Nigerian basketball by investing in its further growth.
Speaking at the media parley heralding the 21st edition of the Nestle Milo Basketball Championship for Secondary schools on Thursday in Lagos, Ogunade said with the huge task of funding, infrastructure development, international participation, domestic leagues and development of talents, the NBBF needs all the support from the corporate world.
He eulogized the impact that the Nestle brand has continued to play in Nigerian sports especially basketball in the last 20 years since it started the Milo Secondary School program.
The NBBF Vice President said the program which produced the likes of Evelyn Akhator, Nkechi Akashili, Chioma Okoro Udeaja, Elo Edema Edeferioka amongst others has contributed immensely to the D’Tigress recent successes at the 2017 Afrobasket in Mali and the 2018 FIBA World Cup in Spain where the team got to the quarterfinal.
“Other Corporate organizations in Nigeria need to emulate the illustrious contributions of Nestle Milo by investing in the future of the immediate environment they operate through sports. To have been doing this for the past 20 years is not a mean feat. They must be commended.
He promised that the Technical Department of the federation will pay close attention to the 21st edition starting on the 8th of May in their quest for talent discovery for the underage National teams.
In an address by the Managing Director and Chief Executive, Nestle Nigeria PLC, Mauricio Alarcon said, “The Nestle brand has continued to enhance quality of life and contributing to a healthier future, we encourage children to be active through sports programs.”
According to Alarcon, the brand has a strong belief that sports provide opportunities for the development of qualities that set the foundation for a child’s future, which has continued to encourage them to be at the forefront of grassroots sports development in Nigeria for the past 20 years.
The Savannah conference comprising Bauchi, Adamawa, Plateau, Kano, Gombe, Jigawa, Borno, Katsina, Yobe and Taraba will begin from May 3 to 8 in Bauchi while the Central Conference made up of Benue, Kaduna, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Niger, Sokoto, Zamfara and the FCT will play their games in Minna from May 10 to 15.
The Equatorial Conference will feature teams from Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Imo, Rivers, Cross River, Bayelsa and Ebonyi. They will play their matches in Enugu from May 17 to 22 while the Western Conference made up of Delta, Edo, Ekiti, Kwara, Lagos , Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo will play in Ibadan from May 24 to 29.
The National finals hold in Lagos from July 4.
By Ugo Okeiyi, Enugu
The end-of-year Ozobz Elite Basketball Invitational Tournament, tagged “Championing the Youth Through Sports, Education and Opportunity,” has taken off and will be concluded on Friday. The three-day event is taking place at the Indoor Sports Multipurpose Gymnasium, Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu.
The grassroots basketball competition is designed to serve as a platform for discovering and nurturing the next generation of Nigerian basketball talent.
A total of 14 teams — eight male and six female sides drawn from across the country — are competing for honours in what promises to be an exciting three-day basketball spectacle.
The tournament is powered by the Anthony Ozubuekwe Foundation, in collaboration with the Enugu State Ministry for Youth and Sports Development and the Enugu State Basketball Association.
Organisers say fans should expect high-quality action, with displays of skill, athleticism and tactical awareness from some of the most promising young players in the country.
According to the organisers, the initiative is structured to positively engage young people, steering them away from social vices and criminal tendencies, while using sports as a tool for education, personal development and opportunity creation.
They added that the tournament will also give coaches and team officials a valuable opportunity to assess the mental readiness, discipline and competitive mindset of the players, while providing a conducive environment for athletes to interact, bond and learn from one another.
The competition will be played in a round-robin format, with attractive prize money on offer. In the men’s category, the champions will receive ₦2 million and a giant trophy, while the runners-up will earn ₦1.5 million.
In the women’s category, the winning team will go home with ₦1.5 million, while the second-placed team will receive ₦750,000.
With its blend of competition, youth empowerment and community development, the Ozobz Elite Basketball Invitational is expected to be one of the standout grassroots sports events of the year in Enugu State.
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Former head coach of Nigeria’s men’s basketball team, Alex Nwora, will join family, friends and well-wishers on December 28, 2025, to celebrate the 90th birthday of his father, Chief Charles Okwudi Nworah, in Onitsha, Anambra State.
The milestone celebration, according to Evelyn Childs, Public Relations Officer of the US-based Imo Women Elite Club (IWEC), will take place at the expansive Onitsha compound of the nonagenarian, who is highly regarded in his community.
Born on April 17, 1936, to Akudo and Agnes Nwora of the Okakwu family in Ogbedogwu Village, Onitsha, Chief Nworah’s early years reflected strong family values rooted in education and public service. He attended St. Mary’s Catholic School before moving on to Prince Commercial College, and later completed his secondary education at Baptist High School, Osogbo, in Osun State.
Chief Nworah began his career in the civil service at a young age with the Post and Telecommunications Service (P&T), where his father also served and retired as a senior manager. His professional journey continued seamlessly into Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) following the merger of P&T with the Nigerian External Telecommunications.
Alex Nwora, who led D’Tigers through notable periods of growth and international competition, is expected to play a central role in the celebration, which will bring together members of the extended Nwora family and the Onitsha community to honour the life and legacy of the elder statesman.
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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has conferred national honours on all members of Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, in recognition of their historic victory at the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket Championship in Côte d’Ivoire.
Each member of the team was decorated with the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) title at a special reception held on Monday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. Representing the president at the event was Vice President Kashim Shettima, who announced a series of generous rewards for the champions.
In addition to the national honours, each player will receive $100,000, while each member of the technical crew will be given $50,000. The government also pledged a flat in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to every player and official on the squad.
The rewards follow D’Tigress’s emphatic 78-64 win over Mali in Sunday’s AfroBasket final, played at the Palais des Sports de Treichville in Abidjan. The victory marked Nigeria’s fifth consecutive AfroBasket title, a feat unmatched in the tournament’s history. With the triumph, D’Tigress also secured an automatic berth to the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin, Germany.
President Tinubu, in his remarks delivered by Vice President Shettima, hailed the team’s resilience, determination, and consistency, describing their dominance on the continental stage as a symbol of national pride and inspiration to the youth.
Present at the reception were First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to the President, Garba Maidoki, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Youths and Sports Development, and Kabiru Amadou, Chairman of the House Committee on Sports.
The honours and incentives underscore the government’s renewed commitment to recognising excellence in sports and motivating future champions.
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