Basketball
Setback for Nigeria’s D’Tigress as CAS rejects basketball pair’s bid to represent Nigeria at Tokyo 2020
Two women’s basketball players have had a last-ditch bid to represent Nigeria at the Olympic Games here thrown out by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Nneka Ogwumike and Elizabeth Williams both participated in Olympic qualifying for the United States before not making the American team for the Games here.
Both have Nigerian passports but players are not usually allowed to switch international allegiances after they turn 17.
The pair requested an “exceptional change” to their national status under an International Basketball Federation (FIBA) rule which permits switches if it is in the interest of developing the sport.
Both were named in a provisional Nigerian squad for Tokyo 2020 before the results of their appeals.
Ogwumike and Williams both play in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) so would undoubtedly have improved Nigeria’s squad.
The 30-year-old power forward Ogwumike is on the books of Los Angeles Sparks, while 28-year-old centre Williams plays for Atlanta Dream.
Ogwumike, the WNBA champion and MVP in 2016, has won two World Cups and a Summer Universiade title with the US.
Williams has three gold medals with the US from youth World Championships.
Chiney Ogwumike, Nneka’s sister who is also a power forward for the Sparks, has been made eligible for the Nigerian team.
The 29-year-old was accepted as a “naturalised citizen” of Nigeria but this status was also challenged at CAS.
This is because only one naturalised citizen is allowed per squad, with the trio claiming they are all Nigerian citizens through birth because of their parents.
Third sister Erica Ogwumike, a WNBA 2020 draftee, is also eligible to play.
“FIBA acknowledges today’s decision of the Court Arbitration of Sport to reject the request for provisional measures filed by Nnemkadi Chinwe Ogwumike and Elizabeth Olatayo Williams,” a FIBA statement said.
“The players had requested that the CAS provisionally accepts the change of their national status from USA to Nigeria.
“Although both players had played for USA after the age of 17 and participated in the qualifying process to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games (in February 2020 and September 2019, respectively), they recently requested an exceptional change of their national status, which FIBA declined under the applicable rules.
“In any event, the players would have to wait for a three-year period since their last game with the USA to be eligible to play at the Olympics, as per bye-law to Rule 41 of the Olympic Charter.
“The list of players for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games submitted by the Nigeria Basketball Federation to the Nigeria Olympic Committee and to FIBA does not include these two players.”
The Nigerian Basketball Federation had claimed that “players of African descent are approved to play for other countries constantly but the reverse is not the case”.
“We do tacitly believe that there are undercurrents and motivation for such a decision which is repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience ,” the world governing body said.
Coincidentally, Nigeria’s first match at Tokyo 2020 is due to be against the US on July 27.
Hosts Japan and France are the other teams in their group.
-insidethegames
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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