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NSCDC’s Abiye George conquers them all, wins 2023 Lagos Women Run

The 8th edition of the annual Lagos Women Run came to a successful end on Saturday with an officer of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Abiye David George from Ondo State beating thousands of participants to emerge winner. For her stellar performance, the NSCDC flag bearer won the star prize of N1.5 million.

Immediately the race was flagged off at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos Island, Abiye kept nobody in doubt about her ability to win the race as she dictated the pace most of the time until she coasted home to victory at the Mobolaji Johnson Sports Arena, Onikan in a time of 39: 13: 78 secs.

She was closely followed by Deborah Pam who clocked a time of 39:22: 73 to come second while the third position went to Patience Dalyop with a time of 40: 2:08 seconds.

The second and third-place winners went home with N500,000 and N300,000 respectively while the first twenty persons to get to the finish point got various cash prizes.

Winners also emerged in the veteran category where they got N300,000, N200,000 and N100,000 respectively with the first ten finishers also going home with cash prices.

Speaking after the race, Abiye said she trained very hard for the marathon noting that the victory will give her the necessary confidence as she prepares for the forthcoming Warri Marathon.

She was also full of praises to the organisers of the race for creating a platform where women compete among themselves and for her employers for their support which enabled her to excel.

Earlier while flagging off the race, the Wife of Lagos State Governor, Ibijoke Sanwo- Olu who was represented by Dr. Mrs. Modinat Akiolu expressed happiness with the successes recorded by the race since its maiden edition just as she reminded women of the need to be part of the race as a way of exercising themselves and networking.

“I’m happy that the Lagos Women Run has come to stay and the successes recorded over the years cannot be overemphasized.

” The race has not only made women come together and compete in a friendly environment but has helped in showcasing the beauty and iconic landmarks of the state to the outside world and I want to commend the organisers for this wonderful idea which has helped in giving women a sense of belonging.

In her remarks, the coordinator of the race, Tayo Popoola while expressing happiness at the completion of another successful event noted that the race was not all about running or winning prices but a statement of empowerment.

” The Lagos Women Run is not all about running; it empowers women to overcome challenges, conquer stereotypes and break barriers.

She declared “It sends a powerful message that Lagos women are strong, confident and unstoppable. And as they run through the city’s streets, they inspire and uplift others, proving that they can achieve anything they set their minds on.

Popoola also noted that race serves as a platform for creating awareness for some non-communicable diseases that ravage womanhood.

”In this race, we use it to create awareness about some non-communicable diseases and that’s why you see some participants run against cancer, diabetes and hypertension and I want to assure you that we’ll keep on improving”, she concluded.

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My son thinks Mbappe is better than me – Ronaldo

Mbappé: Would Have Been 'Fun' To Play With Cristiano Ronaldo

Al Nassr superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed that his five-year-old son, Mateo, favors Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé over him.

Ronaldo, who netted a brace over the weekend to climb to the top of the Saudi Pro League scoring charts, admitted the surprising preference during an interview with La Sexta.

“Mateo really likes Mbappé,” Ronaldo shared. “He sometimes tells me: ‘Hey dad, Mbappé is better than you,’ and I reply by saying: ‘No, I am better than him, I have scored more goals.'”

The humorous exchange highlights the influence of Mbappé, who famously idolized Ronaldo during his youth. Despite Mateo’s playful comments, the 39-year-old football legend continues to shine on the pitch.

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Dikko Hosts Olympians, Assures On Retired Athletes Welfare

That the labours of the nation’s past heroes will not be in vain, the National Sports Commission (NSC) will prioritize the welfare of retired athletes and olympians who had excelled in the national colours. NSC Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko gave this assurance while hosting the Nigeria Olympians Association (NOA) led by its President Olumide Oyedeji.

In Dikko’s opinion, one way to encourage the current athletes is by ensuring that the retired ones are not disregarded.

His words, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not toying with the welfare of our athletes generally, but particularly our ex-internationals. It is his mandate and we have keyed into it. There is a budget line for the welfare of retired athletes. It may not be much but that’s a good starting point. It means that every year, something will be mapped out for the upkeep of our retired athletes. That money will be judiciously used. But we have to be specific. Not just any retired athlete, we are referring to athletes who wore these green and white colours and we can vouch for them. We want you to feel that Nigeria cares for you.”

There is also good news for athletes with unfulfilled past promises from the government.

“There is also a budget line to fulfill past promises government made to athletes. We know that there had been situations in the past when athletes excelled, they were made financial promises and even some have passed on without those promises being fulfilled. We have a catalogue of those promises and Mr. President has graciously approved a budget line for that purpose. With this development, we will be redeeming those promises gradually. Every year there should be a block funding to sort that out.”

The association’s request for an ‘entourage commission’ which would see the olympians serve as mentors to athletes at major sporting events got a glowing endorsement from the NSC helmsman.

He said, “The issue of entourage commission is one that I am committed to. In fact, we will push to make it a bill so that it becomes a law to have these retired athletes who have seen it all accompany our athletes to Games. There is a huge psychological boost the presence of these great olympians will have on the athletes having them side by side at the Games.”

Dikko eulogized the olympians for their past exploits that brought honour to the nation and promised to engage them more in the Commission’s activities.

“The major reason why the President set up the Commission is for the professionalization of the sector. Who are the core professionals? It is people like you. We will look at the involvement of the olympians in our programs. If you have the right people on the table, you get quality representation”, he added.

He drummed up the Commission’s aggressive grassroots sports development drive in a bid to strengthen the conveyor belt for talents and replace the retired athletes.

“We are doing things differently now. We have set up the three Rs, reset, refocus and relaunch. We are moving our sports from the emphasis on competitions which is consumption to development which is production. This entails that we have to be deliberate in our grassroots development of sports, the schools sports, NUGA, NIPOGA, NACEGA Games. We have struggled to replace most of you retired athletes over the years because of this neglect for the grassroots. We are changing all that now”, he said.

He promised equal attention to all sports.

“We are not a football Commission. We are here for all sports. In this this commission we are working to advance all sports and even in the last week we have held meetings with baseball, motorsports, hockey, volleyball, taekwondo, armwrestling, polo all manner of sports you can think of. We are doing sports development and sports economy here and every sport has the potentials to be a huge revenue generator for the country. We want the Federations to be serious and show proof of development of the sport with domestic tournaments. We fully keyed into what the Cricket U-19 team is doing in Malaysia because even before that tournament you could see the visible efforts of the Federation to unearth and develop talents”, he concluded.

Dikko pledged his support for the upcoming Olympians reunion tagged “the labour of our heroes past.”

Highpoint of the meeting was the induction of the NSC Chairman as an olympian, an act which according to the association, accords him the full privileges and rights of an olympian.

The NOA delegation comprised of Olumide Oyedeji (President), Lawrence Iquaibom (1st Vice-president), Chief Falilat Ogunkoya-Osheku, Emmanuel Babayaro (Secretary), Hameed Adio, Emmanuel Oshoma and Olusegun Ajose. Also present at the event was SSA to the President on Grassroots Sports Development Adeyinka Adeboye ‘Zulu’.

 

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Adams eager to make impact at Sevilla

Akor Adams

Nigerian forward Jerome Adams is determined to make his mark at La Liga club Sevilla after completing his move from Ligue 1 side Montpellier.

The 25-year-old, who spent one-and-a-half seasons at Montpellier, scored three goals and provided one assist before joining Sevilla.

After signing his contract, Adams watched Sevilla’s 2-2 draw with Espanyol and expressed his excitement for the future.

“There is a lot of history at this club and I am here to be part of this history and also to try to write my own,” Adams told Sevilla’s official website.

“Both my family and I are very happy. It has been a great welcome and for me, it is a great (25th) birthday present.”

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