Nigeria Ready For African Women’s Youth Handball Championship In Algeria

BY OLAPEJU FOLARANMI

Head Coach of Nigeria’s Women’s Under 18 Handball, Coach John Uzor has released the final list of players that will represent the country at the 2025 African Women’s Youth Handball Championship holding in Oran, Algeria.

The team have been undergoing thorough preparatory camping under the tutelage of Coach John Uzor and his assistant Coach Bukola Duru at the Rowe Park Sports Center, Yaba, Lagos ahead of the championship which serves as qualifiers for the 2026 Women’s Youth World Handball Championship as well as the IHF Women’s Intercontinental Phase
The championship will hold from the 14th to 21st September 2025.

Several of the players selected in the final team list are the core of the team that won the IHF Women’s Trophy Zonal Phase For Africa Zone 3 in Ivory Coast earlier in the year. They include leftback Balikiss Mohammed, Chetachi Ngaodurubie and Pivot, Phebe Oluwalade. Others includes Goalkeeper Aisha Jamilu of Rima Queens, Righback, Faizat Balogun, Audu Salamatu, Blessing Igbinidion and Esther Peter to mention.

The team has a big assignment match their exploits at the 2023 African Women’s Youth Handball Championship which was held in Monastir, Tunisia wherein Nigeria came third after defeating three times champion Angola 28-24 in the third place match which helped them qualify for the world championship for the first time in their history. They also finish second behind host, Ivory Coast in the very first tournament held in the year 2000.

Nigeria will play in Group A which has Angola, Tunisia, Kenya, Benin Republic and Madagascar while Group B would have hosts Algeria, 5 time champion and defending champion Egypt, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Zambia.

Nigeria Under 18 Women Handball Team Final Team List For 2025 Africa Women’s Youth Handball Championship

Goalkeepers

1. Aisha Jamilu (Rima Queens of Sokoto)
2. Okonkwo Sharon (Edo Dynamos)

Left Back

3. Mohammed Balikiss (Soof Omo Ogiefo
4. Ngozi Okorie (Soof HBC)

Left Wing

5. Duru Success (Edo Dynamos)
6. Ngaodurubie chetachi (Soof Omo Ogiefo)

Pivot

7. Oluwalade Phebe (Ekiti Queens)
8. Momodu Joy Veronica (Ekiti Queens)

Center Back

9. Esther Peter (Rima Queens of Sokoto)
10. Desola Wasiu. (Imo Grasshoppers)

Right Wing
11. Terfa Cynthia (Defender Babes)
12. Igbinidion Blessing (Delta Queens)