Ebonyi Basketball fans have called on relevant Nigerian sports authorities to use D’Tigress Afrobasket triumph in giving equal attention to all sports, not only football.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the nation’s senior female basketball team on Saturday beat its Senegalese counterparts 84-74 to win its fourth consecutive title at the BK arena, Kigali, Rwanda.
The Rena Wakama-tutored side therefore claimed its sixth title and qualified to compete for a spot at the 2024 Olympic games in Paris, France.
The fans who spoke to NAN on Sunday in Abakaliki, said that the country has kept recording sporting feats in other sports which it does not always do in football.
“Ikechukwu Achu, Ebonyi Basketball Head Coach, praised the girls for their gallantry, noting they displayed the true Nigerian spirit.
“Many people did not give the team a chance to excel at the championship but it fought tenaciously to win hearts and return with glory.
“The relevant sporting authorities and Nigerians should celebrate this feat the way they do for the nation’s football teams,” he said.
Jacob Onu, an African Union Consultant on Sports, urged the incoming sports minister to chart a road map where all sporting events would be placed on the same pedestal for more sporting feats.
“All sporting federations should be rejuvenated and given the necessary support to make the sector viable.
“This will attract the needed private sector involvement to ease sponsorship pressure off government,” he said.
Jude Ofili, a Businessman and basketball buff, praised the players for excelling where their male counterparts, D’Tigers, failed.
“I particularly commend the team’s handler, Rena Wakama, for making history as the first female coach to win the championship since inception in 1966.
“Wakama’s feat was spiced with her joining the team barely a month to the championship and still proved her mettle,” he said.
Agatha Nwakwo, a female basketballer in Abakaliki, urged the Federal Government to honour the players for bringing glory to the country.
“The team should be rewarded handsomely to motivate the players for better performances in future.
“Such honours will also motivate upcoming players to strive to attain the feats achieved by D’Tigress and attract more interest to the sport,” she said.
