The General Manager of Plateau United Football Club of Jos, Pius Henwan has congratulated Rivers United for emerging champions of the 2021/2022 Nigeria Professional Football League.

The Pride of Rivers were crowned champions with three games to go after closest rivals Plateau United suffered a stunning 2-1 defeat to Akwa United on Saturday in Uyo meaning they will finish behind Rivers United as the Port-Harcourt team now leads with an unassailable 10 points.

Henwan conveyed his congratulatory message while addressing players and technical crew of Rivers United at the Jos international stadium after the Pride of Rivers matchday 35 fixure against Nasarawa United.

While taking stock of what has transpired in the ongoing season, Henwan praised the Stanley Eguma tutored side for their consistency while urging Rivers United and Plateau United to do everything to make Nigeria proud on the continent.

“The technical crew of Rivers United, players and my former players that are now with Rivers United, i am here to congratulate you, to tell you well done, for a job well done.

I have been pursuing you left and right to see if i can over take you but Governor Wike is very tough, Wike is very tough but nevertheless we are already there. It should not go into our heads and say we are there and we relax.The remaining games are very important, lets maintain the lead with a good number of points and let’s not forget that this game does not end here.

We are now faced with the continent so please whatever we are going to do to make Nigeria proud , you are going to lead and we are going to follow you.

So on behalf of Plateau United and the good people of Plateau State, I am congratulating you, telling you well done the champions.”

The Athletics Integrity Unit has announced that banned Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare has been found to have committed additional anti-doping rule violations – specifically evading sample collection, and tampering or attempted tampering with the doping control process.

While Okagbare has had her current 10-year ban from athletics extended by one year (now 11 years in total), another significant consequence of this decision against her is that Nigeria has lost its potential qualification place for the women’s 4x100m relay at next month’s World Athletics Championships Oregon22.

This is because six days after Okagbare evaded sample collection (13 June 2021), she competed in the 4x100m relay event at the Nigeria Olympic Trials, with her relay squad qualifying for this year’s World Championships.

All individual and relay results involving Okagbare, from 13 June 2021, are now disqualified under the rules.

“Over the years, we have repeatedly seen how one person’s actions adversely affect team-mates who have trained hard and worked honestly for their results,” noted Head of the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), Brett Clothier.

“In a relay team, if one member violates the anti-doping rules, everyone bears the brunt of results being expunged. They all pay the price. In this instance, Nigeria has lost an important qualification spot. Those are the rules and we will not compromise on integrity.”

On 14 February, 2022, the Disciplinary Tribunal banned Okagbare for 10 years; consecutive five-year bans for the presence and use of multiple prohibited substances, and for her refusal to co-operate with the AIU’s investigation into her case.

The prohibited substances were human Growth Hormone (hGH) and recombinant erythropoietin (EPO). This decision stemmed from charges which the AIU brought against Ms Okagbare on 07 October, 2021.

On 10 June, 2022, the AIU further charged Ms Okagbare with Evading Sample Collection, and Tampering or Attempted Tampering with the Doping Control process.

These charges related to the circumstances of the athlete’s Whereabouts Failure on 13 June, 2021, and were pursued based on information in a criminal charge, brought against US-based “naturopathic” therapist Eric Lira, on 12 January, 2022, by the United States Department of Justice under the Rodchenkov Act. Mr Lira is alleged to have supplied performance-enhancing drugs to athletes before the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
(delayed until summer 2021 because of the Covid-19 pandemic).

The complaint against Mr Lira provides specific information of his interaction with a person named ‘Athlete 1’, including a written exchange on or around 13 June, 2021, demonstrating that ‘Athlete 1’ knowingly and deliberately avoided testing by a DopingControl Officer in Jacksonsville, Florida.

There was also other pertinent information about ‘Athlete 1’ in the criminal complaint which led the AIU Disciplinary Tribunal’s sole arbitrator to be “comfortably satisfied” that ‘Athlete 1’ is Blessing Okagbare, including text conversations imaged from Ms Okagbare’s mobile phone by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Ms Okagbare failed to respond to the charges by the extended deadline (21 June, 2022) and is therefore deemed to have admitted the anti-doping rule violations (under Rule 2.3 and Rule 2.5 of the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules) and to have accepted the consequences.

Serena Williams is unsure whether she will play at Wimbledon again, but says Tueday’s first round exit has motivated her for future Grand Slams.

The 23-time major winner lost 7-5 1-6 7-6 (10-7) to Harmony Tan in a gripping three-set match as she returned to SW19 after a year out with injury.

Asked whether it would be her last appearance at the All England Club, the 40-year-old American said: “That’s a question I can’t answer. I don’t know.

“Who knows where I’ll pop up?”

Seven-time Wimbledon singles champion Williams – who is chasing Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles – said she did not want Tuesday’s loss to be her final memory of a court on which she has had so much success.

“Obviously not,” she said. “You know me. Definitely not.

“I gave all I could do. Maybe tomorrow I could have given more. Maybe a week ago I could have given more. But today was what I could do. At some point, you have to be able to be OK with that.”

Williams faced France’s Tan almost a year to the day after limping tearfully off Centre Court having hurt her right ankle in her first-round match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich.

She admitted earlier this month – as she made her comeback at Eastbourne in the doubles alongside Ons Jabeur – she had harboured doubts about her future in tennis.

But after losing to Tan, Williams hinted an appearance at her home major – the US Open, which begins in late August – could tempt her to continue training.

“When you’re at home, especially in New York and that being the place I first won a Grand Slam, it is always special,” she said.

“There’s always motivation to get better and play at home.”

Ranked 1,204th in the world following her enforced absence, the American great added that, if anything, her performance against Tan had served as fuel to continue.

“It definitely makes me want to hit the practice courts because when you’re so close – any other opponent would have suited my game better – I definitely think it’s like, OK Serena, you can do it if you want.”

She added: “Physically I did pretty good. The last couple of points I was really suffering but I feel like winning those key points is something mentally you have to have. 

“If you play week in, week out, or every three or four weeks there is a little more match toughness. You have to think if I was playing matches I wouldn’t miss some of those points.”

Spanish side Sevilla are considering a move for Almeria forward Umar S.adiq

Sadiq has turned up on the radar of other teams in recent days, including Benfica, Ajax Amsterdam, and Spanish clubs Vilarreal and Valencia.

According to a report by Marca, Sevilla have been tracking the Nigerian for some time and while they realise that his value would be higher now, seeing as the Andalusian side have been promoted to La Liga, they remain interested.

Almeria will listen to offers in the region of €25m for their frontman, something Sevilla wouldn’t really be able to afford unless they sold Youssef En-Nesyri. The Nigerian, on his part, is interested in the move and knows Monchi, Sevilla’s Director of Football, well due to the time they spent together at AS Roma. Julen Lopetegui wants to bring in another striker this summer and he’s the man.

With seven caps to his name, the Kaduna-born striker began his career in Spezia before joining Roma in 2015 on a one-year loan deal, alongside compatriot Nura Abdullahi.

Having impressed in his maiden season, he was signed permanently by the Stadio Olimpico giants.

However, his inability to command a regular place in the Yellow and Reds’ squad saw him loaned to Bologna, Torino, NAC Breda, Glasgow Rangers and Perugia within the space of five years.

He joined Almeria in 2020 and was key to their promotion push from Segunda to Primera in 2021/22, contributing 18 goals and 12 assists for the Andalusian side in 36 appearances. That upturn has brought him to the fore and he’s exactly the kind of hidden gem Sevilla pride themselves on finding.

• Dalung, Fashanu lament plight of female players

Despite the approval by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), for the immediate return of Nigeria to international basketball competitions, some stakeholders have been left disappointed with Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, and called for his resignation, insisting he didn’t properly manage the crisis in the sector, 

Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Ismaila Abubakar, at a press briefing in Abuja last Thursday announced the reversal after the sports minister Sunday Dare and other stakeholders reportedly lobbied for it to be rescinded.

The sports ministry had announced the ban on May 12 following a crisis in the Nigeria Basketball Federation that produced parallel presidents of the federation, with incumbent Musa Ahmadu-Kida elected in a poll in Benin City, on January 31 while Igoche Mark emerged winner of the election held in Abuja same day.

The FG’s U-Turn was, however, too little too late, with basketball global governing body, FIBA, already kicking out five-time African champions D’Tigress out of the 2022 Women’s Basketball World Cup in Australia and replacing them with Mali.

FIBA’s decision came after deliberations with the Nigeria Basketball Federation on how the government decision could be rescinded fell through.

D’Tigress, Africa’s most successful women’s basketball team of the past two decades, had qualified for September’s World Cup after defeating France and Mali in Group B of the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2022 Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade, Serbia.

Upe Atosu, a 2017 AfroBasket winner, called on the minister Dare to immediately resign.

The D’Tigress guard described last week’s reversal as “too late, too bad”, insisting harm had been done already, after the players were stopped from fulfilling their dreams.

“Who did the minister consult before they imposed the ban? You just took the opportunity away from people who struggled and fought to be at the World Cup. And FIBA gave Nigeria’s position to a team who never expected it. Now, the minister isn’t even talking about the way forward,” Atosu told The PUNCH.

She added, “As a sports minister, he is supposed to be proffering solutions to problems in the sports industry. Nigerian basketball has issues and one of the biggest is leadership. Over three years, we’ve had two factions handling the NBBF. The players are confused, nobody knows where to go or who to communicate with.

“Even if investors are coming from outside to invest in Nigerian basketball, who are they going to communicate with? We have a bad image out there. Investors would look at so many factors and say, ‘we are not interested anymore, their house is not in order.’ Since the board members don’t want to put their house in order, the minister should do that for them, if he can’t do that, he should leave the position for people who want to do it.

“If the minister is not ready to apologise and hold himself accountable for his actions, he should step down and allow someone who can handle our sports come in. Since they’ve lifted the ban, what’s next for local programmes?” 

The Director of International Tennis Academy, Godwin Kienka, also called on for the immediate resignation of the minister, following his role as Nigeria missed out on the FIBA Women’s World Cup.

Romelu Lukaku said he was “very happy” to be back after the Belgian international striker arrived in Milan on Wednesday ahead of his return to Inter Milan on loan from Chelsea.

A beaming Lukaku emerged from Linate airport in the early hours of Wednesday morning and gave his short but delighted response to the handful of reporters awaiting his arrival.

The 29-year-old will undergo a medical later in the day before making his long-awaited Inter comeback official.

Chelsea agreed to a reported deal in which Inter will pay an initial €8 million plus a further potential three million euros in bonuses for the loan.

Lukaku will again lead Inter’s attack as they attempt to regain the Serie A title after taking a pay cut — a reported 8.5 million euros for the coming campaign.

Lukaku leaves London after failing to make an impression for a second time at Chelsea, not meeting high expectations following a £97.5 million move from Inter last summer.

He had made himself a fan favourite over two years at Inter after scoring 64 times in 95 games and driving them to their first Serie A title in over a decade, the 2021 Scudetto ending both an 11-year drought and Juventus’ grip on Italian football.

However, the financial problems of Inter’s owners the Suning Group, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic led to coach Antonio Conte leaving the club almost as soon as the title was won. 

He claimed the cost-cutting required by Inter would have prevented him from building the team he wanted to challenge domestically and in Europe.

Lukaku followed Conte out the door after then European champions Chelsea offered a whopping sum which eased some of Inter’s financial issues and started well on his return to Stamford Bridge.

Coach Thomas Tuchel said “he was the type of guy we were missing” after he netted four times in his first four games, but his next goal didn’t come until early December and injury, Covid-19 and poor form kept him out of the team.

He then infuriated Chelsea fans by conducting an interview with Sky Sport Italia in which he expressed his unhappiness and said he had Inter in his heart and wanted to return.

Those comments also led Inter’s hardcore ultras to say they weren’t interested in having him back, considering his move to Chelsea a betrayal of his claim to love the Milanese club.

They told other fans not to arrive en masse to welcome Lukaku back as he is now “just one of many” after previously being “treated like a king” by supporters.

Lukaku will be critical to coach Simone Inzaghi’s bid to snatch back the league crown from AC Milan after they finished two points behind their local rivals last term.

Rafael Nadal overcame a scare in his Wimbledon opener on Tuesday, fighting back from dropping the third set and falling a break down in the fourth to eventually see off Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo.

Second seed Nadal, playing on grass for the first time since his 2019 Wimbledon semi-final loss to Roger Federer, triumphed 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 over 41st-ranked Cerundolo, who was making his All England Club debut.

But the 36-year-old Spaniard, who has already captured the Australian and French Opens this year to stand halfway to the first men’s calendar Slam since 1969, did it the hard way.

After coasting through the first two sets on Centre Court, he surrendered an early break in the third set and then had to claw his way back from 3-1 and 4-2 down in the fourth.

“Three years without being here on this amazing surface, it is amazing to be back,” said Nadal.

“We don’t play very often on grass, especially in my case. In the last three years, I didn’t put a foot on the grass.”

Nadal, the 2008 and 2010 Wimbledon champion, arrived at the tournament with question marks over his durability for the two weeks having played the entire French Open with his troublesome left foot anaesthetised.