To fail to plan is to plan to fail! That’s is the summary as former Nigerian sports minister, Solomon Dalung. According to him, the foundation of Team Nigeria was faulty ahead of the just ending Olympic Games.

He faulted the composition of most of the sports federations that produced athletes for the games. According to him, the federations were not well composed to present athletes that would have excelled.

 “The federations must command the confidence of the congress. Unfortunately, the foundation I laid to while I was in office had been dismantled”, said Dalung who was Nigeria’s Games master- General from 2015 to 2019.

  He is of the opinion that most of the sports federation leadership are not accountable to the congress that elected them. “During my tenure, I enlarged the electoral college to include all stakeholders in sports. I had an all-encompassing board that included even the media. But upon my departure, the structures were dismantled.”

 Continuing, Dalung said that he heard the current sports minister, John Owan Enoh saying that the sports sector will have to go back to the drawing board after Paris 2024.

  “It must start with accountable sports federation boards. As it is in Nigeria, no sports minister ever had the opportunity of attending two editions of the Olympics owing to the four-yearly cycle of the Olympics. No sports minister stay to implement new idea for the succeeding Olympics.

Dalung said that in his time, he did not have as much fund as it was made available to the current minister. “Money for the Olympics was not released until four days into the Games in Rio. I had to borrow N50 million from Ifeanyi Ubah before the arrival of fund from the Federal Government.

  “I travelled to Rio Olympics with my money before I was reimbursed. We had crises, but we managed to solve them. It was tough.”

 He said that the demonstration in Nigeria may also have had negative effects on Team Nigeria.

“They are Nigerians and have families at home. The crisis at home will have effect on them and could have made athletes lose focus.”

Manchester City avenged their FA Cup loss to Manchester United by winning the Community Shield 7-6 on penalties after a 1-1 draw on Saturday at Wembley Stadium.

The game intensified in the final 10 minutes when United’s Alejandro Garnacho, a late substitute, looked set to secure victory.

In the 82nd minute, he received a pass from Bruno Fernandes, cut inside, and scored with a precise shot past a diving Ederson.

City regained their composure and equalized in the 89th minute. Bernardo Silva, another substitute, outjumped Facundo Pellistri to head in a cross from Oscar Bobb, leveling the score.

In sudden death, City sealed the win when Jonny Evans’ chip over the defense set up Manuel Akanji’s successful penalty, avoiding a second consecutive Wembley defeat to the FA Cup winners.

Speaking with reporters after the match, United manager Erik ten Hag said the Red Devils must feel the pain of a Community Shield defeat on penalties to Manchester City to fuel them for the beginning of the Premier League season.

He said, “When the performance is right, and when you lose, everyone feels this. It hurts in your stomach.

“You have to feel pain, and we have to hurt. We have to take this belief into the league.”

Also speaking, City manager Pep Guardiola said starting the new season with a title is a really good thing.

He said, “To start the season with a title is good. We are really pleased.

“It is nice to play this game because it means you won something in the previous season.

“Now we see how the players come back. The target now is not to win the Premier League. It is ‘OK, next game, try and win it’. This is what we have to do.”

Rena Wakama, the Head coach of Nigeria’s senior women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, has been named the Best Female Basketball Coach at the Paris 2024 Olympics tournament.

“Best coach of #Paris2024 Women’s Basketball, Rene Wakama, Nigeria,” a tweet on the X handle of the International Basketball Federation read on Sunday evening.

Wakama, 32, guided the female basketball team to their first-ever quarterfinals of the Olympic games when they beat Canada 79-70.

However, their journey at the Olympics was cut short when they lost o the eventual winners — United States, by 88-74 in the quarterfinals of the women’s basketball event.

Despite this, the team made an impressive record of being the only African basketball team (men and women) to progress to the last 16 at the event.

Wakama is the first Nigerian National Female Basketball Team coach to win the women’s Afrobasket title since it began in 1966.

D’Tigress defeated Senegal 84-74 in the final and secured Nigeria’s place as only the second country to win the title four times in a row.

Indeed, she has entrenched her name in the history of Nigerian female basketball.

⁩The All-Star Five of the events include A’ja Wilson (USA), Gabby Williams (France), Breanna Stewart (USA), Alanna Smith (Australia) and Emma Meesseman (Belgium).

Also, D’Tigress’ point guard and three-time Afrobasket champion, Ezinne Kalu, was named one of the All-Second Team of the Olympics Women’s Basketball.

Others on the list include Julie Vanloo (Belgium), Satou Sabally (Germany), Valeriane Ayayi (France) and Ezi Magbegor (Australia).

The MVP of the Women’s Basketball event, according to FIBA, was A’ja Wilson, while Jade Melbourne (Australia) won the Rising Star award.

The Best Defensive Player award was given to Gabby Williams.

Nigeria women’s table tennis icon, Olufunke Oshonaike has shared her bitter-sweet experience during the International Olympic Committee Athletics Commission at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

In a long post on her Facebook page on Saturday, the seven-time Olympian recounted her bitter-sweet experience while trying to secure one of the four spots on the commission.

Despite coming seventh in the election contested by over 100 globally renowned athletes, the 50-year-old relished the experience  and wished the successful four contestants the best of luck.

The post read, “The road to Paris 2024 was unlike any other Olympic journey I’ve undertaken. This time, I wasn’t just competing on the field; I was there to represent Nigeria in the IOC Athletes’ Commission (AC) election. The qualification process began last year, with 100 athletes from different countries vying for a spot in this prestigious election. Out of those 100, I was one of the 30 Olympians who qualified to represent their country—a moment of immense pride for me.

“However, when I saw the other 29 candidates, my heart skipped a beat. Many of them came from countries with larger contingents and far more global recognition than mine. I knew this was going to be a tough battle. But one thing about me is that I am a fighter, a person who believes that nothing is impossible.

“The voting began on the 18th and was set to conclude on the 7th. I arrived at the Olympic Village on the 21st, ready to start my campaign. What followed were some of the most stressful, challenging, and difficult days of my life since I first competed in the Olympics back in 1996. My campaign days started at 10 AM and didn’t end until 9 PM. The sun and heat were relentless, but I pushed through, running after athletes, urging them to vote for me. Some shunned me, and others expressed their disdain for politics. But there were also those who listened, eager to learn more about the election and why their vote mattered.

“It was an emotional rollercoaster. I cried, I felt weak and exhausted, and I even lost my voice. But through it all, I never gave up. I kept going because I believed that I could be a strong voice for Olympians around the world.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t make it into the top 4 who qualified. I came in 7th. Although many Olympians voted for me, it wasn’t enough. It hurts, but I am thankful that I did my best and made my presence felt. I’m grateful to all the athletes who supported me, especially those who saw me campaigning tirelessly under the hot sun.

“Now, it’s time to go back home to my kids, whom I’ve missed so much. I’m keeping my head held high, proud of what I’ve achieved, and still believing that this is not the end. Thank you all for your support.

“My analysis based on the final results  and my personal experience on the field I have since come to the realisation that it will be difficult for any African representative to be elected because in comparison to other continents, our contigent to the Olympics are relatively small so home support is greatly reduced and you are at a disadvantage ab initio. But nothing is impossible!

“Congratulations to all the four winners.”

IOC AC elections are held at each edition of the Olympic Games, with new members voted on to the commission by the athletes competing at that edition of the Games. Four or five members are elected at each Summer Games and two or three at each Winter Games, replacing members whose eight-year terms expire.

From a colourful, sometimes controversial opening ceremony to boxers caught up in a gender row to respectful bows on the gymnastics podium, the 2024 Olympics served up many memorable moments.

Rain on opening ceremony parade

— Organisers promised a spectacular opening ceremony and the rain-soaked boat parade on the River Seine ended up making global headlines, but not for the expected reasons.

Church leaders, conservatives and even United States presidential candidate, Donald Trump, were left outraged by a scene involving drag queens and lesbian DJ Barbara Butch that appeared to parody Jesus’s Last Supper.

Artistic director Thomas Jolly denied any such intention. He and others involved ended up facing vicious online harassment that led to police complaints.

Djokovic’s roar of approval

— Novak Djokovic stunned Carlos Alcaraz in a memorable men’s final to clinch tennis gold and become only the fifth player to complete the Golden Slam of all four majors plus Olympic gold.

The 37-year-old celebrated with a roar which echoed around Roland Garros before the tearful Serb clambered into the player’s box to embrace his wife Jelena and two children.

“There is no greater inspiration than representing your country,” said the 24-time Grand Slam title winner.

Alcaraz was also in tears, claiming he “had let Spain down.”

Biles bows to ‘queen’ Andrade

— Simone Biles may have been the star of the show but she was widely praised for bowing to her arch-rival Rebeca Andrade on the podium.

Biles said it was “just the right thing to do” after she and team-mate Jordan Chiles finished in silver and bronze medal positions respectively behind the Brazilian in the floor final.

“Rebeca’s so amazing, she’s queen,” said Biles.

Romanian Ana Barbosu was later awarded the bronze medal after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that Chiles should not have been upgraded from her initial fifth-place finish.

Lyles just in time

— World champion Noah Lyles roared to victory in 9.79 seconds to claim gold in a dramatic men’s Olympic 100m final in the closest finish in modern history — just five thousandths of a second separated him from Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson.

Not cricket as Pakistan top India at javelin

— Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem won the men’s javelin title, his country’s first individual gold at an Olympics, with a Games record of 92.97m.

In second place was India’s defending champion Neeraj Chopra.

“Rivalry is there when it comes to cricket matches, other sports, the two countries have a rivalry, but it’s a good thing for the young people in both countries to watch our sport and follow us. It’s a positive thing for both countries,” said Nadeem.

North-South Korea podium selfie goes viral

— Images of Olympic table tennis players from North Korea and South Korea taking a selfie together on the medal podium went viral in South Korea, hailed as a rare show of cross-border unity.

After South Korea won bronze and North Korea silver in the mixed doubles behind China, South Korea’s Lim Jong-hoon took a group photo after the medal ceremony.

North Korea’s Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong, the South’s Shin Yu-bin and the victorious Chinese team Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha all beamed into Lim’s phone, a South Korean-made Samsung.

“A selfie with both Koreas’ national flags and a Samsung phone,” said the widely read daily JongAng Ilbo.

Dreams come Trew

— Australian skateboarding sensation Arisa Trew, just 14, won the women’s park event to become her country’s youngest ever gold medallist.

Trew nailed a high-risk and high-speed final round in her trademark pink helmet, bringing the crowd to their feet at a sun-drenched Place de la Concorde.

The event also featured 11-year-old Zheng Haohao, the youngest athlete ever to represent China at the Olympics.

“Skateboarding in the Olympic Games isn’t much different from skateboarding in my neighbourhood. It’s just more spectators,” she told reporters.

High five for Cuban wrestler

— Cuban wrestler Mijain Lopez made Olympic history when he became the first athlete to win five consecutive individual golds in the same event, bettering the records of Games icons such as Carl Lewis and Michael Phelps.

The soon-to-be 42-year-old then placed his shoes in the centre of the mat to signify his intention to retire.

“Wrestling has been the love of my life, for all of my life,” he said.

Cool hand Yusuf

— Turkish Olympic shooting silver medallist Yusuf Dikec became an overnight sensation for his casual style during competition.

His eye-catching posture saw the marksman wearing standard glasses, a team T-shirt and with his left hand casually tucked in his pocket.

The just-concluded Paris 2024 Olympics has been nothing short of an interesting and exhilarating tournament.

The games, with the motto “Games Wide Open (French: Ouvrons Grand les Jeux),” were held in the capital of France.

The Paris Olympics witnessed the participation of 10,714 athletes drawn from 216 countries, with a total of 1,436 medals won.

Leading the medals table is the United States with a total of 126 while China follows with 91. Both countries, however, had a tie of 40 gold medals.

Host nation France bagged a total of 64 medals, with 16 golds.

Kenya is the first African country on the medals table with four gold, two silver and five bronze medals.

The top 10 countries amassed 40.11 per cent of the total medals at the games.

See the medals table below:

Unlike the recent Olympics, Nigerians have reasons to celebrate as the 2024 Paralympics in France approaches. Nigeria is sending 24 athletes on a training tour to Germany to prepare for the games.

Nigeria has taken part in every Summer Paralympics since they began but has never competed in the Winter Paralympics. At the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games, Nigeria won 10 medals—4 gold, 1 silver, and 5 bronze—bringing its total medal count to 80.

The Paralympic Committee Nigeria (PCN) is creating a documentary to highlight Team Nigeria’s athletes before their training tour to Saarbrücken, Germany. The documentary will be filmed on August 12 and 13, 2024.

Sunday Odebode, President of PCN, explained in Lagos, “The two-day documentary will showcase the potential of our Paralympic athletes as they prepare for the Games in Paris. It’s an opportunity to highlight their hard work and dedication.”

Odebode has been visiting the athletes in camp, donating items to support their well-being. “This documentary is another way of showcasing the potential aspects of Nigeria Paralympic athletes as they head to Paris for the Games,” he added.

A total of 24 athletes will represent Nigeria in four sports: Para Athletics, Para Badminton, Para Powerlifting, and Para Table Tennis. The breakdown is as follows:

• Para Athletics: 5 athletes
• Para Badminton: 2 athletes
• Para Powerlifting: 9 athletes
• Para Table Tennis: 8 athletes

The athletes will travel to Germany in two batches. The first group will depart on August 12, and the second group will leave on August 13, 2024.