Amusan Vs Camacho-Quinn Supremacy Battle Confirmed For Lausanne Diamond League

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June 23, 2023

Reigning World 100m hurdles champion, Tobi Amusan will open her 2023 Diamond League campaign on June 30 at the Athletismma in Lausanne, Switzerland, according to the organizers of the event.

The Nigerian who also holds the world record (12.12) in the event has been confirmed for the sixth leg of the 14 leg Wanda Diamond League series.

Also confirmed in a statement on Thursday is reigning Olympic champion, Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico who leads the standing with eight points after winning the event in Doha early last month.

2019 World Champion, Nia Ali of the USA is also set for the race in what will be a repeat of last year’s event where
Camacho-Quinn ran 12.34 to win ahead of Amusan (12.45) and Ali (12.59) who came second and fourth respectively.

Amusan would however go on to win the world title in Oregon despite playing second fiddle to the Puerto Rican for most of the pre-World Championships season.

The same scenario seems to be repeating itself as Camacho-Quinn has started the season flying again.

The 26 year old tops the 2023 world list in the event with the 12.31 she ran late last month at the USATF Los Angeles Grand Prix she sped past Amusan to move 1-0 up in their head to head contest for the year.

Overall, Camacho-Quinn has beaten the Nigerian nine times in 15 clashes so far.

Last year they tied 3-3 in their head to head clashes with two of Amusan’s wins fetching her important titles.

The Nigerian won at the World championships ahead of Camacho-Quinn who placed third. Amusan also won at the Diamond League final in Zurich to successfully defend her title. The Puerto Rican was fourth in the race.

Amusan also trails Ali 7-8 in their head to head meetings and the battle in Lausanne will be a big test for the Nigerian who is seeking to become the first Nigerian to successfully defend World Championships title.

Transfer: Psg Agree Deal To Sell Mbappe To New Club

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Emenike Agu

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June 23, 2023

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Paris Saint-Germain have agreed to sell Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid, according to PSG Community.

The France international will finally be heading to the Spanish capital this summer as the Emir of Qatar and Madrid president Florentino Perez have agreed on a €250 million deal.

The deal also includes a €50 million in bonuses for the Frenchman.

The French League 1 champions have decided to sell Mbappe after the 2018 World Cup winner informed them he would not be extending his contract.

La Liga giants have been in pursuit of the French attacker ever since he burst onto the scene at AS Monaco.

Los Blancos have since made attempts to lure him away from the Parc des Princes after he joined PSG in 2018 for €180 million.

They were expected to sign Mbappe last year when his previous contract was expiring.

Stallone’s Intense Diet For Rocky III Gave Him Debilitating Physical Effects

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Koko Lawrence

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June 23, 2023

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Sylvester Stallone put himself through an intense diet and exercise routine ahead of filming “Rocky III” in the 1980s.

The actor recalled what he ate and drank to keep his body fat down to 2.8% as he prepared to portray Rocky Balboa fighting James “Clubber” Lang, played by Mr. T.

“My entire breakfast would be maybe two [small] oatmeal cookies made with brown rice and 10 cups of coffee because I wanted to keep my body fat down to 2.8 percent,” Stallone said.

“I was forgetting my phone number. I was eating just tuna fish. My memory was shot, it was completely gone,” he added. “I was getting all kinds of debilitating physical effects. But it was for the cause.

These days, the 76-year-old actor focuses more on lower impact workouts.

“I’ve gone from lifting regular weights to mostly bands, cables. It’s kind of like physical therapy,” he added. “So, you’re using the bar, you’re using different motions and keeping those joints moving all the time.”

Over the years, Stallone has had “five back operations, two shoulders, three neck fusions, both knees,” he revealed, before adding, “I’m bionic.”

Stallone has also cut down on the amount of coffee he drinks.

Stallone’s latest project is not as intense as he and his family star in their own Paramount+ show, “The Family Stallone.” The reality show bowed May 17, just months after Stallone and his wife Jennifer Flavin almost divorced.

The couple met in 1988 and married in London in 1997. Flavin filed for divorce in August 2022. She accused Stallone of engaging in the “intentional dissipation, depletion and/or waste of marital assets, which has had an adverse economic impact on the marital estate” in paperwork filed on Aug. 19.

However, by September the pair had seemingly chosen to reconcile and work on their marriage.

James Cameron: Titan Sub Tragedy Similar To Titanic Disaster

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Koko Lawrence

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June 23, 2023

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“Titanic” director James Cameron is speaking out after the search for the missing OceanGate Titan submersible came to a devastating end Thursday.

Cameron, 68, found the tragic story of the sub eerily similar to what happened to the doomed ship Titanic in 1912.

“Well, I’ve been down there many times,” Cameron said in a news interview on Thursday. “I’ve made 33 dives and I’ve actually calculated that I’ve spent more time on the ship than the captain did back in the day.”

Cameron noted that he is a submersible designer himself and even created a sub that was capable of traveling to the deepest parts of the ocean, which is three times deeper than the location of the Titanic, according to the director.

He dove to the Mariana Trench in a 24-foot submersible called the Deepsea Challenger in March 2012.

Cameron noted that “many people in the community were very concerned about this sub.” He said “a number of the top players” in the community “even wrote letters to the company saying that what they were doing was too experimental to carry passengers.”

“I’m struck by the similarity of the Titanic disaster itself, where the captain was repeatedly warned about ice ahead of his ship and yet he steamed at full speed into an ice field on a moonless night and many people died as a result,” Cameron told the outlet.

“And for a very similar tragedy, where warnings went unheeded, to take place at the same exact site, with all the diving that’s going on all around the world, I think is just astonishing. It’s really quite surreal,” he concluded.

The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed Thursday that a debris field is the missing Titanic tourist submersible that was carrying five passengers. All five on board are presumed dead.

Inside the vessel were OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush; British businessman turned adventurer Hamish Harding; father-and-son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, who are members of one of Pakistan’s wealthiest families; and Paul-Henry Nargeolet, a former French navy officer and leading Titanic expert.

Sierra Leone Elections: A Race To Save The Soul Of A Nation

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Emmanuel Abia

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June 23, 2023

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As Sierra Leone, one of West Africa’s smallest but oldest states elects a new president and other government officials On June 24, 2023, 3.4 million Sierra Leoneans out of 8.421 million (2021) are expected to head to the polls to vote. This will be the sixth elections since the end of the brutal civil war in 2002 which claimed thousands of lives and also the second since the Ebola epidemic.13-candidates from different political parties are engaged in the presidential race but only two of them really stand a chance of clinching the seat. One of these contestant is Samura Kamara, a former foreign and finance minister and ex-governor of the Central Bank of Sierra Leone, Kamara was the runner up in the last presidential election which held in 2018. He has been charged with misappropriation of public funds amounting to $2.5m which he has denied but still facing ongoing trial. The next candidates is Julius Maada Bio who is the Current president of the country, Bio was elected president in a run-off election. He was part of a group of sierra Leonean soldiers who toppled the democratic government in freetown in 1992. Bio was briefly military head of state for three months in 1996, before handing over to a democratic government. He contested and lost election in 2012 but finally became a democratic president in 2018.As Sierra Leoneans prepare to head to the polls this Saturday, the growing economic hardship is on everyone’s mind. Across cities, entrepreneurs are feeling the brunt of rampant inflation which hit 43% in April, 2023 – up from a high of 41% in March. The price rises are a major preoccupation for youth here ahead of the presidential, legislative and local elections this weekend. Around 52.4% of registered voters, or 1.78 million people, are aged between 18 and 35 years old, according to a spokesperson for the electoral commission.As Julius Maada Bio held his final rally in the capital before the polls open on Saturday (June 24). Police and protesters clashed on Wednesday when the supporters of the opposition party All People’s Congress (APC) who are accusing the electoral commission and its chairman Mohamed Konneh of alleged bias in favor of the ruling party. The protesters are demanding the release of a more detailed voter register.

JUST IN: U.S. Coast Guard Confirms All Five Passengers On Missing Submersible Dead

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Angel Gimalo

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June 23, 2023

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All five passengers on board the missing Titan submersible are dead, the US Coast Guard has confirmed.

Officials say they found parts of the vessel amidst debris near the wreckage of the Titanic.

The debris was consistent with the “catastrophic implosion of the vessel”, Rear Admiral John Mauger said on Thursday.

The CEO of the submersible company, a British billionaire explorer, a French diver and a father and son were all on board.

Mr Mauger said he could not confirm whether their bodies would be recovered because of the “incredibly unforgiving environment” of the ocean.

Eko Rice Now On Lagos Commodities And Futures Exchange

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Angel Gimalo

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June 23, 2023

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The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, says the Eko Rice value chain had created no fewer than 2,620 jobs.

This was as he announced the unveiling of the ‘Five Billion Series 1’ of the ‘30 Billion Eko Rice Contracts Programme’ on the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange.

A statement tweeted by the governor said the unveiling was a “revolutionary public-private partnership” which is “a game-changer for agriculture and food security” in the state.

“Today’s bell-ringing ceremony on Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange is a historic moment,” the governor wrote, adding that, “We’re offering exciting investment opportunities in Lagos’ agricultural sector, highlighting these investment opportunities and projecting the role of the capital market in driving development in Lagos’ commodities ecosystem.”

Sanwo-Olu noted that by guaranteeing the availability of affordable rice, his government was ensuring food security for over 80 per cent of Lagos families.

He added that the state was also empowering local farmers and driving economic growth together.

“Our commitment to the development of the rice value chain has yielded remarkable results. We’ve scaled up local paddy production by 63.5 per cent, creating over 2,620 jobs and improving livelihoods in rice-producing communities.

“This is just the beginning of our agricultural revolution,” the governor said.

The statement added, “Through our agreement with Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange, we’ll ensure a sustainable supply of paddy to the rice mill.

“Every three months, 15,000 metric tonnes of paddy will be milled and sold to the public through subscribers. This collaboration strengthens the rice value chain and boosts confidence in the market.”

Erosion Site On Brooks Street Uyo Transformed

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Angel Gimalo

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June 23, 2023

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An erosion site at green field located at Brooks street, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital has been reconstructed.

The area was before now ravaged by gulley erosion.

Businessman and politician, Umo Eno was sworn in as the 5th elected governor of Akwa Ibom having won the governorship candidate on the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held on March 18.

CBN Urges Tertiary Institutions to Embrace e-Naira for Fees, Salaries

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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June 22, 2023

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The Central Bank of Nigeria on Thursday admonished students and management of tertiary institutions in the country to adopt the e-Naira for payment of tuition fees, salaries, and other transactions in view of its benefits.

The Assistant Director, CBN Ekiti State Branch, Ayodeji Adeboboye, said that e-Naira remained “a viable alternative payment platform to physical cash transaction and should be utilised by all Nigerians for hitch-free and cost-effective transactions.”

Adeboboye, who spoke during a sensitisation drive on e-Naira wallet by CBN at Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere-Ekiti, said the exercise was to sensitise the students and other stakeholders on the need to embrace the platform.

He said, “Every financial transaction such as payment of school fees by students, payment of staff salaries, and buying and selling within the school community can be done seamlessly through the e-Naira wallet.

“The time has come for all Nigerians to key into the e-Naira wallet because of its numerous advantages. Other countries have gone beyond cash payment and are now using electronic payments”, Adeboboye said.

CBN e-Naira Consultant, Izuchukwu Nwankpa, said that “e-Naira offers financial inclusion and helps tackle corruption and money laundering as well as improve the efficiency of the financial system.

Nwankpa encouraged the university community and other stakeholders to embrace the alternative platform, which he said “is cost-effective, safe, secure, user-friendly and effective”.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, BOUESTI, Dr Veronica Makinde, lauded the CBN for the initiative and assured of the institution’s support in promoting the use of the e-Naira.

Makinde said, “We will be ready to key into the e-Naira initiative as it will assist in saving our students the risk of carrying cash and help reduce students’ complaints of bank bottlenecks, theft, and loss of tuition and other sundry fees”.

INEC to Conduct 2023 Post-Election Review July 4

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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June 22, 2023

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The Independent National Electoral Commission has resolved to conduct a post-election review of the 2023 general election in line with its practice over the years on July 4, 2023.

This was contained in a statement signed by the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye on Thursday.

Recall that Nigeria held its general election on February 25, 2023.

Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress was declared the winner by INEC, defeating the Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and Peter Obi of the Labour Party.

However, Atiku and Obi, who did not accept defeat headed to the court.

However, according to Okoye, the review will involve the Commission’s officials at the National and State levels as well as stakeholders to learn lessons and chart the way forward.

The statement read in part “The review will commence with a meeting of the Resident Electoral Commissioners on 4th July 2023 and end with the Commission’s retreat on 5th August 2023.

“At the State level, the internal review will involve the Commission’s regular and ad hoc staff, including RECs, the 774 Electoral Officers, Heads of Departments, Administrative Secretaries as well as some Presiding Officers and Collation/Returning Officers.

“The external engagement will involve critical stakeholders such as political parties, security agencies, election observers, the media and service providers such as transporters that facilitated the movement of personnel and materials for the election.

“The review will focus on all aspects of the electoral activities before, during and after the elections. Specifically, the Commission welcomes actionable recommendations from stakeholders towards strengthening institutional capacity for the discharge of its responsibilities and the enhancement of processes and procedures.”

A detailed schedule of activities and timelines will be released immediately after the meeting with RECs on 4th July 2023.

The commission reviews meetings after every general election since 2011.