Written By: Olaleye Oluwadamilola, Lagos
All is set for the 5th edition of the President Beach Volleyball Cup billed to be held from 12th to 21st April 2024 at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium (ABS) in Kaduna state.
According to the Technical Representative of Nigeria Volleyball Federation, Chief Martin Melandi, the President Beach Volleyball Cup will be the first official beach volleyball program of the year.
Melandi revealed that the success of the women’s team at the 13th African Games in Ghana has consolidated the efforts of the current board led by Engineer Musa Nimrod in transforming the game in Nigeria.
The former International Referee said the President Cup will help prepare the athletes for a series of International Championships coming up later in the year including the Olympics Qualifiers.
He said, “The President Beach Cup is coming late due to the African Games in March. The Federation had a series of camps after the 3rd phase of the 2023 Nigeria Beach Volleyball Tour and before the Federal Ministry of Sports Development called for their general camp.
“The President Cup has provided a platform for junior and senior players to play against themselves as well as create an avenue for mentorship.
“This year is going to be busy because we have a series of international championships including the African U17 and U21 Championships, the African Senior Beach Volleyball Championships, and most importantly the Paris 2024 Olympics Qualifiers.
“We narrowly missed the Olympics in 2016 and 2020 where we finished second position. The Federation is going to deploy everything within its powers to create an enabling environment for the athletes to train including training tours within Sub-Saharan Africa.
“The Nigeria Beach Volleyball Commission is excited because the country won a bronze medal at the 13th African Games after nine years. The set of players are still young and we believe they will also make the country proud when they reach the zenith”.
Melandi said the Nigeria Volleyball Federation will continue to be a role model for other countries in the region.
“Nigeria has dominated West Africa in the junior and senior categories, and it is evident at the 13th African Games in Ghana.We are the big brother of other nations and Nigeria is not going to back down in discovering more beach volleyball players who will rule Africa”, he added.
Source: www.thenewindependentonline.com
