By Victor Okoye
Abuja, Aug. 31, 2024 (NAN) Some Tennis enthusiasts at the City Sports Club, Abuja have harped on the need for grassroots development of the sport, to help discover and nurture talents for the future of the game in the country.
A cross section of tennis enthusiasts made the call on the sidelines of a One-day Interactive Tennis Tournament organised to commemorate the 80th birthday of Pa Eugene Iwuh, held at the Temporary Club House, Police Officers Mess, Garki 2, Abuja.
The Vice President of the City Sports Club, Abuja, Mr. Sylvester Uzoama, while wishing Pa Iwuh a happy 80th birthday, said the club would not relent in its quest to foster the growth of the game from the scratch, while also emphasing on the benefits of playing tennis at leisure.
“Tennis is a game for longevity. It’s a mixture of sweat, wellness, and brain power.
“Those are kind of mixture that would allow you to survive the tumultuous nature of life.
“We can borrow a leaf from Pa Iwuh, who is still playing at the age of 80.
“So, as a Club, we dedicate part of our time to the grassroots, where the children come to learn, while our coaches guide them through the rudiments of the game.
“This is something we do as a growing concern,” he said.
Captain of the club, Chukwunonso Nwabueze said the One-day interactive session was also meant to create awareness on the need for corporate entities and well-meaning individuals to invest in tennis.
“Most importantly, it’s for us to drive home the need for the country to also invest more in the game of Tennis.
“Tennis is one of the sports that used to make Nigeria proud in the 70s and 80s.
“We had the likes of Nduka Odizor, Kylian Nwokedi, David Imonite, Sule Ladipo, Sadiq Abdullahi, Tony Mmoh, to mention a few. These were the guys that inspired the glory days of Nigeria Tennis.
“Unfortunately, since the days of these Nigerian tennis greats, the country has hardly produced any player making it to the ATP rankings.
“But, we are not losing hope as this kind of interaction will bring awareness about what we do as a club in terms of grassroots development of Tennis in the FCT and will hopefully encourage other well-meaning Nigerians to also invest in the sports,” he said.
The celebrant, High Chief Eugene Iwuh who commended the Nigeria Tennis Federation for a job well done so far, charged the federation to go back to the grassroots.
“We need to go back to the grassroots and fish out talents because therein lies the future of the sports.
“Part of the issues we encountered at the Olympics was the fact that most of the athletes and players we sent to represent us were overage.
“So, they couldn’t last long. It’s not rocket science. You simply can not give what you don’t have, and that was exactly the result we got; not a single medal won for Nigeria with all the huge funds released by the federal government.
“It’s a shame that with all the young sporting talents that abound in this country, we still have to depend on overage athletes to win medals for us at the Olympics,” he said.
The Chairman of the Organising Committee and a BOT member of the Club, Dipo Obanewa equally used Pa Eugene popularly known as a “Professor of Tennis” as reference point in emphasising the importance of sports to the mental and physical well-being of an individual.
Obanewa encouraged those who were not engaged in any sporting activity especially the game of Tennis, to get actively involved.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Anthony Udoh of the City Sports Club, Abuja emerged winner of the tournament with 11 points.
Also, John Kekeocha of the City Sports Club, Abuja finished second on 10 points, while Brenda Bassey of Abuja Country Club and Obibia Edere of the City Sports Club, Abuja finished joint third on nine points.
Other highlights of the event saw PA Eugene Iwuh being honoured as a Super Veterans Champion by the City Sports Club, Abuja for his contributions toward the growth and development of the game of tennis in the Club and Nigeria, in general.(NAN)
