MEDIA
Amobi, Pedro, Owumi, Ajunwa Others For Sportsville Award Honours
Organizers of the annual Sportsville Special Recognition Awards have unveiled the shortlist for the 5th edition coming up in Lagos on Friday, March 21st, 2025.
A release signed by the Secretary of the Awards Committee, Matthew Okugbe, shows that over 21 sports personalities and corporate organisations will be honoured in five categories.
In the Icon Category, the late Chief Okoya Thomas leads other four prominent sports gurus including Rotimi Pedro, Yemi Idowu, Osa Adun and Olympian Chioma Ajunwa.
Enugu Rangers’ General Manager, Ezeaku Amobi, emerges the Sports Administrator of the Year while Fanny Amun leads other nine personalities in the Special Recognition Category.
The list also includes:
Gafar Liameed, Chairman of Lagos State Football Association and Proprietor, of 36 Lions FC, Emmanuel Osahon, Proprietor, FC Robo, Amb Sunny Osayande, Managing Director, Big Joe Motors and Giadomeneco Masari, President Nigeria Cycling Federation.
Others are Coach Terry Eguaoje, Kingsley Awodi, MD Afrikings Homes, Prince Paul Ngadiuba, and Prof Florence Adeyanju, President of Nigeria Women in Sports (NAWIS).
In the Innovative Category, the initiator of the first-ever boxing league in Nigeria, the YUCATECO Boxing League, Yakubu Omolei Imadu, easily stands out while the NPFL Chief Operating Officer Davison Owumi joins Chris Green in the Achievers Category.
In the Corporate Category, Peculiar Ultimate and 1 x Bet are listed while the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo, clinches the Sports Facilities of the Year award.
The Chairman of the Award Committee, Adekunle Salami, the Deputy Editor of Saturday Telegraph Newspaper, said the Award committee would not compromise on its credibility in picking the awardees hence the meticulous process of shortlisting those to be honoured.
“This Award is about honouring those who have contributed to the growth and development of sports in Nigeria over the years and I am happy that the committee has once again highlighted individuals and corporate bodies who have truly made an impact in Nigerian sports.
“I must say here that the process that threw up the above names has been meticulous.
“As we look forward to another exciting ceremony in March, I want to thank my committee members for their time and total commitment to this cause.”
An excited CEO of Sportsville, Frank Ilaboya, promised that this year’s event would be an upgrade to the previous ones.
“This is the 5th edition, and we are excited to hear and read positive comments about the Awards. Sportsville Special Recognition Awards is anchored on credibility, and we will continue to protect this.
“I want to thank the Award Committee led by the indefatigable Adekunle Salami for doing a great job.
“From the look of things, we are set for another glamorous event come on Friday, March 21st at the Prestigious Eko Club,” Ilaboya stated.
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Dr Patrice Motsepe, who was returned unopposed as CAF president on Wednesday in Cairo, has had his first term in office documented.
According to the CAF publication, Motsepe will build on the extensive progress he made during his first term to make African Football globally competitive.
Dr Motsepe’s objective when he first took office in March 2021 was to make African Football self-sustaining and drive growth in several different spheres. The last four years have seen CAF move its development agenda forward at pace with many historic firsts.
These achievements are contained in a publication to mark Dr Motsepe’s first four years as President, titled, ‘The Growth and Success of African Football Continues’, which media can download here
The magazine walks us through Dr Motsepe’s 10-point plan when he took office, and the wide-ranging advances that have been made towards reaching and surpassing his objectives.
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The Organisers of the annual Sportsville Special Recognition Awards have announced a new date for the ceremony.
The award ceremony will now come up on Thursday, April 3rd, 2025, at the same Eko Club venue
Frank Ilaboya, the Chief Executive Officer of Sportsville, announced the change in a release issued this morning.
“Yes, the ceremony will now hold on the 3rd of April. The earlier date of March 21st, coincides with the Super Eagles World Cup qualifying match against Rwanda in Kigali.
“We all know how important that fixture is to Nigeria and Nigerians and it’s only fair for us, as stakeholders in Nigerian sports, to join others to support our Eagles.
“Besides the huge support for the Eagles, many of our Awardees and top dignitaries have also called to inform us of their trip to Kigali to be part of the historic match.
“Based on the above, the Organising Committee decided to shift the ceremony to April 3rd, 2025.
“We have also communicated this to the awardees and our invited guests to kindly bear with us on this unavoidable change while regretting any inconvenience this might have caused them,” Ilaboya added.
This year’s ceremony, the 5th in the series, will be held under the Chairmanship of Arise TV Anchor, Oseni Rufai with the rave making Cricket Federation President, Dr Uyi Akpata, as the Sports Personality of the Year.
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The initiator and financier of the first-ever boxing league in Africa, Omolei Imadu, is happy that his noble efforts at reviving Nigerian boxing are getting the required attention.
Imadu, who was reacting to his nomination as the Sportsville Innovative Personality of The Year, said he cherishes recognition from reputable organisations like Sportsville.
“I want to thank Sportsville for this recognition. I never saw it coming. For a reputable organisation like Sportsville to recognise our efforts in less than two years of operations means a lot”.
“You can understand why I cherish this award. It’s a big motivation for me and my team”.
“I want to assure you that the best of the Yucateco Boxing League is yet to come.
“We are determined to bring the glory days to Nigerian boxing and appreciation like this will continue to motivate people like us,” says the President of the Boxing Promoters Association Of Nigeria (BPAN)”.
Yucateco Boxing Promotions under Imadu’s leadership started the first ever boxing league in Nigeria two years ago and today the country’s boxing ecosystem is agog.
Boxers and officials continue to heap praises on the outfits CEO Imadu for his innovation saying that Nigerian boxing will witness a new lease of life.
In the words of Babatunde Ajose, Commonwealth Boxing Champion.
“Yucateco has brought the vibes back to boxing and the boxing community is grateful to him.
“From what we have seen of the boxing league, very soon, it will compete with the football league in Nigeria.
“The followership has been massive, big kudos to the financier and initiator Imadu for doing this for our beloved nation”.
“If we have people like him at the helms of affairs of boxing, the sky will be our beginning,’” he added.
Imadu is the second Nigerian to win the Prestigious Sportsville Innovative Award, created to reward and appreciate excellence and creativity.
Jenkins Alumona, the Managing Director of Flykite Promotion won the award last year for coming up with the highly successful Super 8 League held in Lagos.
Meanwhile, the organisers have listed award-winning referee, Linus Mba, Marketing guru, Rotimi Pedro, Sunny Osa Adun, the Founder of Nigeria’s first ever Sports TV Station and Nigeria’s only individual Olympic gold medallist, Chioma Ajunwa-Oparah to receive awards in the Icon Category.
This year’s ceremony comes up on Friday, the 21st of March, 2025 at the Eko Club, Surulere Lagos
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