By Maxwell Kumoye
National Sports Commission (NSC) chairman, Shehu Dikko, has feted members of the victorious Team Nigeria to the 15th Pan African Scrabble Championship in Kigali, Rwanda.
Speaking Friday when the team paid him a courtesy call at his office in Abuja, Dikko said the team’s success at the African scrabble tournament was the first he would behold as chairman of the NSC.
Team Nigeria won the top honours in the male, female individual categories and the overall team title at the Championship attended by 92 players from 11 countries.
Oluwatimilehin Doko won the diadem ahead of two other Nigerians George Ezinore and Noble Onoshevwe while Delta born Tuoyo Mayuku was the best female and Adebisi Adekansi was second.
Nigeria also retained the team title for the 15th time in a row while Doko a graduate of pharmacy at the University of Lagos became the youngest winner of the male’s crown at age 24, it’s the 14th time Nigeria is winning the male event.
The elated NSC chairman told the team that the Sports Commission is very proud of their achievements and he promised that they will support the team in their future outings.
“I’m very impressed with the team’s performance. You know we are very new but from my personal earnings, I will give the team two million naira as a token of appreciation for being the first national Federation to win continental honours for the National Sports Commission,” Dikko said.
While preparing for the Championship, former Sports Minister John Owan Enoh told the team he had no dime to give to them. Concerned Nigerians, some financially endowed players and federation have to task themselves to sponsor the 37-man team to Kigali. This is not the first time the defunct Sports Ministry will shun the team citing lack of funds for major Scrabble Championships.
The Nigeria Scrabble Federation (NSF), will also be presenting the trophies won by Team Nigeria to the Nigeria Senate President, God’swill Akpabio who is the grand patron of Nigeria Scrabble Federation.
The Nigeria Scrabble Federation (NSF) on arrival from Kigali, Rwanda told the media they are dedicating the victory to the Senate President for his contribution to the growth and development of the mind game in Nigeria and the continent.
