Category: Sports

Sports

Kenya’s Cherono Wins Boston Marathon in Sprint to Tape

By Jimmy Golen

The two-time Boston Marathon champion turned onto Boylston Street with a sliver of a lead, leaning in front of two others with the finish line in sight.

But one of them was Lawrence Cherono, the fastest man in the field.

And he needed every bit of his speed.

Cherono outkicked Lelisa Desisa and passed him just steps away from the tape, winning the 123rd Boston Marathon in 2 hours, 7 minutes 57 seconds on Monday to claim his first major victory.

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Sports

Nigeria remains undeterred by Canada defeat

By Samuel Ahmadu

The Super Falcons suffered their first defeat to the North Americans in a friendly but their gaffer is unfazed by the latest setback.

Thomas Dennerby is untroubled by Nigeriawomen’s setback following a 2-1 defeat to Canada in a friendly at Pinatar Arena.

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Sports

Ghanaians celebrate Kofi Kingstons, WWE victory

Ghanaian-American wrestler Kofi Kingston made history at WWE’s biggest annual calendar event Wrestlemania 35 which took place at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday.

Squaring off against Daniel Bryan in a very feisty, entertaining and roller-coaster encounter, the veteran came up tops after finishing off Bryan with his signature Trouble in Paradise move to clinch the highly coveted WWE Championship.

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Education, Sports

Long journey for American International College runner from Kenya

By Garry Brown

Leakey Kipkosgei, who came to American International College from Kenya, has had quite a career as a long-distance runner on coach Leo Mayo’s track and field team.

As a junior in 2018, he placed third in the steeplechase at the NCAA Division II nationals, and made the All-America first team.

Prior to that, he received male track athlete of the year honors after winning the 1,500 and steeplechase in the Northeast-10 meet.

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Sports

Efe Obada: The Nigerian NFL star abandoned on London’s streets at age of 10

By Tom Reynolds BBC Sport

“Apparently if you want to book it you have to say: ‘The Efe Obada room please.’ That’s really cool.

“If someone’s in there, I’ll just kick them out…”

Efe Obada is joking about the meeting room we are about to enter at the NFL’s UK headquarters in central London.

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People, Sports

‘The Greek Freak’ wants to go back to his Nigerian roots

Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo opens up about his African upbringing

By Marc J. Spears

“The Greek Freak” can’t wait to go learn more about his roots.

His roots in Lagos, Nigeria.

“Obviously, a lot of people don’t know where I’m from,” Milwaukee Bucks All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo told The Undefeated.

“A lot of people think my mom or my dad are from Greece, but no. Both of my parents are black. Both of my parents are Nigerian.”

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Sports

Barno of Kenya, Merachi of Ethiopia win Los Angeles Marathon

John Korir thought he was going to join his brother as a winner of the Los Angeles Marathon. But the Kenyan saw his chances of victory on Sunday pass him by within view of the finish line.

Elisha Barno of Kenya passed his countryman with 150 meters to go for the closest finish in the race’s 34-year history. Barno — who won the race for the second time in three years — crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 11 minutes, 46 seconds and beat Korir by seven seconds.

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People, Sports

The best player in the NBA is “Nigerian” but most Nigerians have no idea who he is

By Yomi Kazeem

Nigerian sports fans love nothing more than bragging rights. It’s why, beyond celebrating their national teams and athletes, they are also typically quick to “claim” (or “famz,” in local parlance) any sports star with even a hint of Nigerian heritage.

It’s why Anthony Joshua, the world heavyweight boxing champion, is a huge star in Nigeria with a major “Naija” brand TV campaign for a local mobile operator even though he competes for Britain. It’s not restricted to mainstream sports either: last week, when Kamaru Usman, a Nigerian-American notched a historic Ultimate Fighting Championship win, it was a trending topic in Nigerian social media circles.

But so far, there has been no similar levels of “Naija” affinity for basketball star Giannis Antetokounmpo, one of this year’s leading favorites for the NBA’s coveted Most Valuable Player award. Antetokounmpo, born in Greece to Nigerian immigrants, has been the driving force of a Milwaukee Bucks team that holds the league’s best record and has confounded critics.

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Sports

U.S. names five Kenyans in team for World Cross Country Championships

United States named up to five Kenyans in its team to Aarhus, Denmark as the battle for World Cross Country Championship medals heats up.

The USA cross country champion and Rio Olympics 10,000 meters’ champion Shadrack Kipchirchir is in a 28-person star-studded team that will take part in the event in Aarhus, Denmark.

The Kenyan born runner will be flanked by 2018 US cross-country champion Leonard Korir, Hillary Bor, Stanley Kebenei and Emmanuel Bor. The senior men’s team will have only one US-born athlete in the name of Mason Ferlic.

Three of the five Kenyan athletes serve in the US Army with Emmanuel Bor and Leonard Korir are Sergeants while Hillary Bor is a Staff Sergent.

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Sports

Major League Soccer: African representation bolstered by new signings

By Mark Gleeson

When the new season of Major League Soccer kicks off at the weekend, all but three of the 24 teams in the north American league will have representation from Africa.

A total of 44 players are drawn from 19 different countries and do not include the players of African heritage who have gone on to play for either Canada or the United States at national team or junior level.

It is a significant representation for the continent whose numbers have been bolstered by several high profile signings.

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Sports

“Nigerian nightmare,” Kamaru Usman, becomes first African UFC champion

Kamaru Usman has become the first African fighter to win a Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) title.

He won the mixed-martial arts (MMA) bout against American Tyron Woodley.

The fighter, known as the “Nigerian Nightmare”, dominated the Las Vegas contest for the welterweight title.

The UFC is the biggest competition in MMA, where competitors combine boxing, kickboxing, jiu-jitsu, wrestling and other disciplines while fighting in an octagonal cage.

Usman, 31, produced the performance of his career to dominate long-reigning welterweight champion Woodley.

He extended his winning streak to 14 and maintained his unbeaten record in the UFC.

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News, Sports

Ghanaian-American CJ Sapong joins MLS club Chicago Fire

The Chicago based club have announced the signing of the deadly goal poacher ahead of the new Major League Soccer season.

American-born of Ghanaian descent Charles ‘CJ’ Nana Kwabena Sapong has completed his move to MLS side Chicago Fire in the ongoing transfer window.

The 30-year-old has joined the Fire club for the 2019 season around a transfer fee of $200,000 with an option of renewal.He featured for Philadelphia Union last season where he netted four goals with three assists in 33 appearances.

“We also believe that he will increase our scoring capabilities. We’re looking forward to working with him this season.”

He was born to Ghanaian parents in USA.

 

Sports

Before basketball in Woodbury, Oturus were playing ping pong in Nigeria

Word is starting to spread across the Big Ten basketball scene this winter about Daniel Oturu. He’s making people notice, on and off the court.

The Gophers basketball team’s 6-foot-10 freshman center from Woodbury, Minn., and Cretin-Derham Hall made the short trip to the U as one of the nation’s top recruits in the 2018 class. And through 25 games, he has established himself as one of the most promising young players in the conference.

Oturu’s size, including a 7-foot-3 wingspan, comes from his 6-foot-1 mother Deborah, and his athleticism comes from his 5-foot-6 father Francis, who was a member of Nigeria’s top table tennis team in the 1980s.

He was born Akinfayose Daniel Oturu in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1999 to Nigerian immigrants who arrived in the U.S. in 1990.Daniel has shown a precocious poise around the basket in his first collegiate season, leading Big Ten freshmen in field goal percentage (56.5), as well as rebounds (7.3) and blocks (1.6) per game. But with a pingpong paddle in hand, he can’t hang with his 61-year-old dad.

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Sports

NBA and FIBA announce plan to launch professional basketball league in Africa

The National Basketball Association (NBA) and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) on Saturday announced their plan to launch the Basketball Africa League (BAL), a new professional league featuring 12 club teams from across Africa.

The BAL will be built on the foundation of current club competitions FIBA is organizing in Africa. Scheduled to begin play in January 2020, the BAL would mark the NBA’s first collaboration to operate a league outside of North America.

The NBA also announced its plan to introduce a re-imagined direct-to-consumer offering of NBA games for fans in Africa by the start of the 2019-20 NBA season. The offering would include new packages, features and localized content, with additional details to be announced at a later date.

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