Furusiyya 2015 Series Gets Off To A Flying Start With Six-Nation Contest In Florida

Ocala in Florida, USA joins the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping circuit when the 2015 season gets underway this Friday 13 February. The first leg of the series, which has revitalised and reinvigorated the sport of team Jumping since Furusiyya took up title sponsorship in 2012, has attracted six countries and a sparkling line-up of riders including a crack squad from the host nation.

And, just three years after the introduction of a new format for this much-loved competition which originated over a century ago, pre-season excitement is at an all-time high as horse-and-rider combinations from 45 nations prepare to participate in 20 thrilling qualifying legs all around the globe.

Staged a year ahead of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping 2015 series will be a valuable testing ground for athletes and horses and, once again, competitors from six regions will battle it out ahead of the Final which will be held at the Real Club de Polo in Barcelona (ESP) in September.

First event

Ocala presents the first competition in the three-leg North America, Central America and Caribbean League. Organised by the New York-based events management company HITS, Inc., the Florida fixture will feature teams from Canada, Colombia, Ireland, Mexico, USA and Venezuela, but only the Canadians, Mexicans and Americans will be eligible for qualifying points in their region.

And the home runners promise to be a tough act to beat, headed up by super-star Beezie Madden whose packed trophy cabinet includes multiple Olympic and World Championship medals. The 51-year-old rider, currently number 12 in the Longines Rankings, brings the horse with which she won the 2013 FEI World Cup™ Jumping title, Simon, and will be joined by Laura Kraut, Lauren Hough, Georgina Bloomberg and Todd Minikus.

It is always a big battle between the Americans and Canadians in this league, and with 2008 Olympic gold medallist Eric Lamaze, and the extraordinary 11-time Olympian Ian Millar in action, the Canadians are unlikely to be a push-over.

The competition gets underway at 13.00 local time, and promises to get the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping 2015 series off to great start.

Team USA won the Challenge Cup at the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping Final 2014 in Barcelona, Spain today (L to R) Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland with Margie Engle, Beezie Madden, Lauren Hough and McLain Ward. (FEI/Dirk Caremans)

Single qualifier

The second leg will take place in Abu Dhabi (UAE) a week later, and this single qualifier for the Middle East region is open to teams from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar and the UAE. The remaining two leagues, Europe Division 1 and Europe Division 2, get underway in April and May respectively.

Lummen in Belgium launches the premier Europe Division 1 league, and once again this will be contested by teams from 10 countries: Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. And of course all eyes will be on the Dutch, who swept to victory at the 2014 Furusiyya Final just a few short weeks after claiming gold at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Normandy (FRA). Dutch riders have been on a roll for some time now, and it will be fascinating to witness the strategy of their popular Chef d’Equipe, Rob Ehrens, who will be hoping to follow through with another strong result this year while also thinking ahead to the Olympic challenge of 2016.

Most competitive

Europe Division 2 is also an eight-round affair, but what makes this the most competitive league of all is the high-octane pressure of trying to finish as one of the top two nations from a start-list of 16 ambitious countries. Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Turkey and Ukraine will all be battling it out through heated afternoons from the outset at Linz (AUT) until the final leg at Arezzo (ITA).

The leading country at the end of this series will be promoted to Europe Division 1 for the following year, but while the second-placed team will earn a place at the Furusiyya Final in Barcelona only a top-eight finishing spot there will allow them to also earn promotion.

Allocation of teams to Europe Division 1 and Europe Division 2 events has been finalised, and you can check out the detail at this link http://goo.gl/EUDnnX

Sweden, France, Belgium, Ireland and Italy will all be hunting down early points at the opening leg of Europe Division 1 in Lummen on 1 May, while The Netherlands will begin the defense of their title at the second round in La Baule (FRA) two weeks later.

This week, however, Ocala in Florida will set the stage for another much-anticipated season of top-quality and thrilling team sport.

LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION! Riders from around the globe in Barcelona for the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping Final draw inspiration from the iconic Piscina Municipal de Montjuïc, home of the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Diving Finals, with its magnificent city backdrop. [L-R], Simone Coata (ITA), Alexander Zetterman (SWE), Andres Rodrigez (VEN), William Whitaker (GBR), Julia Hargreaves (AUS), Ben Asselin (CAN), Pedro Vennis (BRA), Margie Engle (USA), Simon Delestre (FRA), Paula Amilibia (ESP) and Dirk Demeersman (BEL). (Jude Edginton /FEI)

Facts and Figures:

The FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping series celebrates 106 years of team competition in 2015.

The forthcoming season comprises 20 qualifiers in as many countries.

A total of 45 nations will compete in the qualifying rounds.

Qualifying events will take place in four regions – Europe Division 1 & Europe Division 2, North America, Central America & Caribbean and Middle East.

There will be eight qualifying legs in Europe Division 1 and 2, three in the North America, Central America & Caribbean region and a single event in the Middle East.

The Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping Final will once again take place at the Real Club de Polo in Barcelona (ESP), venue for the Jumping events during the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992.

A total of 18 teams, plus the home team if not qualified, will compete at the Final which will take place from 24 to 27 September 2015.

A total of six nations will compete at the season-opener in Ocala (USA) – Canada, Colombia, Ireland, Mexico, USA and Venezuela. Only Canada, Mexico and USA will be competing for qualifying points.

The 10 teams qualified for Europe Division 1 this season are Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Watchmakers, Longines, are the official timekeepers for the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup™ Jumping series.

Furusiyya finalised a 16 million Euro four-year sponsorship package with the FEI in November 2012.

Louise Parkes

Warri Wolves Off To Burkina Faso For CAF Confedertions Cup First Leg

Warri Wolves Football Club will depart the Oil city for Lagos on Wednesday and further depart for Burkina Faso on Thursday to begin their campaign in the CAF Confederation Cup competition.

In a brief release made available to Sports Writers in Warri by the Media Manager, Etu Moses, the team made up of 18 players and 9 officials will leave Lagos by 15.00 hours.

According to Etu, the team has been in closed camping in Otu-Jeremi, in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State after the Super Six in Abuja where the Coaches led by Paul Aigbogun have been perfecting their strategies for this crucial match.

Etu further revealed that some of the players that will make the trip are Goalkeepers Daniel Akpeyi and Okiemute Odah, Goodluck Onamado, Eyimofe Joseph, Semiu Liadi who joined from Enyimba, Monday Osagie, Oke Ogagotewho and Ibenegbu Ikechukwu.

Others are Micheal Egbeta, Michael Okoyoh, Joseph Osadiaye, Stanley Dimgba, Abu Azeez and Bright Akpojuvwewo.

Warri Wolves bus

Also, some of the team’s U-23 players like Ichull Lordson, Austin Amutu, Omoforman Freedom and Achibi Ewenike have been released and may make the team depending on the Coach’s plan.

Etu however disclosed that Oghenekaro Etebo was not released because the National team Coaches sent a word that he is nursing an injury.

Speaking on the match, Coach Paul Aigbogun expressed the confidence that his wards would would do the nation proud and he called on Nigerians to pray for them.

Festus Austin Returns To Training

Dolphins hard tackling central defender, Festus Austin says he is back training and is ready to get back on the pitch with the club once again.

Austin cracked his shin during a league game against Warri Wolves last year, two games after he returned from a yearlong injury.

He had cracked the same shin two years ago in a league game and was out of action for one year; then he returned for a league game in Enugu against Rangers International before cracking the shin one game later in Warri against Warri Wolves

“I have started training on my own and I am right now waiting for the team doctor to give me the go ahead to join the players on the pitch.

Dolphins Defender, Festus Austin

“I will meet with him soon. I have just started gym work because I need to gain some strength pending when the doctor confirms I can go into full training,” Festus said.

The former Bendel Insurance defender said he first feared for his career when he was being taken off the pitch last year on a stretcher.

“I was not happy when I first got injured and when I was taken off again, I thought it was the same fracture that reoccurred

“I later found out it was the same leg but not on the same place so I relaxed a bit because I knew what I went through with the first one,” Austin said

Festus Austin joined Dolphins from Bendel Insurance in 2008 as 4th in the center back order behind Tochukwu Okolie, Chimezie Nzewi and Emah Godwin but he soon started playing regularly, took a first team shirt and became a main stay in the Dolphins defence.

Organisers Hike Prize money For Lagos ITTF World Tour

To attract more world class players to this year’s International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour tagged Lagos Open, the organizers have hiked the prize money from $39,000 (N7.8m) to $46,000 (N9.2m).

Also, the events to be competed fro have been increased to six from four. For this year’s tournament, players will compete in singles (men and women), doubles (men and women) as well as U-21 boys and girls.

The five-day competition will take place at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of Teslim Balogun in Lagos and it will serve off on March 10 to 14.

The ITTF ranking event will help players taking part amass points for their world rating in March

According to the prospectus released by ITTF on its website, Egypt’s Nabil Almamoon and Algeria’s Mounir Bessah have been named the referee and competition manager respectively while Nigeria’s Lajide Oluranti is the tournament director.

More players from Africa and Europe have also signified their intention to be part of the championship, which has been entrenched in the ITTF calendar.
Also, the current ITTF Star Player, Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri and Africa’s most decorated table tennis player, Segun Toriola have confirmed their participation in the tournament while home-based stars like Kazeem Makanjuola, Hameed Adeyinka and Rashidat Ogundele will also be part of the competition.

Plans are in top gear by the organizers to stage a befitting tournament just like it has done in the two previous editions, which were adjudged one of the best organized Pro Tours in the ITTF calendar.

Pinnick Sends Goodwill Message To Golden Eaglets

The President of Nigeria Football Federation(NFF), Mr. Amaju Pinnick, has told the Golden Eaglets to be fearless in their quest to conquer the continent at the 11th African Under-17 Championship which kick-off on Sunday in Niamey.

The Nigeria’s Under-17 team last won the trophy in 2007 and nearly went all the way in Morocco the last time in 2013 only to lose to Junior Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire via 5-4 penalty shoot-out after 1-1 draw.

In a goodwill message delivered to the team yesterday by Chairman of Chairmen, Alhaji Musa Ibrahim Gusau, on behalf of the board and management of the NFF, Mr. Pinnick was quoted as saying that the present team is on the threshold of history if they can conquer the continent again.

” You have a big task ahead of you because you are the team to beat in Niger because as the defending champions of the Under-17 World Cup, no team would take it easy with you ” Gusau told players and officials of the team after watching their training at the Giginya Memorial Stadium.” The President asked me to come and let you know that we are solidly behind you; and we are confident that you would do well at the championship in Niger.”

NFF President, Amaju Pinnick

He informed that Mr. Pinnick was unavoidably absent to see the team in Sokoto due to other engagements but has promised to be in Niamey in the later stages of the competition.

“We believe in you and though the president cannot come here to watch your trainings, he is confident that you would go far in Niger and by the grace of God, he would be with you later to give his support,” he explained.

Gusau further advised the players on total commitment to the task and also encouraged them to listen to the instructions of their coaches following their selection after a long and difficult process.

In his response, Coach Emmanuel Amuneke thanked the NFF under the leadership of Mr. Pinnick, saying his wards are rearing to go all the way at Niger 2015 : ” We are not going to make many promises but on behalf of this team, Insha Allah (by the grace of God), we shall bring smiles to the faces of Nigerians.”

Golden Eaglets pay rapt attention

..Team to stay at Royal Palace Hotel

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has revealed that the Golden Eaglets would be accommodated at Royal Palace Hotel during their campaign at the 11th African U-17 Championship in Niger.

The newly-built is reportedly a four-star facility and the NFF has already secured rooms for the team after thorough inspection by Director of Competitions, Dr. Muhammed Sanusi.

According to him, the Royal Palace Hotel is tidy and within close proximity to the Stade Général Seyni Kountché (SGSK) multi-purpose stadium where Golden Eaglets will play their first two matches against host Niger and Guinea on February 15 and 18 respectively.

“The NFF is doing the best to ensure there won’t be any hitch when you travel to Niamey and we have secured your accommodation at the Royal Palace Hotel,” informed Sanusi.” In fact, we are very lucky since you are going to be the only team to be accommodated there after the ballot for hotels were made in Equatorial Guinea by CAF.

“I’m confident you won’t to have much difficulty even with the weather since coming to Sokoto has provided you the opportunity to acclimatise before going to Niamey,” added Sanusi.

Meanwhile, the Local Organising committee of Niger 2015 has appointed Haruna as the Team Liaison officer (TLO) to the Golden Eaglets. Haruna reportedly has close affinity with Nigerians after playing for Lobi Stars and Kano Pillars in the past.

2015 Lagos State FA Cup Registration Closes With 32 Clubs Vieing for the Trophy.

As the deadline for registration for this season’s Lagos State FA Cup came to a close yesterday, only 32 Men’s clubs and 3 Women’s clubs met the deadline.

Onikan Stadium,Lagos

According to the Chairman of the Technical Committee of the Lagos State FA, Dotun Coker.

Coker stated that although registration has closed, there is still room for the Clubs that did not meet the deadline for registration according to the Timeline released by the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF.

He revealed that the championship will kick-off on the 7th of next month across the state with the finals coming up on the 5th of April, 2015.

Coker also confirmed that according to the Timeline from the NFF, late registration for clubs will start on the 16th of this month through to the 18th.

However 23rd to 25th of February, 2015 as been scheduled for submission of completed forms and player’s licenses, with 28th of this month to 4th of March as the grace period for final submission of completed forms and players licenses.

He disclosed that the date and venue for the draws for the Championship that has Winners Golden Bets as sponsors will be released very soon.

AS Racine football club are the defending champions for the Men, while FC Robo are the defending champions for Women.

Marketing Commission Fields A New Era For African Volleyball

The African Volleyball Confederation “CAVB” Marketing Commission fielded a new era of projects ahead in its first ever meeting in the history of African Volleyball in Cairo, Egypt on Monday.

The meeting was attended by CAVB President Dr Amr Elwani who opened his speech stressing the commission members to work according to the big technologic changes occurring in whole world now.

“We need to work properly on TV as a main marketing factor now,because it will attract the kids at early age to the sport and bring more sponsors to volleyball,” Elwani said.

“The Social Media has become also a very important tool for our marketing as it did during the 2014 World Championships, and has now to get a prominent role in our strategy.” He added

“The Commission President showed the frequent attempts of the marketing since 20013 even before it has become a separate commission. She also presented the Strategic Planning for marketing and how to use the modern tools to grow.

CAVB” Marketing Commission

The commission then put a short tem plan for 6 months and a long term one for 2 years.

The short term strategy includes reviewing of the excising vision and mission structure, Core value development, TV rights, social media and redesign of the CAVB Logo to a more dynamic one.

The project will be presented to the CAVB Board on March 1 and 2, 2015 for approval.

CAVB web site: http://www.cavb.org
Twitter: CAVB Tweets
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CAVBVolleyball
YouTube: CAVB Video
Instagram: CAVB_ volleyball

11th AJC: NFF Tidies Up Arrangements For Eaglets’ Successful Campaign

In its determination to ensure a very successful for the U-17 National Team, Golden Eaglets, at the 11th African U-17 Championship in Niger Republic, the Nigeria Football Federation has been actualizing plans to make the team’s stay in that country comfortable.

As part of this strategy, the NFF Director of Competitions, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi was in Niamey, capital of Niger Republic last week to meet with prominent personalities within the Local Organizing Committee and officials of the Embassy of Nigeria.

11th CAF African U-17 Championship

“I had meetings with the top officials of the local organizing committee of the championship, including the President of LOC, General Secretary of FENIFOOT and the Head of Competitions. Our meetings centred on accommodation and transportation of Team Nigeria during the championship, as well as accreditation of the Nigeria delegation, ticketing and other logistics.

“I also met with the top people in the Embassy of Nigeria in Niamey, with particular emphasis on ticket issues.”

Dr. Sanusi also discussed with members of the local organizing committee of the 11th African Junior Championship on the movement of the Nigeria team into Niger Republic.

“Since they are having their final training camp in Sokoto, we are making arrangements for them to move into Niamey by road, and I have intimated the organizers and we have finalized on security arrangement for the team.”

Golden Eaglets Training

The Nigeria team of 21 players, 10 officials and a number of administrative officials will depart Sokoto for Niamey on Thursday, 12th February. The Eaglets will stay at the Hotel Royale Palace, with their first two matches (against host Niger Republic and Guinea) at the Stade General Seyni Kountche, while the last match (against Zambia) will take place at the Stade Municipal, which has artificial turf.

“The Nigeria community in Niger Republic is also eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Golden Eaglets, the world champions. They have promised to give the Eaglets maximum support to go all the way and win the African trophy, which will serve as a launch-pad towards retaining the FIFA U-17 World Cup title in Chile later this year.”