The Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) on Tuesday collected a cheque of N15 million naira from the Zenith Bank to signal to the start of the female league season in the country. The sum was collected by the First Vice President of the NBBF on behalf of the Federation while Mr. Timeyin Ejoor, the AGM/Head Corporate Communication of Zenith Bank Plc did the presentation on behalf of the bank.
Ejoor told the gathering at the National Stadium in Lagos that the bank has not only taken the game of basketball in Nigeria as part of its social responsibility but it has done so with much passion because of the positive attitude of the players and the teams involved.
“We are always encouraged by the zeal of these young ladies when we watch them in this competition across different parts of the country. And more we are sincerely touched by the way they carry on in international competitions. We are proud to say that the ladies have done better than the men. It is only the ladies that have gone to the Olympics, won the African cup twice and as well as the African club competition.
“Our desire is to help the youth of this country engage themselves meaningfully and for that we have gathered here today to support those who want to achieve goals in life through the game of basketball,” Ejoor said.
Khaleh expressed the gratitude of the Federation to Zenith Bank in backing the league for the sixth straight year. “We truly believe we have friends in Zenith Bank and that partnership is not just for the game of basketball but has helped the society in every way. We give our assurance that the league will continue to get better. Every year the teams have continued to get improved subsidy and we are grateful to our sponsors.”
The Zenith Bank League will take the jump ball in Kaduna (about 150km north east of Abuja) Thursday morning with Wednesday as the pre-match meeting day. Teams were already hitting Kaduna even ahead of the media presentation. The 10 teams in the female league will be in Kaduna for the next 10 days playing nine matches in a round robin format with one off day. The second phase will start on August 20th in Asaba in the southern end of the country with the final leg billed to start from September 18th in Lagos.
The league champions will represent Nigeria in the African Women Champions League holding in October in a yet to be decided venue.
By Pius Ayinor, FIBA Africa