The Nasarawa State Handball Association has secured the hosting right for upcoming national championships.
This was disclosed on Wednesday during a historic high-profile novelty and exhibition match at the Lafia Township Stadium.
The exhibition also served as the celebration of one year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme for Lagos Sea Siders star player, Hafsat, who had been mentoring local talents.
Speaking at the event, the President, Handball Federation of Nigeria (HFN), Saidu Jibrin, restated his commitment to making Nasarawa State the epic centre of his administration’s development agenda.
”Nasarawa State has been my cardinal point. When I wanted to commence my electioneering campaign, Nasarawa State was my first point of visit.
“I made a promise to the Permanent Secretary and the Honorable Commissioner that if the Almighty Allah gives me this privilege, Nasarawa State will be a cardinal point for handball turnaround”, Jibrin stated.
The President capitalised on the exhibition match to announce massive workload assignments for the state, officially requesting the hosting rights for two major regional tournaments.
”I want to open up my request before everyone of you to the State Chairman of Handball Association, Alhaji Ahmed Abubakar Kana that I want him to host the North Central Handball Championship on this court of Nasarawa State here in Lafia.
“And it doesn’t end there. Like I told him, I’m going to bombard him with workload. We are going to host the North Central Division One Handball Qualifier on this same court,” he said.
Jibrin officially announced the appointment of Nasarawa State Handball Association Chairman, Alhaji Ahmed Abubakar Kana, as a member of the HFN, and veteran stakeholder Alhaji Usman to the federation’s Competition Organising Commission.
On his part, State Chairman of Handball Association, Alhaji Ahmed Abubakar Kana, a veteran who rose through the national age-grade ranks, lamented the recent dormancy of the sport but expressed fierce optimism about its future.
Kana said the exhibition signifies a calculated shift toward sports diversification in the state.
”Handball has been in slumber in Nasarawa State. Nasarawa State has been a mono State in terms of sports, which is only football, football, football.
“So some of us are trying to pay our due because we are among the early players that started the under-12 handball in Nigeria,”Kana remarked.
He said in order to cushion the immediate needs of the athletes, the association pooled resources to donate junior secondary school (JSS) handball equipment and canvas shoes to the players.
Kana also extended deep appreciation to the Governor of the State, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, for providing the Lafia Square city centre as an alternative venue while the stadium’s primary court undergoes reconstruction.
He confirmed that the state is on track to host the zonal league by October this year.
kana further started that the exhibition match carried deep sentimental value for the local squad, as it was played in honour of Hafsat, a elite division-one player who completed her national service in the state.
On his part, the Permanent Secretary, State Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Dr Stephen Sasetu represented by the Director of Sports, Mallam Uba Musa appreciated the partnership with the President of the Handball Federation of Nigeria and pledged the government’s continued support to sports development in the state.
Reacting to the developmental updates, the Captain of the State Handball Association, Sadiq Lawal, commended the HFN President for validating the players’ trust.
The team’s Head Coach described the exhibition as “one of my happiest days in life,” noting that after previous grassroots initiatives had stalled, the current synergy between the HFN, the State Sports Council, and the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development is yielding unprecedented momentum.
The Coach therefore urged the players to listen carefully, stay disciplined, keep learning, and prepare to take over from the older generation.
