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52 — Vanguard, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 Plateau Utd stay top of NPFL after Lobi draw •Enyimba lose 2-0 to relegation-threatened Nasarawa By John Egbokhan Plateau United have continued to dictate the pace in the race to win the Nigeria Professional Football League title following a goalless draw with rivals Lobi Stars at the Aper Aku Stadium, Makurdi. Only one point separated both sides before the start of hostilities ,with Lobi needing a win to go top but Plateau United took the fight to their hosts and were rewarded with a share of the spoils, in turn cementing their top status with 37 points, while Lobi have dropped to the third spot with 36 points In Port Harcourt, Rivers United continued their pursuit of a continental ticket with a 2-1 hard-fought victory over Kano Pillars to move into second position on the table with 36 points from 21 matches but are ahead of Lobi Stars because of superior goals scored. Konan Ruffin N’Gouan opened the scoring for Rivers United after 22 minutes through a penalty conversion while Cletus Emotan doubled Former CAF General Secretary Amr Fahmy dies after illness Former Confederation of African Football General Secretary Amr Fahmy has died at the age of 36. The Egyptian served as General Secretary between November 2017 and April 2019, when he was removed from his position without explanation. CAF released a statement calling his death shocking and saying they “extend our deepest condolences to his family especially his parents, his spouse and daughter. In December, Fahmy had announced a bid for the CAF presidency, telling BBC Sport he wanted to focus on being “pro-Africa, pro-football and anticorruption”. the homers lead on 88 minutes but veteran Rabiu Ali scored a late goal for Pillars three minutes into injury time as Rivers held on to claim all three points. A week after claiming a huge 4-1 victory over Abia Warriors in the Abia derby in Okigwe, champions Enyimba lost the initiative as they were well-beaten by relegatedthreatened Nasarawa United 2-0. Chinedu Ohanachom and Dauda Maigishiri were the scorers for Nasarawa United, who despite the victory still stay rooted to the 19th spot on the 20-team table, with a paltry 22 points from 20 matches. Eden Hazard is set to miss the first leg of Real Madrid’s Champions League last-16 tie against Manchester City due to an ankle injury. The 29-year-old limped off during Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Levante in La Liga, which was only his second match since returning from an ankle injury, which had kept him out of action for almost three months. Real Madrid assessed the injury overnight and confirmed on Sunday that Hazard has suffered a fracture to his right distal fibula, however they are unable to put a time frame on his period of recovery. A club statement said: “Following the tests carried out today on our player, Eden Hazard, by the Real Madrid medical department, he has been diagnosed with a fracture to his right distal fibula. His recovery will continue to be assessed.” Real Madrid’s next two games are at home to Manchester City in the Champions League on February 26 followed by El Despite this shock loss, Enyimba are seventh on the table with 30 points from 18 matches and should they win their three outstanding matches, which on the basis of this latest defeat is not a realistic target, their points haul will be 39 and good enough to be top of the table. At the Sani Abacha Stadium, temporary home ground of Jigawa Golden Stars, Wikki Tourist lost 2-1 to the former, despite scoring first through Promise Damala after two minutes but the home side fought back, netting twice through Ibrahim Saleh on 54 minutes and Abdullahi Lala 67 minutes. Hazard out of Man City, Barca clashes Clasico against Barcelona at the Bernabeu on March 1. Real’s first defeat in the league since October saw them fall to second place in La Liga on 53 points after 25 games. Ighalo plays as Man Utd thrash Watford Bruno Fernandes scored his first goal for Manchester United as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side cruised past relegationthreatened Watford at Old Trafford. Nigerian forward, Odion Ighalo was a second half substitute, coming in for French forward, Anthony Martial. The January signing’s first-half penalty gave the hosts the lead before wonderful pieces of finishing from Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood after the break secured a 3-0 win. Solskjaer reverted to a back four, with Mason Greenwood coming into the side to play wide on the right, while Scott McTominay was back among the substitutes having been out since Boxing Day with a knee injury. Aaron Wan-Bissaka could only find the sidenetting after Daniel James’ cross was parried his way by Ben Foster, before the Welshman’s clever cutback found Fred, only for the Brazilian to bend wide. It was James’ creativity that eventually helped break the deadlock shortly before half-time as he sent Fernandes scampering in behind. The Portuguese got a toe in ahead of the sliding Foster and took responsibility from the spot himself, sending the Hornets goalkeeper the wrong way to open his United account. By Jacob Ajom The much anticipated 2020 Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games officially began yesterday following a colourful opening ceremony at the Chevron Recreation Centre, Gbagada. There was a lot of fanfare as athletes and officials swarmed the exclusive arena in the early hours of Sunday to witness the grand opening ceremony which was witnessed by top officials of all the participating companies. Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Malam Aminu Zaria presided over the affairs of the day. In his opening address, Zaria enjoined the athletes not to forget the real essence of the games which, in his words, “keep fit, cultivate friendships and connectivity among workers in the oil and gas sector.” Police give athletes best of two worlds –Mba …as 2020 Police games hot up in Awka The Nigerian Police Force is very flexible with its athletes and they are always encouraged to have the best of their sports and policing careers respectively. Between February 29 and March 7, four centres in Awka, Anambra State will host the 12th edition of the Police Games between February 29 and March 7 in Awka, Anambra State. Deputy Commissioner of Police and Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, at the weekend said a total of 31 sports would be competed for at the event. Mba added that police athletes are always encouraged to get to the peak of their respective sports careers. Watford thought they were level soon after the restart when Deeney bundled home after Dawson had diverted onto the woodwork, but VAR showed the ball had come off the defender’s arm. Their misery was compounded just before the Ahead of the MASVI/ Owan West Cycling Classic tour scheduled for this weekend, the Executive Chairman of Owan West Council, Hon. Frank Ilaboya, at the weekend, set up a 6-man Local Organizing Committee, LOC. The Committe, which has the Council Secretary, Hon. Odion Daniel Iruobe as the Chairman, was charged with the responsibility of NOGIG 2020: Competition begins after colourful opening ceremony “There are many examples to show that we are always ready to boost our athletes. We grant those exceptional leave of absence and when they retire, we reabsorb them." “This is a huge contribution to development of sports and that is why we want to use the forthcoming Police Games to identify new talents and nurture them to the top. We have the talents,” Mba said. “There were plans to use this event not only to prepare the police athletes for the forthcoming National Sports Festival in Benin but also to begin the process of bringing out athletes that would take over from great police ambassadors like Chioma Ajunwa, late Sunday Bada and Samuel Peter.” hour mark when Martial’s delightful scooped finish over Foster gave United breathing space Greenwood put the cap on an excellent day’s work when he bent home via the underside of the bar with 15 minutes to play. MASVI Cycling Tour: Owan West boss inaugurates LOC He said the games were also staged to enhance the production capacity of the workers in the industry. “In the next one week, we are going to showcase our best who will compete among each other and we will present to Nigeria, a healthy workforce for enhanced productivity.” The LOC boss also informed that two sports; Badminton and Volleyball will feature for the first time in this year’s games and the participating companies too had increased from 10 to 12. In his loaded opening speech, Zaria also said very soon, “the physically challenged members of staff of our various companies would be made to also feature in their special events of NOGIG in order to give opportunity to everybody.” Six countries, including hosts Morocco and Africa’s most populous nation Nigeria, secured Olympic tickets for Tokyo 2020 Olympics on the opening day of the on-going African Qualification Tournament for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, holding on 22nd and 23 February 2020. The spread of the medals acutely reflects the difficulty and competitiveness of the Olympic qualification process, as well of spread of taekwondo development across the African continent. Morocco and Egypt secured two Olympic tickets each while the remaining four tickets were won by Nigeria, Ethiopia, Cote D’Ivoire and Gabon. In the female -49kg, the number one and two seed, Egypt’s Nour Abdelsalam and Morocco’s El Boutchi, lived up by expectations to emerge as the category’s organizing a successful and hitch free competition. Other members of the Committee are, Esther Ovbioje, Usman Omokhagbor, Ehigai Williams, Hassan Otinau, Mr. Izedonmi Humphrey and Mr. Edekin Imezua. Inauguring the Committee, Hon Ilaboya charged them to discharge their duties diligently and ensure a successful outing. “Your assignment is to organise a hitch free and successful event to the admiration of all “Owan West is now a household name following our fine outing in the just concluded state sports festival. Placing second in the festival has put us in a postive map, and I want you to put this at the back of your minds by organising a world class event.” “Remember that over 7 states’ cyclists and top sports journalists are coming for the event, and they Responding, the Chairman of the Committee, Hon Iruobe, thanked Him Ilaboya for the confidence reposed in the Committee. “Mr Chairman, I want to thank you on behalf of my members for finding us worthy for this unique assignment. The same committee handled the just concluded state sports festival where Owan West came second. This assignment is no doubt a confirmation of the confidence you have in us." Morocco, Egypt, Nigeria secure Olympic tickets on opening day Olympic ticket holders. In the female -67kg, current African Champion and the number one seed, Egypt’s Malak Hedaya joined the number three seed, Nigeria’s Elizabeth Anyanacho as the category’s Olympic ticket holders. In the male -58kg, the number one seed Morocco’s Omar Lakehal and Ethiopia’s Solomon Demse emerged as the category’s Olympic ticket holders. In the male +80kg, number two seed Cote D’Ivoire’s Seydou Gbane joined Gabon’s Anthony Obame to emerge as the category’s Olympic ticket holders. Day two will see battle in the remaining four Olympic weight categories, including male -68kg, male -80kg, female -57kg and female +67kg.
Fury destroys Wilder in heavyweight title rematch TYSON FURY sensationally stopped Deontay Wilder in the seventh round of their rematch to become a world champion for a second time. It was one-way traffic from the off as the Gypsy King stunned the long-time WBC champ - even licking his beaten man’s blood at one point. Fury won by TKO after Wilder’s corner threw in the towel in the seventh round to stop the systematic beating - with many boxing fans believing the deposed champ was ‘concussed’. The American was furious with the decision - but no-one inside the MGM Grand would have any arguments on a sensational night for Fury and British sport. Even two of the judges who had come in for some stick before they had even started their night’s work gave EVERY ROUND to the Gypsy King. The other kindly threw the second Wilder’s way. Wilder, 34, was battered from pillar to post on a dismal night for the Bronze Bomber and was floored twice before his corner went with the sensible decision. The Alabama man was taken to hospital after the scrap for a checkup and stitches inside his ear. Speaking after bagging the iconic green WBC belt, Fury said: “A big shout out to Deontay Wilder. He came here tonight and he manned up and he really did show the heart of a champion. “I hit him with a clean right that dropped him and he got back up. He is a warrior. He will be back. He will be champion again. “But I will say, the king has returned to the top of the throne!” The victory completes a Rockystyle comeback for Fury, who spent two-and-a-half years out the ring battling depression and ballooning up to 28st. HUNG OUT TO DRY Wilder’s trainer blasts assistant for throwing in towel against Fury DEONTAY WILDER’S head coach has admitted that his assistant trainer made the decision to throw in the towel against Tyson Fury against his will. The Bronze Bomber was floored twice by the Gypsy King during a stunning surrender of his WBC title at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas before the American’s corner waved the white flag. Despite the fact that Fury was winning E V E R Y ROUND on two of the j u d g e s ’ scorecards when the fight was stopped, W i l d e r screamed at his team “why’d you do that?” after they threw in the towel. The 34-yearold’s head trainer Jay Deas has revealed that co-trainer Mark Breland went against Wilder’s wishes to make the call to end it. He said: “Mark threw the towel. “I didn’t think he should have. Deontay’s the kind of guy that’s a ‘go out on his shield’ kind of guy. “You’ve always got to consider, also, that Deontay is a fearsome puncher, so that’s always a difficult thing, because he does always have that shot to land a big shot and turn things around. “I’m the head coach of the team, but we do things a little bit differently. Ninety nine percent of the time, the head coach of the team is also the guy that’s the lead in the corner. “Ours is a little bit more like a football team, where the head coach doesn’t necessarily call the plays; you have an offensive and defensive co-ordinator. MILLIONAIRE heavyweight champ and father of eight Deontay Wilder is a man who appears to have it all – but he insists deciding to lace up the boxing gloves was nowhere near his best decision. It has been a long journey for the 34-year-old former pancake flipper as he climbed from “struggling to make ends meet” to having the most-feared fist in the business. Although he may be fearsome inside the ropes, away from the ring he is very much a family man as he looks to provide for his eight kids from four different women. Wilder had a late start to boxing, Vanguard, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 — 53 Fury sends message to AJ by wearing ‘Nigeria’ gum shield in Wilder win T Y S O N FURY gave a bizarre tribute to Brit rival Anthony Joshua during his battering of Deontay Wilder - by wearing a “Nigeria” gum shield. The Gypsy King secured a scintillating stoppage victory in his Las Vegas rematch to win the WBC heavyweight title. It has already led to demands from boxing fans for Fury and Joshua to clash in an undisputed title fight. AJ is the reigning WBO, WBA, and IBF champ. And during Fury’s dominant victory, he showed he perhaps already has Joshua on the mind. The Lineal king had a green and white Nigeria gum shield in his mouth. Joshua’s mother Yeta is Tyson Fury is “almost sure” he will face Deontay Wilder for a third time rather than Anthony Joshua in an all-British four-belt unification fight that would crown an undisputed world heavyweight champion for the first time in two decades. Fury administered a shocking beatdown of the favoured American knockout merchant to capture the WBC’s version of the heavyweight title on Saturday night in a return meeting of their split draw 15 months ago, flooring Wilder in the third and fifth rounds before the badly Wilder has eight kids from four women taking it up aged 20 But deciding to take up the sport that would transform his life forever is nothing compared to a life-or-death choice he was forced to make while expecting his first daughter. Wilder and his then-girlfriend Helen Duncan were poor teenagers when they were told their child would be born with spina bifida. “It had been scary first off to know I had a child on the way. It was even scarier that this tiny being would be coming into the world with a defect. “I was so young, holding my whole world in my hands. Suddenly I was facing this huge responsibility for a life which would need my enormous care and attention." Nigerian, while his father Robert has Nigerian and Irish Ancestry. His paternal great-grandfather is considered one of the greatest men of the town of Sagamu. The boxer himself has a tattoo of Nigeria on his shoulder. Joshua has said of his heritage: “I learnt more about my family’s history and I ended up getting an Africa tattoo. “It was a nice combination to have ‘Wisdom’ and your heritage tattooed underneath, so it went well.” A pic of Fury wearing the gum shield did the rounds on social media - leaving many perplexed. Some thought it was “a shout out to AJ” while other suggested Fury was “already starting the mind games”. A popular opinion was that the 31-year-old Gypsy King was already “calling out Joshua”, despite facing a man in Las Vegas usually renowned for blasting opponents out. Fury expects Wilder rematch rather than Joshua showdown ike Tyson was as happy as Mmuch of the crowd in attendance as Tyson Fury shocked the world to become WBC heavyweight champion with a hugely dominant display. Fans loved the moment with one wounded champion’s corner threw in the towel midway through the seventh. The contract for Saturday’s blockbuster rematch called for a 50-50 purse split, with Fury and Wilder each guaranteed $25m in addition to a cut of the pay-per-view receipts. The deal included a rematch clause which gives Wilder’s team 30 days to exercise their option for a third fight, where the purse would be divided 60-40 in Fury’s favour. Fury expressed confidence a third instalment with Wilder will be next, suggesting it be staged at the new 72,000- seat NFL stadium presently under construction along the Vegas strip. Tyson celebrates Fury’s win saying, “This expresses all sorts of emotions for me! Considering that Tyson Fury was named after Mike Tyson and Deontay Wilder calls himself ‘the baddest man on the planet’ which was once the accolade of Mike Tyson.” Remo Stars player’s death: Gov Abiodun calls for order, promises investigation By James Ogunnaike BEOKUTA - Ogun State Governor, APrince Dapo Abiodun, has called on players and supporters of Remo Stars Football Club, residents of Sagamu and indeed the Ogun State people to remain calm, following the tragic passing of a player of the club, Tiamiyu Kazeem AKA Kaka. Abiodun, while expressing shock at the details of the tragic ordeal, he assured that a proper, transparent and independent investigation would be immediately launched into the incident Wilder, Fury rematch breaks heavyweight gate record ickets to the Deontay Wilder- TTyson Fury rematch became a hot commodity throughout the past week. in order to unravel the exact circumstances of the occurrence and bring persons found guilty to book. The governor, who eulogised the late player as a young man with great potentials for the development of the State and the nation in general, strongly stated that his government will never take with levity, the lives and property of the good people of Ogun State. He further stated that the first business of government was security and welfare of the citizens of the State. By the time they entered the ring Saturday night, MGM Grand Garden Arena was packed to capacity. Officials announced a sellout crowd of 15,816 and an MGM Resorts International official confirmed that the live gate for Wilder-Fury II broke the Nevada record for a heavyweight fight. The live gate produced $16,916,440 in ticket revenue Saturday night. England’s Fury (30- 0-1, 21 KOs) knocked down Wilder twice, once apiece in the third and fifth rounds, and he stopped Wilder in the seventh round when Wilder’s assistant trainer, Mark Breland, threw the towel into the ring. Fury won the WBC title from Wilder (42-1-1, 41 KOs), with whom he fought to a controversial split draw in December 2018 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The previous live-gate record for a heavyweight fight in Nevada was established in November 1999.
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