Bleacher Report put together a list that celebrates the 50 most influential people in sports culture with the B/R Power 50. The list was broken into five categories: Boss Up, Shake It Up, Level Up, Speak Up, & Glow Up. Several Nigerian athletes made the list and you check out their individual articles below:
Giannis Antetokounmpo, NBA All Star (Level Up)
Chiney Ogwumike, WNBA All Star/ESPN Analyst (Boss Up)
Grammy nominated rapper Wale makes a catch during the 2018 MLB All Star Celebrity Game.
“FAILURE IS NOT A OPTION, SUCCESS IS JUST A PROCESS” – WALE
Notre Dame guard Arika Ogunbowale won the ESPYS last night for the BEST PLAY. If you forgot, Arika made the game winning three-point basket at the buzzer to win the national championship for the Lady Irish. By the way, Terrell Owens could have made a better effort in trying to pronounce her last name.
The IBF, WBA, & WBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (21-0, 20 KOs) is scheduled to fight Alexander Povetkin (34-1, 24 KOs) on September 22nd at Wembley Stadium in London. This will be Joshua’s seventh world title defense and Joshua is the favorite to win again
Even though I am excited to see Joshua fight, this is not the fight that I wanted to see. I think the majority of the boxing world wanted to see the much anticipated fight between Joshua and Deontay Wilder. There were rumblings in the past month that the fight was going happen this year, but negotiations between the camps failed. However, there is hope that we may finally get this Joshua vs Wilder fight in 2019. You gotta give the people what they want! Let’s make this happen fellas.
The WNBA announced the WNBA All Star roster last night and both Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike earned a selection. Nneka will be making her 5th appearance while this will be Chiney’s 2nd All-Star appearance.
The WNBA All Star game will take place on Saturday July 28th at 330PM ET on ABC. Be sure to check out the Ogwumike sisters in action during the showcase of the best players in the WNBA.
Last week, the International Olympic Committee confirmed that Seun Adigun is the first African athlete ever to compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. This is another historical moment that this trailblazer has made in her career. Seun made her first appearance on the Olympic stage during the London 2012 Summer Olympics where she competed for Nigeria in the 100 meters hurdles. This past year as some will remember Seun was the driver of the Nigerian Women Bobsled Team with Akuoma Omeoga and Ngozi Onwumere that became the first African country ever to compete in bobsledding at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Congrats to Seun again for making history again and continuing to inspire everyone throughout the world. Excited to see what Seun does next.
Israel Adesanya defeated Brad Tavares this past weekend during the Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale in a Unanimous Decision. The win brings the UFC middleweight to a career record of 14-0 overall in the MMA (3-0 in the UFC). In his third match in the UFC, Adesanya proved that he is on the rise with the defeat of a top 10-ranked fighter in Tavares. But the highlight of the night was Adesanya post match interview where he broke out into his native language with some Yoruba for the crowd. Check it out here:
Looking forward to Adesanya’s next match. We will definitely be following him moving forward.
On July 4, 2018, the NBA & the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) announced their plan to encourage social inclusion by developing basketball infrastructure and conducting youth basketball programs, events, and initiatives in Nigeria, Morocco, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, and other African countries. This announcement took place in Lagos, Nigeria with the president of France, Emmanuel Macron present amongst NBA & AFD high level officials, and other NBA ambassadors. AFD is France inclusive bank committed to financing and technical help for projects that improves the lives of people in emerging & developing economies.
French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted, “Sports can educate and empower people. I am a firm believer in the impact sport can have on each life and the future of a country. It’s time to invest in sports in Nigeria!”
Sports can change the world and it’s great to see a commitment to improving the lives of Africans throughout the continent through the game of basketball. Excited to the see the impact that this partnership has on the continent and what future players come from this as well.
Last week the Nigeria D’Tigers went 3-0 in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 African Qualifiers. As a result, the team advances to the 2nd Rd of the Qualifiers that begins on September 14th. The D’Tigers got the opportunity to play in front of the home fans in the National Stadium in Lagos and the team did not disappoint at all. They averaged 104 points over the three victories with an average margin of victory of 41 points. Jordan Nwora (who currently plays for the Louisville Men’s Basketball team) set the record for the most points ever scored by a Nigerian in a major tournament when he scored 36 points in the last game vs Mali. Nigeria is currently ranked 32nd in the world in FIBA World Ranking (highest ranking African team).We’ll keep you updated on the D’Tigers run towards to the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China.
Check out some the highlights from Nigeria’s 111-70 victory over Rwanda:
2K Sports announced that Giannis Antetokounmpo will be the cover athlete for NBA 2K19 Standard Edition. The game will be available on September 11, 2018, but you can preorder the game here. Congrats to Giannis on this incredible honor.
Check out the trailer for the game here featuring voice over from Giannis’ mother:
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