Team Nigeria on Tuesday defeated Team Tanzania 2-0 in their opening match of the African Nations Beach Volleyball Senior Men and Women Championships in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the championships had begun on Sunday at the Jabi Lake, and will end on April 28.
NAN also reports that the tournament is being hosted by the Nigeria Volleyball Federation in conjunction with the Confederation of African Volleyball.
In the male competition, Nigeria’s Goodluck Anyasodike and Godwin Shekaru defeated Shukuru Ally and Edward Ford from Tanzania in Pool A 21-12, 21-18.
Speaking later, Anyasodike who captained the Nigerian team said he was happy that they won their first match.
He said: “We are happy we beat our opponents. We are all here to win, so we have to be at our best. Our target is to come out victorious at the end of this tournament.
“We want to pick a ticket to the world championship.”
Ally, who captains Team Tanzania, said he was not happy that his team lost their first game, insisting they are in Abuja to secure a ticket to the World Cup finals.
He said: “The Nigerian team played better than us. But we are going to work on our lapses before the next game. We will work hard to win our next game.”
In the female championship, Tochukwu Nnoruga and Fransica Ikhiede from Nigeria beat Gambia’s Abie Kujabi and Fatoumata Ceesay 21-10, 21-16.
At the end of the game, the captain of team Nigeria, Nnoruga said he was happy that they won their first game.
She said: “The last set was difficult but I am happy that we won the game. We will be facing Egypt this (Tuesday) evening and we will work hard to defeat them because they have been our challenges in this beach volleyball.
“We believe that we are going to defeat them in the game. Though we only camped for one week before this competition and did not prepare enough, but we will give our best to secure a ticket for the World Cup.”
NAN reports that in the second match of the male category: Mozambique beat Zambia 2-0.
In the third match, Sierra Leone beat Cote d’Ivoire 2-0 while Rwanda beat Egypt 3-0 in the fourth game.
In the fifth match, Ghana beat Botswana 3-0, just as in the sixth match South Africa beat Sudan 2-0, while Mozambique beat Cote d’Ivoire 2-0 in the seventh match.
In the female category, Morocco beat Botswana 2-0 in the second match, while in the third match Rwanda beat Niger 2-0.
NAN reports that the competition’s female category has four pools, with Pool A having Nigeria, Egypt and Gambia and Pool B with Rwanda, Algeria and Niger.
Pool C has Morocco, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Botswana and Pool D Mozambique, Mauritius and Cote d’Ivoire.
The competition’s male category has in Pool A Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius, Botswana and Tanzania, while Pool B has Mozambique, South Africa, Gambia, Sudan and Zambia.
In Pool C are Sierra Leone, Angola, Benin Republic and Cote d’Ivoire, while in Pool D we have Rwanda, Morocco, Algeria and Egypt.
NAN reports that a total of 21 countries are participating in the 2019 African Nations Beach Volleyball Senior Men and Women Championships.
