By; AYO OJEDOKUN, Lagos
Nigeria will play in Group B of the 28th Women’s Juniors Africa Nations Championship which is slated to hold in Conakry Guinea.
The National Under 20 Female Handball team will play hosts Guinea, Algeria and Gambia in the biennial handball championship organised by the Confederation of Africa Handball (CAHB) which is a qualifier for the World Women Junior Handball Championship.
The National Under 20 Female Handball Team have commenced preparation already ahead of the championship as sixteen players are presently undergoing intensive training under the tutelage of Coach Bukola Duru and Coach Isiaka Atanda at the Aguiyi Ironsi Military Cantonment, Abuja.
Coach Bukola revealed to HFN Media that the players who are expected to join the team in the coming days, had examinations in their schools and that was why they were joining later than others.
She also said the players are passionate and understand the importance of the championship and are ready to make Nigeria proud.
“The players are in high spirit and are passionate about the game. They understand the importance of the championship and are ready to make our country proud in the competition” Coach Duru said
“We have 16 players in camp ahead of the championship and they are in high spirit.
Others will join the camp in the coming days after their school examinations and then we would have a robust camping ahead of the championship”. Coach Duru concluded.
The players must be vaccinated in order to participate in the championship
The Africa Women Junior Handball Championship, which was to hold in September 2021 but was postponed indefinitely by the Confederation of Africa Handball (CAHB) and abruptly put to an end the preparation of the team towards the championship at the time, will now from the 19th to the 26th of February 2022.
Nigeria has participated in seven editions of the Africa Women Junior Handball Championship, hosting in the first and third editions of the Championship in Lagos (1980) and Bauchi (1984) respectively.
The Junior Women Handball National team has won the championship thrice in 1986 in Algeria, 1988 in Tunisia and 1990 in Egypt.
They finished second in 1980 in Lagos and 1982 in Cotonou and finished third in 1984 in Bauchi and 2006 in Abidjan.
Nigeria is participating in the Africa Junior Women Handball Championship 16 years after they last participated in the 2006 edition in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
