By Samson Obande, Lafia

The Solid Miners Badminton Club, Lafia, on Friday hosted a friendly tournament featuring student-athletes from Nasarawa State University, Keffi, NSUK, and Isa Mustapha Agwai Polytechnic, Lafia, IMAP.

The event, held at the Lafia City Hall, was aimed at fostering friendship, sportsmanship and healthy competition among players while showcasing emerging badminton talents in the state.

Matches were contested in men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles.

In the Matches played for Men’s Singles, Paul Chun Wei (NSUK) beat Paul (IMAP) 2-0 while Maranatha (NSUK) beat Kamaludeen (IMAP) 2-0.

For Mixed Doubles, Paul Chun Wei & Jennifer Zara (NSUK) defeated Paul & Rejoice (IMAP) 2-0 while Monica & Kamaludeen (IMAP) defeated Abdulrahman & Jennifer (NSUK) 2-0 

Consequently for Men’s Doubles, Gambo & Paul (IMAP) defeated Kelvin & Rabiu (NSUK) 2-0 while Aliyu & Abdulrahman (NSUK) beat Emma & Peejay (IMAP) 2-0. 

The Women’s Doubles saw 

Everest & Monica (IMAP) beating Jennifer Zara & Jennifer (NSUK) 2-0  while Women’s Singles saw Jennifer Zara (NSUK) defeating Rejoice (IMAP) 2-0, just as Everest (IMAP) beat Jennifer (NSUK) 2-0 

Speaking after the tournament, Promoter of Solid Miners Badminton Club, Lt. Col. Abraham Isaiah Ose, the Anosapu of Agbashi, commended the players for their performance and the spirit of unity displayed.

He said Nasarawa State is positioning itself to host a national badminton championship, citing the growing interest in the sport, increasing pool of talented players and government commitment to sports development.

Lt. Col. Ose reaffirmed the club’s commitment to grassroots development and creating platforms for young athletes to represent the state at national and international competitions.

He also appreciated Governor Abdullahi Sule for his support for youth and sports development, as well as the Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Hon. Yakubu Kwanta, and Permanent Secretary, Dr. Iliya Sasetu, for providing an enabling environment for sports to thrive.

The club thanked participating teams, officials, and supporters, and pledged to organize more competitions to advance badminton in Nasarawa State.