E-Nigeria - Sports

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>> Nigeria Football Team

Nigerian sports, though always exercised, was noted first in the 1950s. Nigeria had it's first appearance in the Helsinki Olympic Games in 1952, and it's first victory in 1954, when Emmanuel Ifeanjuna won a gold medal in the high jump at the Commonwealth games in Cardiff.

In 1962, the Nationals Sports Council was set up, and in 1971, the National Sports Commission, and they had the following responsibilities (stated exactly as is):

To coordinate and integrate efforts to raise the standard of performance in sports in Nigeria.
To encourage the development, organization and participation of sports in Nigeria.
To make any arrangements on behalf of the States' Sports Councils for Competitions, technical assistance, recruitment of coaches and for any other matters as the Commission sees fit.
To promote physical fitness and general well-being of all persons in Nigeria

In terms of football/soccer, the Nigerian Football Federation was created in 1945. It was the first year that a competition was organized bringing together clubs from Lagos, Port Harcourt and Calabar. The championship was also renamed the Challenge Cup replacing the Governor's Cup as it had been known under their British colonizers. It was only several years later that the Challenge Cup became a national trophy when other top clubs from different provinces were invited to play. However, the clubs had to wait till 1990 for the professional league to be introduced.

Nigeria emerged on the international football/soccer scene in 1960 when it first entered the World Cup, but failed to qualify for the finals. It eventually qualified for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. The Nigerian National League began in 1972 when five teams entered the league. This grew to 12 teams by 1978.

Locally within Nigeria, there are many sporting clubs that one can join.

Watersports: The numerous beaches offer bathing, although many have strong currents and bathers should not swim far from the shore, especially in Lagos. Many of the better hotels have pools. Good river and sea angling is available throughout the country.

Wildlife: Yankari National Park, in the eastern half of the country, is particularly good for birdwatching. Animals which can be viewed here include elephants, crocodiles and monkeys. Nigeria’s largest national park, the Gashaka Game Reserve near Yola, also provides opportunities to view birds and animals.