Nigerian coach - Gabon govt. sponsored my coaching course
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femibyte
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Nigerian coach - Gabon govt. sponsored my coaching course
A "prophet" not honored in his homeland...
http://www.punchng.com/sports/gabonese- ... ji-ojuola/
Gabonese government sponsored my coaching course and made me head coach -Bolaji Ojuola
SEPTEMBER 8, 2012 BY OLUFEMI ATOYEBI 6 COMMENTS
| credits:
Bolaji Ojuola, who led Gabon handball team to the World Cup in 2010, tells OLUFEMI ATOYEBI that the strong foundation Nigeria built has been demolished
Gabon national handball coach, Bolaji Ojuola, would have been a great asset to Nigeria if the step taken by the little West African country was taken by Nigeria.
After his career as a player in Gabon handball club side, Athletic Sportive of Libreville, ended in 2000, his hosts did not allow him to return home. Even though he was not prepared to be a coach, the Gabonese government gesture to send him to France for three-year training course was too tempting. He accepted and has since risen to become the head coach in the oil-rich nation.
He says, “I never believed that I would one day become a coach. I left Nigeria to play for Petrol Sports Club in Gabon and later Athletic Sportive of Libreville. The Gabonese government, through the sports federation sent me to France for a degree course in handball coaching. They also sponsored my second degree.
“When I returned to the country in 2002, I was appointed assistant national team coach. In 2010, I became the head coach of the team.”
The former Nigeria handball international said he did not apply for the scholarship or any job, adding that he was making retirement plans when he was approached with the long-term proposal.
Back in the 1970s, handball, volleyball, hockey and tennis were popular sports among the youths in Nigeria, with well organised league giving opportunity to stars to rise. Ojuola was a product of the good old handball league, when he represented Oyo State in U-14 championship. He looks back at his time as a rookie, bringing to the fore, how a solid sports foundation in Nigeria was washed away by neglect and poor leadership.
He recalls, “I started playing handball in 1978 when I was in class one at Eleyele Grammar School in Ibadan. I played for Oyo State in the U-14 handball competition held in Lagos at the time. There were other sports but I chose handball, unlike now that youths are left with only football. I had friends who played volleyball, basketball, hockey and lawn tennis and we all did well.”
His progress was gradual and steady. After the U-14 experience, he graduated to the U-21 level, where he helped Nigeria to reach the final of Africa Nations Cup.
“I started playing for the national team in 1984. I began with the U-21 team when Nigeria hosted the African U-21 Cup of Nations in Bauchi. We lost the final to Egypt but we still qualified for the U-21 World Cup in Italy, he recounts.
“After the World Cup, I was moved to the senior team. I played in many Africa Nations Cup competitions and won bronze at the 1991 All Africa Games in Egypt.”
At the time when handball league was strong in Nigeria, Ojuola benefitted from the golden age, playing for Benue Buffaloes and representing Nigeria three times in African championships. He rues the death of the league and disappearance of handball clubs in Nigeria.
“I played in the handball league at the time in Nigeria. We were one the best in Africa. There were the dreaded Imo Lions team which ruled Nigeria at the time, Imo Grasshoppers, Lagos Seasiders, Pleateau Peacocks, Valliants of Abia and so on,” he says.
“I played for Benue Buffaloes and we qualified to represent Nigeria three times, playing in Egypt and Tunisia. We did not win the African championships but we finished among the top five teams. It’s unfortunate that we no longer have those clubs again.”
He left Nigeria in 1998 to join Petrol Sports Club of Gabon. Ojuola says the Nigeria handball was still exciting at the time, wondering why it was not sustained.
“The handball we left behind is not what we have now. I left a long time ago so I don’t know how the sport is run in Nigeria again. When I was at home, it was easy for Nigerian players to move abroad to play professional handball. The Europeans respected us at the time so they were eager to give us contract to play in their leagues.
“Money was not our interest at the time but the prestige of playing for Nigeria was huge. We rivalled the national football team because we were heroes in our own right.”
With Gabon, Ojuola has toured the world, taking the teams to international competitions and savouring the experience. He speaks about one of such competition, where he says Gabon’s final position was poor but the project was embarked upon to breathe a new life into Gabon handball.
He says, “We played at the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations, finishing third and qualifying to play in the junior World Cup in Argentina in 2011. It was the first time Gabon had ever made it to that level. It was a good experience for the young players even though we finished poorly. In all, we assessed our performance and embraced the positive side of taking part in such a big event.
“Our aim was to start building a new generation of players and let them learn something new and relevant. When you exposed young players, they go over the stage fright and improve in standard,” he explains.
“During preparation for the championship, we were in Europe for eight month, spending one month in every country we visited. The players had a good time and it was a perfect way of laying a good foundation for the next generation of handball players in Gabon.”
Lamenting how Nigeria allowed its handball stars to dim quickly, Ojuola describes how he was shocked when he led young Gabon team to beat Nigeria in a tournament held in Cairo.
He says, “I have led Gabon to several competitions in Africa. In 2010, Nigeria was in our group in one of the competitions and we defeated them in Cairo. I was shocked at their level of play. Gabon is third best team in Africa now and Nigeria is not ranked.
“I met one of the Nigerian officials and asked him what went wrong at home. He explained to me that their preparation was not good strong. I understood that the players were picked from various parts of Nigeria a few weeks to the competition instead of bringing together players from various clubs. When I was playing for Nigeria, we would spend three months in camp preparing for such a competition.”
The coach acknowledges the presence of talents in Nigeria but expresses sadness that they will not reach their potential with the system in Nigerian sports.
“There were some good players in the team but they just couldn’t play together. They actually took part to make the number and not to win. There is no way they will reach their dreams if it continues this way.”
Concerned with the disintegration of the sport in Nigeria, Ojuola has volunteered to train the Oyo State team that will take part in the Zonal qualifiers for the National Sports Festival. He relates his experience with the young players.
“The standard is low and I was disappointed when I assess the preparation of the Oyo State tea. I took up the challenge and volunteered to train them ahead of the qualifiers. I was not impressed with their performance.”
Ojuola says it will be difficult for him to take up the job of coaching Nigeria, citing unfavourable terrain and expressing surprise that some of the coaches he worked with three decades ago are still around.
“I was worried when I heard that some of my coaches in the 80s are still in charge in Nigeria. That told me that the game is dying, it means we are not producing young ones. Nobody was doing anything to help the sport in Nigeria. Gabon is a rich country but they have genuine lovers of sports in charge of their sports federation.
“I love my country but the system is so bad that I don’t believe I can work with it. That is why I will never think of coaching Nigeria. Everybody wants money without working. The government is no longer interested in sports. I am still young but I am not ready to waste my time.”
http://www.punchng.com/sports/gabonese- ... ji-ojuola/
Gabonese government sponsored my coaching course and made me head coach -Bolaji Ojuola
SEPTEMBER 8, 2012 BY OLUFEMI ATOYEBI 6 COMMENTS
| credits:
Bolaji Ojuola, who led Gabon handball team to the World Cup in 2010, tells OLUFEMI ATOYEBI that the strong foundation Nigeria built has been demolished
Gabon national handball coach, Bolaji Ojuola, would have been a great asset to Nigeria if the step taken by the little West African country was taken by Nigeria.
After his career as a player in Gabon handball club side, Athletic Sportive of Libreville, ended in 2000, his hosts did not allow him to return home. Even though he was not prepared to be a coach, the Gabonese government gesture to send him to France for three-year training course was too tempting. He accepted and has since risen to become the head coach in the oil-rich nation.
He says, “I never believed that I would one day become a coach. I left Nigeria to play for Petrol Sports Club in Gabon and later Athletic Sportive of Libreville. The Gabonese government, through the sports federation sent me to France for a degree course in handball coaching. They also sponsored my second degree.
“When I returned to the country in 2002, I was appointed assistant national team coach. In 2010, I became the head coach of the team.”
The former Nigeria handball international said he did not apply for the scholarship or any job, adding that he was making retirement plans when he was approached with the long-term proposal.
Back in the 1970s, handball, volleyball, hockey and tennis were popular sports among the youths in Nigeria, with well organised league giving opportunity to stars to rise. Ojuola was a product of the good old handball league, when he represented Oyo State in U-14 championship. He looks back at his time as a rookie, bringing to the fore, how a solid sports foundation in Nigeria was washed away by neglect and poor leadership.
He recalls, “I started playing handball in 1978 when I was in class one at Eleyele Grammar School in Ibadan. I played for Oyo State in the U-14 handball competition held in Lagos at the time. There were other sports but I chose handball, unlike now that youths are left with only football. I had friends who played volleyball, basketball, hockey and lawn tennis and we all did well.”
His progress was gradual and steady. After the U-14 experience, he graduated to the U-21 level, where he helped Nigeria to reach the final of Africa Nations Cup.
“I started playing for the national team in 1984. I began with the U-21 team when Nigeria hosted the African U-21 Cup of Nations in Bauchi. We lost the final to Egypt but we still qualified for the U-21 World Cup in Italy, he recounts.
“After the World Cup, I was moved to the senior team. I played in many Africa Nations Cup competitions and won bronze at the 1991 All Africa Games in Egypt.”
At the time when handball league was strong in Nigeria, Ojuola benefitted from the golden age, playing for Benue Buffaloes and representing Nigeria three times in African championships. He rues the death of the league and disappearance of handball clubs in Nigeria.
“I played in the handball league at the time in Nigeria. We were one the best in Africa. There were the dreaded Imo Lions team which ruled Nigeria at the time, Imo Grasshoppers, Lagos Seasiders, Pleateau Peacocks, Valliants of Abia and so on,” he says.
“I played for Benue Buffaloes and we qualified to represent Nigeria three times, playing in Egypt and Tunisia. We did not win the African championships but we finished among the top five teams. It’s unfortunate that we no longer have those clubs again.”
He left Nigeria in 1998 to join Petrol Sports Club of Gabon. Ojuola says the Nigeria handball was still exciting at the time, wondering why it was not sustained.
“The handball we left behind is not what we have now. I left a long time ago so I don’t know how the sport is run in Nigeria again. When I was at home, it was easy for Nigerian players to move abroad to play professional handball. The Europeans respected us at the time so they were eager to give us contract to play in their leagues.
“Money was not our interest at the time but the prestige of playing for Nigeria was huge. We rivalled the national football team because we were heroes in our own right.”
With Gabon, Ojuola has toured the world, taking the teams to international competitions and savouring the experience. He speaks about one of such competition, where he says Gabon’s final position was poor but the project was embarked upon to breathe a new life into Gabon handball.
He says, “We played at the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations, finishing third and qualifying to play in the junior World Cup in Argentina in 2011. It was the first time Gabon had ever made it to that level. It was a good experience for the young players even though we finished poorly. In all, we assessed our performance and embraced the positive side of taking part in such a big event.
“Our aim was to start building a new generation of players and let them learn something new and relevant. When you exposed young players, they go over the stage fright and improve in standard,” he explains.
“During preparation for the championship, we were in Europe for eight month, spending one month in every country we visited. The players had a good time and it was a perfect way of laying a good foundation for the next generation of handball players in Gabon.”
Lamenting how Nigeria allowed its handball stars to dim quickly, Ojuola describes how he was shocked when he led young Gabon team to beat Nigeria in a tournament held in Cairo.
He says, “I have led Gabon to several competitions in Africa. In 2010, Nigeria was in our group in one of the competitions and we defeated them in Cairo. I was shocked at their level of play. Gabon is third best team in Africa now and Nigeria is not ranked.
“I met one of the Nigerian officials and asked him what went wrong at home. He explained to me that their preparation was not good strong. I understood that the players were picked from various parts of Nigeria a few weeks to the competition instead of bringing together players from various clubs. When I was playing for Nigeria, we would spend three months in camp preparing for such a competition.”
The coach acknowledges the presence of talents in Nigeria but expresses sadness that they will not reach their potential with the system in Nigerian sports.
“There were some good players in the team but they just couldn’t play together. They actually took part to make the number and not to win. There is no way they will reach their dreams if it continues this way.”
Concerned with the disintegration of the sport in Nigeria, Ojuola has volunteered to train the Oyo State team that will take part in the Zonal qualifiers for the National Sports Festival. He relates his experience with the young players.
“The standard is low and I was disappointed when I assess the preparation of the Oyo State tea. I took up the challenge and volunteered to train them ahead of the qualifiers. I was not impressed with their performance.”
Ojuola says it will be difficult for him to take up the job of coaching Nigeria, citing unfavourable terrain and expressing surprise that some of the coaches he worked with three decades ago are still around.
“I was worried when I heard that some of my coaches in the 80s are still in charge in Nigeria. That told me that the game is dying, it means we are not producing young ones. Nobody was doing anything to help the sport in Nigeria. Gabon is a rich country but they have genuine lovers of sports in charge of their sports federation.
“I love my country but the system is so bad that I don’t believe I can work with it. That is why I will never think of coaching Nigeria. Everybody wants money without working. The government is no longer interested in sports. I am still young but I am not ready to waste my time.”
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TonyTheTigerKiller
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Re: Nigerian coach - Gabon govt. sponsored my coaching cours
Yet another fool who thinks Nigeria owes him something 
Cheers.
Cheers.
Re: Nigerian coach - Gabon govt. sponsored my coaching cours
Unnecessary!TonyTheTigerKiller wrote:Yet another fool who thinks Nigeria owes him something
Cheers.
And the BIBLE says: The race is NOT for the swift, neither is the battle for the strong nor ... but time and chance makes them all.
Ecclesiastes 1:18: For in much wisdom is much grief and he that increases knowledge increases sorrow.
Ecclesiastes 1:18: For in much wisdom is much grief and he that increases knowledge increases sorrow.