African Games 2023: Offiong Edem Wins Nigeria’s First Medal

Offiong Edem, a table tennis champion, has earned Nigeria’s first medal at the 13th African Games in Accra, Ghana, on Tuesday.

In the women’s singles competition, Edem won the bronze medal.

The seasoned table tennis player fell to Egypt’s Dino Meshref 4-0 in their semifinal match.

It should be noted that she placed third in the same competition in Congo, Brazzaville, four years prior.

She said:

“I am so happy that we were able to attend the last World Championships in Korea and this really helped my game a lot. I want to thank the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) for their support and I believe attending such a competition really helped me personally here in Ghana,” Edem was quoted by making of champions.

“The Egyptians are ahead of us because they attend more competitions than us and we hope we can get such support to return to the top of the game in Africa.”

In other news, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has offered Super Eagles senior national team coach, Jose Peseiro a new contract.

According to sources, the NFF offered the Portuguese the same €50,000 monthly salary he earned before leading the Super Eagles to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations final.

Peseiro formerly earned $70,000 per month but accepted a salary reduction of $50,000 to lead the Super Eagles to the tournament.

The 63-year-old’s previous contract expired after the conclusion of the AFCON 2023 finals.

The former Saudi Arabia and Venezuela coach has been connected to many coaching vacancies since the end of the AFCON, with the Algeria Football Federation expressing considerable interest in him.

The Portuguese said last week that he had,

“Received at least seven offers from different national teams and clubs and will decide his future in the coming days.”

According to Algerian daily DZ Foot, the president of the Algerian football federation, Walid Sadi, is intrigued by Peseiro’s qualifications and is eager to speak with the Portuguese coach about taking over the national team position.

“Not made public, the shortlist established by the ad-hoc commission set up by the FAF, is made up of three names, namely José Peseiro (63 years old), Vladimir Petkovic (60 years old) and Carlos Queiroz (70 years old),” the website wrote.

While Carlos Queiroz’s name has resurfaced in recent days as the FAF’s final option, our knowledge indicates that this will not be the case, and José Peseiro will become Walid Sadi’s preferred candidate.

“Indeed the one who took Nigeria to the CAN 2023 final would be in direct contact with the president of the Algerian football federation who would have been seduced by his profile and his speech without forgetting the financial aspect.”