Kada teams scooped all the available trophies to be crowned champions of the 2023 President Beach Volleyball Cup in Kaduna State on Sunday.
The five-day event played at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium in Kaduna attracted most of the top beach volleyball players in Nigeria.
In the men’s category, Kada Kings emerged first after beating Nigeria Customs Service 2-0 (21-14, 21-16) while Kada Stars came in third position.
Kada Emeralds surprisingly defeated Nigeria Customs Service 2-1 (21-14, 12-21, 15-13) to be the newly crowned women’s champion while Hasso Queens beat Niger Ravens 2-0 (21-12, 21-12) in the third place match.
In the U17 Boy’s category, Kada Prince placed first position, Pro Spikers finished second and Samba Boys came third.
In the girls category, Kada Princess emerged in first position, Katsina Spikers came in second while Filkom VC finished in third position.
The Captain of Kada Kings beach volleyball team, Uchenna Austin, said, “It is an honour to finally win the President Cup for the first time because with God on our side we were able to face our challenges and fears, putting efforts in what we did here.”
Austin said winning the 2022 National Sports Festival has reshaped the mentality of the team ahead of various championships in 2023.
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He said: “Our performance at the 2022 National Sports Festival in Delta where we won a gold medal was massive. Winning the first beach volleyball championship in 2023 is an additional effort in preparation for the National Beach Volleyball Tour and the forthcoming African Games in Ghana next August.
“My coach always rings it in our ears that we should never underrate any team or take our matches lightly. Kada Kings played all the matches because we believe other teams came to the championship with determination not to lose. No team proved to be a hard nut at the President Cup, we dictated the pace of all our matches.”
Meanwhile, second place Nigeria Customs Service women’s team, Francisca Ikhiede said, “In sports, a team wins and the others lose. For record purposes, Nigeria Customs Service women’s team have won the President Beach Volleyball Cup on three occasions.”
Ikhiede said Nigeria Customs Service did not underrate any team, adding that they will bounce back in subsequent championships.
“We did not underestimate the Kada Emeralds team because they have been playing various beach volleyball tournaments in 2022; the loss happened just like that. Nobody came to the President Cup as underdog.
“Nigeria Customs Service has more championships to attend in 2023 including the National Beach Volleyball Tour; we will go back to the drawing board to correct our mistakes.”
Winners of the men’s and women’s categories won 200,000 each, the second position got 180,000 while the third place team went home with 150,000.
In the U17 Boys and Girls categories, winners took home 150,000, the second position went home with 130,000 while the third-placed team won 100,000 each.
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