President, Nigeria Volleyball Federation (NVBF), Engineer Musa Nimrod, gave out millions of naira as cash prizes to winners of the 2022 Final Beach Volleyball Tour that ended at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna on Saturday night.
Games Village Club, who finished top among the 14 teams in the male category with 857 points, smiled home with a giant trophy and a cheque of N300,000. They garnered 287 points during the first phase of the tour in Yola Adamawa state, 290 points in second phase in Abuja and 280 points in Kaduna to top the table.
Second position was claimed by Kada Kings who went home with a trophy and a cheque of N250,000 after scoring 805 points; 250 in Yola, 277 in Abuja and 278 in Kaduna. Kada Stars settled for the third position, with 786 points and received a cheque of N200,000 and a trophy. They won 265 points in Yola, 260 points in Abuja and 261 points in Kaduna.
In the female category, G Ranks finished first among the six participants and received N300,000 cheque and a giant trophy. Hard fighting Kada Emeralds finished second and were presented with a trophy and N250,000 cheque, while Customs Service placed third, winning N200,000 cheque and a trophy.
Director Sports Facilities, Kaduna state Ministry of Sports Development, Mrs Mary Vayin, told sports writers on the sidelines of the closing ceremony, that Engr. Nimrod deserved to be commended for his commitment to sports development.
She also appreciated the officials for ensuring the final phase of the tour was a huge success.
She said that Kaduna is grateful for hosting the final of the tour, assuring the organisers that with world class facilities in place, the state is looking forward to hosting other competitions. Mrs Vayin called on other federations to learn from volleyball to keep the youth busy. “This competition is an eye opener and should serve as motivation to us, we have learnt a lot,” she said.
Technical Director NVBF, Chief Martins Melandie, said though hitches were recorded during the Tour, they kept adjusting.
“I think the biggest challenge is funding. We were to partner with some sponsors but it didn’t hold. By God’s grace, next year we will be holding the final on natural beach turf in Lagos. The Tour served the purpose of giving players more playing time so that they can be fit and grab podium finish at international outings,” she said.
