President and Founder of the Amateur Basketball Academies (ABA), Deputy Comptroller of the Nigeria Customs Service, Lucky Aliyu Abubakar, has reiterated the commitment of the newly established association to promote and protect the interests of thousands of basketball academies scattered across the country.
Speaking on a TV programme monitored by Sporting Tribune on Sunday night in Abuja, Aliyu said ABA was established to unlock the abundance of potential of the basketball academies through structured exposure and the opportunities needed to reach their full potential and not for basketball politics.
According to him, ABA is ready to build a pathway from raw potential to refined excellence.
He said, “Amateur Basketball Academies is committed to four core pillars which include talent discovery, nurturing, growth and development, culminating in the presentation of our basketball players on the global podium through our academies.
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“Through regional academies with structured grassroots programs and high-performance training systems under the operation of Amateur Basketball Academies, we will identify talent early and guide them carefully through every stage of their development.”
Aliyu Abubakar, while calling for the support of existing academies all over the country to register with ABA in order to reap the dividends of their sweat, promised them that those without good training facilities will receive support from ABA.
He commended the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) led by Ahmadu Musa Kida; Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Wale Adeniyi; Chairman, All FCT Sports Associations Chairmen, His Royal Highness, Eze Ifeanyi Eke and other notable personalities as well as state Associations and parents of the players for their support since the establishment of the association.
He said with the success recorded during the training and Trainers’ Clinic in Abuja and Minna, the train will soon move to Makurdi, Gombe and other states for similar clinics.
He, however, assured that the maiden edition of the Amateur Basketball Academies league scheduled for Abuja and environs next month will showcase some of the talents in the academies.
