₦airaland Forum

NIGERIA

Roster: G Tony Skinn, F Ekene Ibekwe, F Ike Diogu, F Al-Farouq Aminu, G Ade Dagunduro, G Chamberlain Oguchi, F Koko Archibong, G Richard Oruche, F Ejike Ugboaja, F Derrick Obasohan, C Alade Aminu, C Olumide Oyedeji

Coach: Ayo Bakare. He coaches the Ebun Comets in Nigeria's pro league. He also coached Nigeria's national team in the mid-1990s and early-2000s before Nigeria used to American coaches (Sam Vincent and Robert McCullum).

Qualification: Finished third by beating the Dominican Republic at Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Venezuela in July.

Best Olympic finish: First Olympics

Players you know: F Al-Farouq Aminu, who played college ball at Wake Forest, averaged six points and 4.7 rebounds for the New Orleans Hornets last season. … PG Tony Skinn played on the George Mason team that reached the Final Four in 2006. Skinn, who has spent his professional career in France, Italy and Germany, averaged 10 points and 2.8 assists in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. … F Ike Diogu, who played at Arizona State and averaged six points for six teams in six NBA seasons, averaged 16.8 points and 10.8 rebounds in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. … F Alade Aminu, Al-Farqouq's brother, played at Georgia Tech and has spent last season playing in France. F Ekene Ibekwe played at Maryland.

Expert Analysis: The key with Nigeria and the reason they had success in the Qualifying Tournament is that they play very, very hard and with passion and energy on defense. Diogu is an NBA-level player. Al-Farouq Aminu is certainly an NBA player. They're not going to medal, but they played their win in on the basis of toughness and team chemistry. The Nigerian players I've been around have a fierceness about them. They just play very confidently. They're very quick to the ball. They get all those 50-50 balls. They play very loose. Diogu has done a nice job down low. Their guard play has been good. They're a fun team to watch because of the way they attack and they play very free.

LITHUANIA

Roster: G Rimantas Kaukenas, G Mantas Kalnietis, F Jonas Maciulis, G Martynas Pocius, F Darius Songaila, F Linas Kleiza, F Paulius Jankunas, G Sarunas Jasikevicius, F Simas Jasaitis, C Jonas Valanciunas, C Antanas Kavaliauskas, G Renaldas Seibutis

Coach: Kestutis Kemzura. He played professionally in Lithuania, and after his playing career, he coached in Turkey, Lithuania, Russia and Italy. He was Latvia's national coach before taking Lithuania national team job in 2009.

Qualification: Advanced to finals of Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Venezuela in July.

Best Olympic finish: Bronze in 1992, 1996, 2000

Players you know:Toronto Raptors forward Linas Kleiza (Missouri) averaged 19 points and seven rebounds in the 2010 world championship but a knee injury kept him out of the 2011 European championship in Lithuania. … Guard Sarunas Jasikevicius (Maryland) averaged 9.5 points and 4.6 assists in 2011 European championship and forward Darius Songaila (Wake Forest) averaged 8.4 points and three rebounds in the 2011 European championship.

Expert Analysis: They're coming off a downer. They hosted the European Championship a year ago and ended up finishing a disappointing fifth. There's redemption involved for them. Their team right now has a bunch of solid European level players but for them to have a chance to medal, it has to be about Linas Kleiza. He's healthy. He's capable of being a scoring threat for them. Kleiza is Lithuania's Andrei Kirilenko (of Russia). A little different style obviously, but Kleiza was one of the top players in the world championships. They had a great run to semifinals and they won the bronze. Kleiza was hurt last year, now he's back. He's healthy. He's a proven NBA talent . … It will be a great sneak peek at Valanciunas who was taken fifth in the 2011 NBA Draft and likely would have been the second player taken in this year's draft behind Anthony Davis. He is a pure low-post center with the requisite nastiness to make a quick adjustment to the NBA despite his age."

afam4eva: Malta Guiness has customers and not fans.

https://www.leadership.ng/nga/sites/default/files/imagecache/460x287/articleimages/tb_joshua.jpg

Prophet TB Joshua, the founder and general overseer of the Synagogue Church, Ikotun-Egbe, Lagos, has expressed profound shock over the death of the late president of Ghana, Prof. John Atta Mills, who died on Monday.

Speaking with LEADERSHIP exclusively at his Ikotun Synagogue Church yesterday, Pastor Joshua pointed out that he was indeed very sad at the death of the Ghanaian president, saying he did not receive any revelation concerning the death, otherwise he would have intensified more prayers to avert his demise.

The cleric pointed out that the late Mills was like a spiritual son to him whom he cherished deeply. He was the one who even predicted Mills victory as the Ghanaian president and that prophecy came to pass, he stated.

“Mills was a very committed person in the things of God and also very dedicated. Each time he was in church , you could see the fervor and hunger and thirst for God written all over his countenance. He was a very dear son to me and I was his spiritual godfather.

His death is a great shock and blow to me personally,” said the cleric. “Of course, I knew he had been ill for sometime now and he had come for special prayers concerning his health thrice this year, and I and my other ministers had prayed fervently for him. I was so hopeful he would recover his health completely, but it is sad and only God knows best why he should die now.

“I know many persons will be saying how come my fervent prayers did not save his life. All I can answer such persons is, why did GOD allow Stephen in the New Testament Bible to be stoned to death. Why did God not save the life of Stephen, an innocent man, as he was being stoned, dying?

The answer is simply this: sometimes God allows things to happen for unknown reasons, and indeed reasons no man can explain, that is why God is Almighty Sovereign God; who indeed can question Him, who can challenge God?

“When we humanity eventually see God in the glorious city of Heaven, then, can we have answers to all our questions. For now, he can only get a 99 percent answer but never a 100 per cent answer.”

Pastor Joshua pointed out that the late Mills was a very humble and dedicated leader who had many great plans on how to revolutionise the economy of Ghana for greater heights.

He said his death was “indeed a great loss to humanity at large and especially to the Ghanaian citizenry”.

He disclosed that he had done so much concerted prayers for the late Mills’ health and, aside his prayers, he said, the late Mills had also had frequent visits to the United States hospitals – three times this year alone - and yet God still allowed him to die.”

Concerning the ailment that led to Mills’ death, he said the late president was suffering from throat cancer.

The late president Mills had openly admitted that Prophet TB Joshua played a crucial role on his ascension to the presidency and even said so publicly in a thanksgiving service held at the Synagogue Church in March 2009.

According to the late Mills , the Prophet TB told him that the election would travel to the third round before he would be declared the winner, which came to pass. “It, therefore, came as no surprise, when the Synagogue Church of All Nations was the first church he visited in Nigeria, after the Electoral Commission had declared him winner of the 2008 election.”

One of the church members of the Synagogue Church who spoke to LEADERSHIP yesterday and gave his name simply as Bro Stephen said, “I cried when I learnt of the death of the Ghanaian president. You see, the man was a very wonderful, caring man who, when he did his thanksgiving in March 2009, did a lot of things for our church. Also, each time he visited Nigeria, he always came to our church and his visit was always felt in many ways.

“All of us members are sad over his death. Our Prophet TB Joshua is even sadder. But what can we do? God knows best, and I know God will comfort each and every one of us, especially his immediate family there in Ghana".

afam4eva: So, it's neither a hollywood or Nollywood movie.

Guy, what's with you thinking every "oyinbo" movie is Hollywood?

The British make movies too you know. . . .and very good ones at that e.g Exam, The King's Speech, The Constant Gardener, Slumdog Millionaire, The Last King of Scotland, Attack the Block etc

Ever heard of the BAFTA Awards?

villageboi: Thank you!

How did everyone miss this - http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/half-of-a-yellow-sun-producers-talk-films-production#

Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare believes she can upset the pecking order at the Olympics and outshine her 100m rivals from Jamaica and the United States.

https://cdn.punchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Blessing-Okagbare.jpg

The 23-year-old has hit form at the right time, dipping under 11 seconds twice this month to record victories at both the London and Monaco Diamond League events against her fellow competitors for sprint gold.

At Crystal Palace earlier this month, Okagbare scored a surprise win over defending Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica and reigning world champion Carmelita Jeter.

She then followed that up with victory in Monaco, clocking a season’s best 10.96sec. Although her rivals from Jamaica and the United States remain the bookmakers’ favourites, Okagbare says she is unfazed by the prospect of lining up against them in London.

“You race with them from day to day. It’s not any different at the Olympic Games,” she told AFP.

“They are not threats to me. When I went to Beijing, I was 19 and I got the bronze medal. This year it feels different.”

The Delta State-born athlete had a below par performance at the recent African Athletics Championships in Porto Novo, Benin Republic, losing her African 100m title to little-known Gabonese sprinter Ruddy Milama.

But her fantastic outing in Crystal Palace and Monaco has again made her one of the favourites in the women’s 100m in London.

Okagbare, a bronze medallist in the long jump in Beijing four years ago, now has genuine belief she can add a medal in the 100m in London.

“My recent win in Monaco has boosted my confidence,” Okagbare said. “I think I’m ready to face the world. I’m just going to go out and do my best.

“I’m aiming for a top three overall. If I get the gold, I’ll take it. Whatever happens I will accept my fate.”

Damn! This Blessing Okagbare babe is fine

akintun: We would be represented by a woman called Ogoke in d 75 Kg category. She got to d second round of d world championship and was defeated by d eventual semi-finalist who is a Russian. It would be very difficult 4 her to win a medal, but anything can happen.

virtuoso01: And if you read the Novel written by Mario Puzo it is a much bigger eye opener and much more interesting. Thats my opinion anyway.