Badminton Will Make Nigeria Proud At Los Angeles 2028- Francis Orbih 

By Akeem Busari 

President of Nigeria Badminton Federation and member of the Badminton World Council, Barrister Francis Orbih, has expressed his optimism on the chances and future fortunes of Badminton in Nigeria and particularly, on the world stages.

In a recent chat with this writer, he attributed the new and encouraging profile of the game in Nigeria to  the collective resolve and efforts of his board members. 

On the new and exciting developments in the game, he likened it to squeezing water out of stone.

 “It’s not been easy. It’s like squeezing water out of stone. Now, we’re trying to make sure our best players go out and compete with the best in the world.

 “Eniola Bolaji is currently the No.2 in the world in her category and that’s massive. She’s the first African to win a medal in badminton at the Para-Olympics.

“We just have to continue to support and encourage her and which is why she is currently in Spain and training ahead of the forthcoming competitions. And of course, our ultimate target is the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.”

Speaking on the determination of his board to grow the sport in Nigeria, he disclosed that there are plans to improve the technical department of the sport.

 “Last year, we trained 13 young coaches to get BWF grade level 1 coaching certificates and they all passed. This year, we hope some of them would be able to do level 2 and then level 3.

“However, beyond that, we’re hoping to get a foreign coach on secondment to be with our teams. There are massive plans for the game in Nigeria,” the awards winning sport administrator added.