Mcleod, Osewa retain SNEPco junior tennis titles

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Micheal Osewa beat Stephen Augustine to retain the Boys’ 18 title at the SNEPco Junior Tennis Championship, which ended in Lagos…at the weekend.

Michael Osewa and Angel Mcleod were in outstanding form at the weekend when they beat Stephen Augustine and Toyin Asogba to retain their boys 18 and girls 16 titles respectively as the third edition of the SNEPCo Junior Tennis Championship came to an exciting end at the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club.

Osewa’s 8-4 victory was the second over Augustine in two weeks, while Mcleod overpowered Toyin Asogba, who had upset Marylove Edwards in the semifinals 8-2.

The boys 16 match, which was again the star match, lived up to the billing as Emmanuel Jebutu finally won the long drawn match 9-7. It was an all Kodian Tennis Foundation affair in the girls 14 as Timipre Maxwell again defeated the younger Rebecca Ekpeyong, who just graduated from the 12 this year, 8-4. Ekpeyong however went away smiling as she got the most improved player (MOU) award.

Two Abuja based players also dominated the boys 14s where Suleiman Ibrahim defeated Aliu Abubarkar 8-4.The MOU award for the boys went to Philip Abayomi, another player who did not win an event but showed remarkable improvement from the CBN Junior championship held two weeks ago.

Other title winners were Serena Teluwo, who won a close match against her friend and teammate, Reza Holmes 9-7; Precious Ikueba, who beat Seun Ogunsakin 8-6 and Daniel Adeleye, who defeated Joshua Maxwell 8-4.

A surprise winner emerged in the girls 12 where Lokoja-based Mary Udofa beat Esther Marshal from Lagos 8-2.The week long event, which saw the emergence of four new champions, had 158 players competing in five age categories – boys and girls 10 & under, 12 & under, 14 & under, 16 & under and 18 & under.

In his speech at the finals, the managing director of SNEPCo, Bayo Ojulari said the company was happy to play a part in giving Nigerian youth a window of opportunity to create wealth with their talent.

“A well structured and well organised junior event like this is bound to produce results and spicing it up with cultural dances and ballet show dancing by other youths makes it really interesting for all of us. We appreciate our partnership with the International Tennis Academy whose director, Godwin Kienka, is putting his soul and body into developing tennis in Nigeria,” said Mr. Ojulari.

Vía The Guardian Nigeria http://ift.tt/2nuIkg9

Grammys: Chance the Rapper beats Drake, Kanye West…Read full details

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Recording artist Chance The Rapper accepts the award for Best Rap Album onstage during The 59th GRAMMY Awards at STAPLES Center on February 12, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images/AFP

Chance the Rapper on Sunday won three Grammys including Best New Artist, validating the rapid rise of the hip-hop star who has released his music only through streaming.

The rapper, who has been open about his Christianity, told the televised gala: “I claim the victory in the name of the Lord.”

“I know people think that independence means you do it by yourself, but independence means freedom,” Chance said as he pointed to members of his team.

The 23-year-old rapper from Chicago, whose real name is Chancelor Bennett, won Best New Artist in a field that included electronica crowd-pleasers The Chainsmokers and experimental hip-hop artist Anderson .Paak.

He also won Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Album, going up against A-listers including his mentor Kanye West and chart-topper Drake.

“Coloring Book,” Chance’s mixtape released last year, incorporated gospel choir music and lyrically touched on his faith.

Chance the Rapper benefited from a change in Grammy rules this year to consider streaming-only releases. He did not sell “Coloring Book” as a CD or as downloads, saying he considered himself a touring artist.

“Coloring Book” nonetheless entered the top 10 on the US albums chart, the first for a streaming exclusive, as Chance promoted the work through an active social media campaign.

The mixtape featured appearances by top stars including West, a fellow Chicago rapper who was his early inspiration, and Justin Bieber.

Chance the Rapper has also used his rising platform to be an activist.

He has pleaded for an end to Chicago’s gun violence epidemic, waging a campaign similar to an album promotion that was credited with helping make May 23 a day without deadly shootings in the Midwestern metropolis.

He took up the anti-violence cause in collaboration with his father Ken Williams-Bennett, who has served as an aide to former president Barack Obama and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Vía Uzomedia http://ift.tt/2kn6Iyq