By: Chinedum Ohanusi
The 2025 Zone H Pre-NUGA Games, which started on October 8th, ended on October 12th at the Yakubu Gowon University, formerly University of Abuja, with only seven of the 13 universities in the zone competing for honours, in the zonal preliminaries.
The other six universities who completed the registration formalities, where also in Abuja, but as observers,and only participated in non-competive events.
The Universities that participated include Federal University of Technology (FUT) Minna, Prince Abubakar Audu University Ayingba, and NILE University Abuja.
Others were the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University Lapai, Federal University Lokoja, University of Abuja, Veritas University Beari Abuja, and the
Abdulkadir Kure University Minna.
The 5-day fiesta, saw the institutions compete in a variety of events such as, volleyball, basketball, football, karate, taekwandeo, chess, table tennis, tennis, badminton, athletics, scrabble, long jump, javelin throw, and track events.
Others events include swimming, handball, judo, and boxing.
At the end of the very lively and colorful games, which saw participating schools and athletes showcase their skills, while displaying a very high-level of maturity and fair play; the host institution (Uni-Abuja) qualified for events such as women’s football and basketball, men’s table tennis, tennis and Taekawando.
They also qualified in chess, volleyball and karate for both men and women.
Nile University, Abuja qualified for basketball, while Federal University of Technology Minna qualified in table tennis (mixed doubles and doubles), men’s football, and also scooped the honours in badminton men’s single.
Elsewhere, Federal university Lokoja qualified in both mixed doubles and the men’s and women’s singles of Badminton.
The pre-NUGA competition, was essentially a qualifying platform for athletes and teams of the 13 Universities in Zone H to punch their tickets to the 2025 Nigeria Universities Games (NUGA) proper, to be hosted by the University of Jos from November 5 to 15.
According to the Director of Sports, Uni-Abuja, Professor Mnguember Vicky Sylvester, Aviation Aerospace University Abuja also had a team, and participated in the events, held at the Main Campus of the University.
