A fresh push has been made for the inclusion of handball among team events to be contested at this year’s National Sports Festival in Enugu State.
Sports247 gathered that the latest call for handball’s return to the festival at Coal City 2026 was made on Monday during the maiden meeting of the Nigerian Athlete Commission, involving representatives of athletes from all sports federations in the country.
Players’ representative on the board of the Handball Federation of Nigeria (HFN), Talle Dada Aliyu, made the call on behalf of his sport, alongside Atabo Opaluwa Aminudeen and Monday Agwu Omenka.
Aliyu cited the highly impressive track record handball has had for Nigeria in recent days, including an outstanding performance of the under-20 men’s national team in qualifying for the IHF World Championship.
Adding his voice to the charge, Aminudeen stressed that the sport’s continued exclusion does not reflect its growth and achievements, following which chairman of the Athletes Commission, Olumide Oyedeji promised to make a strong case for them at the National Sports Commission (NSC).
Although Oyedeji noted that the appeal might have come late, given the rate at which preparations for the festival have already gone, he promised that the matter would get due consideration.
