The new executives were elected shortly after the recent first African Kabaddi Championship/General Meeting in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
The hybrid general meeting/election, which was both physical and virtual, had a large turnout of participants from member nations, and was conducted in a cordial and peaceful atmosphere.
The other elected executive members are Mr. Mathew Mwangi of Kenya (secretary general), Madame Njeng Lydie Gaetan of Cameroun (Treasurer), Madam Karima Elkhomary of Morocco and Mr. Kisito Makawa of Zimbabwe.
Speaking on the new council, Dr. Said urged all elected officers and member nations to brace up to the task ahead and join hands to effectively grow Kabaddi sports in Africa.
Also speaking on the council, newly elected assistant secretary, Mr. Osakwe, who is president, Nigeria Kabaddi Sports Association, pledged that the next four years will witness grassroots initiatives that would inspire more people to take up Kabaddi sports socially and/or competitively; adding that the ultimate aim is to sue the sport as a vehicle for national integration, intercultural cooperation and development.
Kabaddi is a contact team sport played by two teams of seven players fighting to get one of their players into the opposing team’s half, tag out as many of defenders as possible, and return to his own half of the court without being tackled by the defenders.
Kabaddi has its origin in India and is said to be more than 5,000 years old. It made its debut in the 1936 Olympics as a demonstration sport. In Nigeria, Osakwe and Kenya’s Mathew Daio Mwangi, who is also the general secretary of Africa Kabaddi Federation, officially introduced Kabaddi in 2018.
