The President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN) Francis Orbih has welcomed the upgrade of one of Nigeria’s certified national badminton umpires, Naomi Adeoyin Oyinloye, by the Badminton Confederation of Africa (BCA) with immense satisfaction.
Oyinloye’s upgrade was conveyed via a letter dated April 9, 2020 and signed by BCA Secretary General, Sahir Edoo after the completion of the BCA Umpires Assessment which took place in Casablanca, Morocco during the All African Games in August, 2019.
In a statement, Orbih said the BFN has always believed that the growth of the game is not just about the development of the players, but should also encompass the development of the technical department of the game.
“It was one of the major things we wanted to achieve when the board gave the nod for the commencement of series of Umpires Training courses which started in Abuja in 2018”.
He said the overall development of these sectors of the game is a continuous exercise that cannot be overemphasized as there are plans to develop and upgrade the coaches as well.
“These, among other crucial areas are what we will like to see firmly in place to justify the confidence that various stakeholders in the game have reposed in us,” he said.
It will be noted that Oyinloye was invited together with Adebayo George Ilori by the BCA to be part of the officiating officials at the All African Games in Morocco.
The last time Nigerian Umpires were upgraded by the BCA was 20 years ago in the year 2000 at the All Africa Senior Championships in Bauchi, Nigeria where a group of 5 Nigerian umpires were certified.
