Kaduna state beach volleyball player, Uchenna Austin told www.aclsports.com that consistency gave his team a gold medal at the recently concluded 2022 National Sports Festival in Asaba, Delta State.
The pair of Uchenna Austin and Peter Jasper (Kaduna state) beat Emenike Ejike and Goodluck Anyasodike (Delta State) 2-1 (21-13, 14-21, 15-12) in the men’s beach volleyball finals.
Austin revealed that he had played over 50 matches on the court before participating in the National Sports Festival.
He said, “I feel great, happy and fulfilled; God has shown that he is faithful to the Kaduna state beach volleyball men’s team as we won the gold medal.
“We planned for every team at the National Sports Festival, especially the defending champions because we expected them to meet us at the final. My teammate and I ensured we got our pound of flesh after finishing third at the 20th National Sports Festival in Benin, Edo state.”
He further said, “The gold medal can be attributed to consistency, dedication and hard work. This year’s President Beach Volleyball Cup and National Beach Volleyball Tour also helped greatly reshape our style of play and put us in a competitive mood.
“My team and I have played over 50 matches this year from Kaduna to Yola and Abuja (the 2nd phase). I want to thank the President of the Nigeria Volleyball Federation, Engineer Musa Nimrod for giving us this opportunity to have this kind of tournament for beach players.
Austin told Nigerians to expect more from the Kaduna state beach volleyball team in the 2023 volleyball season.
He said, “The world should expect a brand new Kaduna state beach volleyball team next season. There are various beach volleyball events happening in Nigeria and Africa, we are hopeful of participating in most of them.”
