January 05, (THEWILL) –Â Last month, Adaora Elonu, Nigeria’s international basketball player, sponsored an all-girls basketball camp with the goal of recognising and fostering future talent in the country.
On December 27, she took her first daring step toward attaining this at the Indoor Sports Hall, Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium Enugu, during the first edition of the “All Dreams Achieved [ADA]” Camp in her hometown of Enugu.
According to Elonu, the event arose from her desire to fulfil an inner calling of assisting other young girls by providing them with the opportunity to learn the foundations of the game.
“I had many different inspirations. Past teammates and friends like Uju Ugoka who has done a camp in Enugu earlier this year and Ndidi Madu who runs clinics and contributes to many girls basketball teams in Nigeria. They both organise these events through their Foundations,” the 31-year-old explained.
“Once establishing the ADA Foundation I wanted the first event to be about basketball, focused on the girls and ladies in my community.
“Uju Ugoka held hers earlier this year and it hosted a lot of players. Maybe mine is the first only for girls. The one-day camp was great. I was able to give back in a way that was easy, by helping to teach and strengthen basic basketball fundamentals,” she added.
The three-time Women’s AfroBasket champion who was named MVP of the tournament’s most recent edition and who last played for Spar Uni Girona, said: “The girls were receptive and looked like they were both enjoying themselves while working hard. I left the camp wanting more and wishing it was longer. A good sign for me to make sure I allow this to continue as often as I can.”
Elonu was impressed by the end of the camp and noted that one of the most essential factors for her at a camp was that about 40 campers were given adequate attention.
“I want to do more, and Enugu will be the primary city for now, especially with the support of the Enugu State Government and the coaches on base here like Chiedozie Nwoye.
“I would love to do camps in other cities as well. The ones who were in camp were given attention and skills to continue to develop. There were players with experience and players that it was their first experience with basketball. Each received skills that should allow them to practice outside of camp and grow their craft,” the 1.85m (6ft 1in) forward said.
Elonu witnessed firsthand how much the girls adored her after seeing her in their neighbourhood and having several photos taken of her.
“Many of them made me feel special as they mentioned watching me play with the D’Tigress and being happy to be able to attend the camp,” recalled the reigning Women’s AfroBasket MVP.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
