GSS Karu win Power Forward basketball tourney

Government Secondary School (GSS) Karu, Abuja have won this year’s Power Forward Basketball Championship, held at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja over the weekend.

In the boys’ category, the school defeated Total Child Model School, Dutse 22-20, just as the GSS girls’ team also beat Total Child Model School 22-15.

Government College, Zone Three, finished third at the end of the championship.

Power Forward, a youth development initiative of oil giant ExxonMobil, the National Basketball Association (NBA) and international NGO Africare teaches health literacy (malaria prevention and hygiene promotion) and life skills through basketball.

General Manager, Public and Government Affairs, ExxonMobil Nigeria, Nigel Cookery-Gam said the company would continue to support the event, which has brought succour to youth in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

He said ExxonMobil continues to be corporate leader in the fight to reduce global burden of malaria.

He added that since 2000, ExxonMobil supported programmes have distributed more than 14m bed nets, nearly 3m diagnostic tests and more than 4m antimalarial treatments.

This year’s edition which is the sixth featured former NBA player and 2015 NBA champion, Festus Ezeli as well as mentoring sessions with former captain of the Nigeria Basketball national team Olumide Oyedeji.

Students from 10 secondary schools participated in the basketball tournament which organisers said has trained over 2000 students including 1100 direct beneficiaries and 900 peer influencers from 30 schools in Abuja.