News
Chaos in the Ring: Women Celebrities to Headline October Edition as Balmoral Boss Speaks on Portable-Okocha Episode
The October edition of Chaos in the Ring is set to take a new dimension, with Balmoral International Group boss, Ezekiel Adamu, revealing that women celebrities are being lined up to headline the next edition of the fast-growing boxing entertainment series.
Adamu, who spoke exclusively with Sports247, said preparations are already at an advanced stage, promising fans another memorable night when the event returns in October.
“We are looking at getting women celebrities and we are almost done. The October edition of Chaos in the Ring will be the biggest yet. I won’t let the cat out of the bag yet, but you can be rest assured that the fans will have another memorable moment as our matchmakers are working on some huge fights,” Adamu said.
The Balmoral boss also explained the broader vision behind the event, stressing that Chaos in the Ring is designed to use boxing and entertainment as tools for youth engagement, tourism and national development.
According to him, sport has the unique ability to bring people together regardless of religion, politics or social background.
“Sports unite everyone. We don’t care about religion, political power or anything. We just dive into it. That’s what we are using sport as a tool for tourism and youth education,” he said.
Adamu also highlighted Balmoral’s ambition to build stronger international relationships and create opportunities for Nigerian fighters to compete on bigger stages.
He disclosed that the organisation has continued to strengthen its relationship with international promoters, with the long-term objective of having Nigerian boxers feature on major international cards.
“Bit by bit, brick by brick, we are getting there. We should be having a lot more world champions here in Nigeria, built in Nigeria and belonging to Nigeria,” he said.
On the controversial episode involving Portable and Okocha, Adamu admitted that the incident provided a major learning experience for the organisers.
He insisted that boxing events must protect the integrity of the sport and ensure that fighters honour their commitments once agreements are reached.
“I think we learned a lesson recently with the fight involving Portable and Okocha. It was a huge lesson. I don’t think we will be having that kind of fight where a fighter will just walk out of the ring without having to pay for it, the contracts all be tightened to prevent boxers walking away from fight without consequences”, Adamu stated.
He added that future editions would place greater emphasis on ensuring that fighters, spectators and other stakeholders have a professional experience.
Adamu also clarified Balmoral’s role as a promoter, stressing that the company does not manage the careers of the fighters it promotes.
He explained that managers are responsible for the long-term careers, training, welfare and financial interests of boxers, while Balmoral focuses on promotion and event creation.
“I always tell people, ‘know thyself.’ I know myself. I’m not a manager; I’m a creator,” Adamu said.
With the October edition already taking shape, expectations are high that Chaos in the Ring will continue to blend boxing, celebrity entertainment and sports promotion into one of Nigeria’s emerging combat-sports attractions.
Abandoned mine sites in Kassa, Barkin Ladi in Plateau where seven miners died recently.
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has warned illegal miners against extracting minerals from abandoned pits without licences.
Mr Alake gave the warning while reacting to the collapse of an abandoned tin mine pit at Kassa in the Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State.
The warning is contained in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Lara Owoeye-Wise, on Sunday in Abuja.
Illegal miners died on Wednesday evening after a mining pit collapsed on them at a mining site in Kassa community, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State.
The minister said the tragedy could have been averted if the illegal miners formed a cooperative and applied for the necessary permit.
He said obtaining the permit would have enabled them to benefit from field training by the ministry’s Artisanal Mining Department and secure a steady stream of income.
Mr Alake commiserated with the government and people of Plateau State over the incident, urging artisanal miners nationwide to learn from the tragedy.
“The challenge before the state and the Federal Government is how to turn these potential pits of death into centres of joyful prosperity,” he said.
The minister said there were more than 4,000 mine pits dug by Amalgamated Tin Mines Ltd. alongside their successor companies, Consolidated Tin Mines Ltd. and Nigerian Tin and Allied Products Ltd.
He called on investors to partner with the government to repurpose the abandoned pits for energy, tourism and fishery projects.
Mr Alake said collaboration with the private sector remained the fastest and most proactive approach to transforming abandoned mining sites into productive assets.
He stated that the ministry had so far rehabilitated 59 abandoned mine pits.
According to him, the ministry, in a move to de-risk investment in the sector, has also inaugurated an initiative deploying advanced Geographic Information System satellite mapping and Artificial Intelligence.
He said that this would help to identify and characterise legacy tin pits.
He said the nitiative being implemented through a public-private partnership with ImPPPact Nigeria Alliance and geomatics specialist, Intomatics, was adopting Plateau State as the pilot state.
Mr Alake said the initiative would support the design and development of workflows for reclaiming the thousands of legacy tin pits across the state.
He advised prospective investors to direct enquiries to the Nigerian Mining Cadastral Office and the ministry’s Mines and Environmental Compliance Department.
He also encouraged investors to apply to the Solid Minerals Development Fund’s funding programme.
To prevent the recurrence of abandoned mine pits, Mr Alake said he had pioneered the establishment of the Environmental Protection and Rehabilitation Fund.
He said the initiative was aimed at ensuring that mining companies contributed funds that could be used to rehabilitate pits where operators failed to do so after mine closure.
“Very soon, we shall conclude discussions with the fund managers. Henceforth, mining companies must pay to the fund so that it can rehabilitate mine pits if the companies do not do so during closure,” he said.
(NAN)
-
News3 days agoJoke Silva urges Nigerian creatives to embrace AI as a tool, not a replacement at QED summit – Technology Times
-
Health3 days ago
WHO recommends Phase III trial of Ebola vaccine against Bundibugyo virus
-
Health3 days ago
FG targets improved cancer care with 25 new linear accelerators
-
Health3 days ago
Faith leaders urged to confront beliefs, family decisions driving maternal deaths in Kano
