Head Coach, Grace Martial Arts Academy (GMAA), Akure has bagged the highest National Coaching Certification from the National Institute for Sports.
Speaking with Precision Online Newspaper from his professional ringside debut at the Queen of the Jungle Contest held in the indoor sports hall of the National Stadium, Lagos, Coach Bada explained that Combat sports like Boxing, Kickboxing and Mixed Martial Arts, were making a global resurgence and that Nigeria should not be left out.
He reckoned that Boxing was the first sport that gave Nigeria international recognition with Hogan Bassey winning the World Featherweight Title in 1957,
Dick Tiger’s World Championship win in 1962 and Nigeria’s first Olympic Medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics through Nojeem Maiyegun therefore, Nigeria should be positioned to reclaim its place in combat sports glory.
He stated further that in recent times, Nigeria has also received global recognition through champion athletes like Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman in Kickboxing and Mixed Martial Arts.
According to him, combat sports not only have the capacity to put Nigeria back on the global sports pedestal, but can also quell youth restiveness and delinquency, hence there is the need to encourage a growth of combat sports in Nigeria.
He stated that modern coaching in combat sports had become more scientific and analytical therefore coaches should always strive to further improve their capacity through continuing education and retraining.
Coach Bada expressed his joy at being able to obtain the National Certification in Kickboxing which was adopted as a National Sport a few years ago, thus, making him one of the only two individuals to currently possess the certificate in Nigeria.
He has also previously obtained a certification in Boxing Coaching from the National Institute with a Distinction.
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