March 13, (THEWILL) – Within a few days, two remarkable personalities within the sporting firmament passed on to glory and their departure reverberated across the journalism community like earthquakes high on the Richter scale. While the iconic sports publisher, Emmanuel Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase, died after a brief illness in the United States aged 71, the doyen of sports journalism, Fabio Lanipekun, died four days after his 80th birthday.
Sport fans had hardly recovered from the shock of both men’s passage than the death of a former footballer and ex-captain of the Flying Eagles, Justice Christopher was announced. According to reports, the 40-year-old had slumped and could not be revived even after medical attention at the hospital to which he was rushed in a determined bid to save his life. It was a dark period of mourning, of memorialising their time in earth, of remembering their impacts, of commiserating with their friends and families and of continuing to make a difference in the world of sports in line with the difference they made with their own lives. And, what inspirational lives all three lived.
Take Obazu-Ojeagbase, the founder and Executive Chairman of Complete Communications Limited, which publishes Complete Sports newspapers, SuccessDigest, and other Internet publications, for instance. He was born in Uzebba, Iuleha, in Edo State’s Owan West and, as a media entrepreneur, rose to prominence as the pioneer publisher of sports news in Nigeria when he founded Sports Souvenir weekly newspaper in 1984. Before he rose to the level of a multifaceted business mogul, he cut his entrepreneurial teeth quite early as he began engaging in activities that helped him nurture the skills that will come in handy in the future of multiple-business ownership. At just 17, he already had experience working as an apprentice mechanic for two days, a trainee stenographer for six months and almost five years as a trainee printer.
The publisher, who was previously an enlisted soldier during the Nigerian Civil War, in what has been described as a desperate act to run away from poverty, could have derailed far from the path that his life led until his death if he had continued living his old life, which was characterised by an addiction to pool betting. It was his second pre-occupation in the military and was worsening as an addiction to the point of putting his focus at risk. Fortunately, he reached a turning point when he found God through his reading of the book, “The Seven Laws Of Success” by Herbert W. Armstrong, the founder of Worldwide Church of God. Obazu-Ojeagbase voluntarily discharged from the Army and having taken two correspondent courses in journalism at the age of 26, with a family to care for, he began his career in sports writing as a stringer for Daily Times newspapers in the mid-1970s. Ojeagbase rose fast through sheer talent, drive and hard work, to eventually being named Sports Editor of Sunday Concord Newspapers in 1980 and Sports Editor of The Guardian Newspapers in 1983.
In 1984, he left The Guardian to pursue his dream of becoming an entrepreneur with the measly sum of just N6,500 to his name, with which he started the successful Sports Souvenir newspaper. He was his own printer and vendor when he began, personally selling copies in front of the National Stadium in Lagos. Between 1984 and 1994, Ojeagbase launched more groundbreaking sports titles to the Nigerian sports market, including Complete Football magazine, Complete Football International(CFI), and International Soccer Review (ISR) all of which went on to become some of the most widely read newspapers, magazines and reviews in circulation. THEWILL recalls that Complete Football was the first all-colour monthly football magazine in Nigeria and Complete Sports, which he began publishing in 1995, was the first daily sports newspaper ever in the country as well.
In 1994, Obazu-Ojeagbase co-founded the Success Attitude Development Centre (SADC) with his wife, Pastor (Mrs) Esther Ojeagbase, whom he had met, courted and married within a period of two weeks. The Centre was conceived with the aim and objective of teaching young Nigerian entrepreneurs how to start, run, and succeed in their businesses. Success Digest Magazine, one of the best-selling magazines and Nigerians’ number one life-changing magazine, debuted in 1995 under the auspices of this Centre. Today, national events including as the Success Digest Entrepreneurs Awards (a much-anticipated event for Nigerian entrepreneurs), the Success Digest Entrepreneurs Conference, the Success Digest Business Opportunity Expo, the Success Digest Leaders’ Club, and the SO Wealth Library are held under SADC. The SADC went on to develop and inspire thousands of successful entrepreneurs, protégés who are now employers of labour themselves today.
In March 2003, Obazu-Ojeagbase was ordained as a pastor, and he proclaimed the gospel of God to everybody who came into contact with him, both in words and acts. He was a self-made hard working individual, who was passionate about learning, as seen by his large library stocked with books on business management, leadership, and other topics. The ex-soldier, business mogul, founder, pastor and inspirational speaker also authored several books like bestsellers such as “How to Make It in Nigeria – Building Your Wealth from Ground Floor Up”, “How to Bullet Proof Yourself from Poverty, Ideas – The Starting Point of All True Riches” and similar titles. For young journalists and contemporaries alike, he established and facilitated groundbreaking chances and positions. His philanthropy and generosity were boundless. Despite being a Pastor, the detribalised sports pioneer was highly accepting and unbiased toward members of various faiths.
Within a week of the breaking of Obazu-Ojeagbase’s death, the passing away of another pacesetter in sports journalism, Fabio Lanipekun, rocked the Nigerian sports community. According to close family sources, the accomplished sports journalist transitioned to glory over the weekend, only four days after commemorating the 80th anniversary of his birth. It was Modele Sarafa-Yusuf, one of many who cut their teeth under Fabio Lanipekun’s supervision, who was one of the first to announced his death. She did so via a tweet late Sunday, to which she attached a recent picture of herself and the sports journalism icon. Her tweet read: “I mourn the death of my former boss & mentor, Fabio Lanipekun who passed away today- 4 days after his 80th birthday. Fabio encouraged my move from NTA Ibadan to Lagos, burnished my skills and taught me hardwork & discipline. May God grant him peaceful repose & bless his family.”
Lanipekun was born Adesola Lanipekun before adopting the name ‘Fabio’ from a novel he read as a student at the Methodist Boys High School in Lagos, according to a recent expose by another seasoned journalist, Kunle Solaja. While he worked in the print media for a while, from the now-defunct Daily Express to Concord Press, where he climbed to become Group Sports Editor, most people remember him from his time at the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA). Lanipekun, whose work was influenced by David Coleman, a senior BBC commentator, belonged to a bygone age of sportscasters and was well-known for his football commentary. The legendary commentator, dubbed the “encyclopaedia of sports” remained a constant figure on NTA long after his retirement, analysing Super Eagles games and writing a column for Obazu-Complete Ojeagbase’s Sports. For many years, he was the head of sports at NTA headquarters, as well as the Nigeria Olympic Committee’s (NOC) Public Relations Officer (PRO). He was well-known for his knowledge of Nigerian football history, having worked there since 1962, and he was known for his hard work and excellence while he was alive.
He was frequently hailed as a pioneer of sportscasting on Nigerian television while being a teacher and mentor of journalists, especially on the Sports beat. Before retiring, this doyen of professional sports journalism, whose glory days on television screens will be remembered forever, ascended to the post of Manager, Sports at NTA and will be missed by those whose lives he touched and those he inspired with his life and example.
With not enough time to fully these two icons of sports, the Nigerian sporting community was shocked to learn early on Wednesday last week, that former Flying Eagles captain Christopher had collapsed and died at his hotel complex in Jos, Plateau State. Christopher, who was a vital part of the Super Eagles side that competed in the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, was said to be suffering from moderate hypertension before suffering what is suspected to be cardiac arrest. The player was a defensive midfielder in his playing days, and according to Stephen Lokrit, who was with him all night, he was extremely lively on Tuesday as he felicitated and ate with his friends. As aforementioned, the 40-year-old was immediately taken to the hospital, where his death was confirmed, the third such confirmation in a two-week period of mournful times for the country.
Christopher was appointed Captain of the Nigerian Flying Eagles, the country’s Under-20 national team, to the 2001 Africa Youth Championship in Egypt. The late Stephen Keshi was the team’s coach and the team finished bottom of Group 2 and failed to make it past the group stage, drawing goalless with Mali before losing 4-1 to Ghana. Christopher made his Super Eagles debut in the same year, during the FIFA World Cup qualifying series, and went on to earn a total of 11 caps, including an Africa Cup of Nations appearance and a World Cup appearance, all in 2002. He was a late addition to that 2002 Africa Cup of Nations squad and appeared in only the third-place playoff against Mali.
Christopher, whose professional career began with Katsina United, went on to play for Sharks, and Bendel Insurance in Nigeria, before going abroad and playing in the colours of Antwerp FC (Belgium), Levski Sofia (Bulgaria), Trelleborgs FF (Sweden), Alania Vladikavkaz (Russia), and Herflge BK in Europe (Denmark)
They lived inspirational lives and have left the stage for those of us following to keep the flame of sporting excellence alive and continue to fly Nigeria’s sports flag high with pride, distinction and zeal in their memories and for the glory of the country.
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.
