#9- Kiggwe Akello- Track
#8- Cyper Kandeh- Baseball
#7- "Mr. Main Event" Duta Condé- Baseball
#6- Labanzi Nabongo- Basketball
#5 on the list of the greatest Banijan athletes of all-time- WCC Hall of Famer and World Cup Champion Namakula Kawesa
The glass ceiling breaker for Banija's female athletes, and the only woman on this list, Kawesa blazed a trail for Banija's women to follow
ISTRIA, MORAVICA- And now, time for (association) football, right? A nation that has five WCC Hall of Fame slots(And four of them given for players), we have produced quite a few great footballers. There is talent depth in this country, and while it is not quite up to the level of our neighbors Valanora, there is still impressive talent both up top and down the line.
And so when it came to the creation of this list, the question was- how many footballers could be on this list, and where would they be? And once we figured out those numbers, we had to decide who to put on, and where to put them on. And a name that could not be left off- Namakula Kawesa.
Not only a trailblazer and a glass ceiling breaker, but an exceptional talent in every way- the midfield maestro being a key part of a squad that won a lot of games between World Cups 83-86, culminating with being a World Cup champion herself.
Her Story
Her story starts with the context of Banijan law at the time of her youth. For the longest time, organized sports in Banija had to be strictly segregated by gender, from the youth levels all the way up to the professional levels. It was due to the antiquated belief in the country that women could not compete with men, that women should only play with women.
But as the global game came to Banija's shores outside the context of our domestic football, we saw patently that was not true. As Banija started to host major international tournaments, like BoF 67 and we saw UICA matches come, we saw mixed gendered teams come to our stadia and take our players to the cleaners. We realized that gender segregation was not a benefit for us- we were hurting ourselves, and it made Banija look backwards. So in a massive forward step, Kizza Makoni as Katikkiro introduced legislation to get rid of those laws.
Namakula Kawesa was a beneficiary. A dominant player in women's college soccer in Banija, she had won a national championship for Loyola-Istria as those laws were changed. She was immediately on the radar for the national team and a number of club teams, and going into DBC 44, Marcus Waters named her to the squad(to be managed by Forzu-Denir Ono), and said that she'd be a key player on the squad.
Her Accomplishments
Where do we begin? How do we measure her greatness?
Let's start right where we left off- DBC 44. She was shining at DBC 44, taking apart her opponents piece by piece, navigating defenses, refusing to get pushed around by larger players, and making both dribbling and passing moves that would be seen on tournament highlight reels. Unfortunately for her, there was a three-way tie in this group for first place, with three teams earning 5 points. With Baker Park earning first, Banija and Mytanija were level on all tiebreakers, and it came down to a coin toss. Mytanija advanced(eventually all the way to the final, mind you) and Banija, however bitterly, saw a young talented squad go home after the group stages without losing a game.
While she didn't get to play in knockout stage games, she showed enough to get picked up by Dukuma SC, then a top-flight team in the Banijan Soccer League. She then showed enough there to get signed abroad, to go to the Apox National League. And that's when her star really began to take off. Dukuma SC, always a selling club, sold her for $7 million NSDs to the Gwinerva Barbarians, and they really made use of her talents at a high level. She helped lead them to a 2nd place finish in the league, as well as winning their domestic cup(the Marshall Cup), scoring for the Barbarians in that Cup Final.
She continued to have a strong few years in Apox, while also playing for the national team. She became the first ever woman to score for the senior side in World Cup 82 Qualifying, the first of many goals for the Kadongo Kamu that she'd score over the course of her national team career. And while she was doing it for the national team, bigger clubs stepped up to the plate. Tanrısal of Pasarga came swooping in, to sign her, paying a hefty sum for her services as well.
And once again, in Rushmore, she proved her worth. She had a season with Tanrısal where she had 12 assists, near the top of the league, which earned her a spot in the SuperLiga's Team of the Season. This is a woman who, while taking her game to the next level at her club, was able to replicate that same form for her national team. How many times has she scored a big goal in a big moment? She was a starter on the team that won us our first senior international trophy, Eagle's Cup VIII.
She became a starter following our World Cup 83 miracle semifinal run on home soil. Set the scene. World Cup 84. Final day of the group stages. As long as HUElavia don't beat Farfadillis, we only need a point to advance. HUElavia do find a way to beat Farfadillis. As Farfadillis trail against HUElavia, Banija is desperately searching for a goal to show that our World Cup 83 run was not just because of home field advantage, but because we had it. A group stage elimination here would be hugely damaging to our psyche.
The heart and soul of that squad, Gitonga Kahara, suspended for that game because of his red card the matchday before. 90th minute. Foul. Kahara was the penalty taker- who would step up? Kawesa would be asked. And she would step up to bury that penalty, and send us to the Round of 16 as opposed to the first flight home. In World Cup 85, coming up in big moments, starting up attacks that would lead to goals, and help lead the team on their second bronze medal run in three tournaments.
And then- World Cup 86. Namakula Kawesa flying around the pitch for Banija's greatest ever sporting moment. Having one goal and one assist in both the quarterfinals and semifinals of that tournament, and being a starter on a team that would win the World Cup. That dreams that her talent gave her came to fruition on that nice night in the Tundra Falls- World Cup champions.
Following that trophy, the last chapter of her career would be spent in Astograth, playing for Sporting Iturributa. The World Cup could not satisfy her hunger for competition. Her first season in Astograth? 12 goals, Player of the Season, member of the Team of the Season, and scoring in the Royal Cup Final to bring Sporting Iturributa a trophy. Second season in Astograth? 16 goals, third place for Player of the Season, and still a member of the team of the Season.
She's been an elite performer in Astograth, even at this age- and she's retiring with grace. She's truly fallen in love with the country, telling reporters that "Sporting Iturributa is a culture and a family unlike any other- I want to embrace this country as they have embraced me." She retired from the general national team early to further focus her club career there, and she will stay on with the club as an assistant manager, returning when the Olympiad is over.
She's back with the national team at the Olympiad, where she tries to compete for glory with the women's side, as her final playing days will be here in Electrum before she retires for good. But she's already got glory at the Olympiad- but not in soccer, mind you. Remember Istria/Orean? She's the only person on this list to be elite in two sports. She was a member of the Banijan women's 4x400m relay team, who earned a silver medal on home soil for Banija. Track Star. World Cup winner. Rock Star.
She's been a top performer for a solid 15 years, and has done it in multiple sports, considering her Olympic success. With all that, Namakula's talents and accomplishments have given us no choice but to recognize her as one of the top 5 greatest Banijan athletes of all-time- and, of course, as the greatest Banijan female athlete of all-time.
Other News
- Three Banijan players, the day after their Round of 16 match with Sarzonia, signed contracts with clubs in IUBC leagues, considered the highest standard of club basketball on the international level. 22 year old shooting guard Israel Arefani signed for the Hinteram Ghouls in Græntfjall, while two Banijans will play in the QBL. Tigrian Tesheme will play for CSKA Quebec in the Quebecois capitol city, while Oluwasegun Tionge will play for the Cal City Lakers on the Quebecois West Coast. That means for this upcoming season, 10 members of Banija's IBC 32 rosters, out of 12, will be playing for IUBC eligible squads this season. Coach Lavaga said that the development was "a welcome one", as Banija's players getting into the world's best leagues will only improve competition here at home.
- In a highly anticipated Round of 16 matchup, Banija blitzed through their Sarzonian opponents, locking down on defense to hold their bitter rivals to just 57 points, as we romped by a score of 77-57. The 1-3-1 was out in full force, as Sarzonian Star Mike West scored 19 points, but was forced to extreme inefficiency(5/19 from the field, 4/12 from deep, 5/5 from the line) by the Banijan defense. The key to the game were the middle quarters, as the Stars were held to just 23 points combined during the second and third quarters, while the Banijans scored 42 combined in those quarters.
- Banija will face Chromatika in their IBC Quarterfinal. "It's never easy to play the host nation on their home soil." Coach Lavaga said. "It's a huge game going up against an up and coming Chromatika squad- we expect to battle for 40 minutes." This will be the fourth consecutive IBC where Banija will play the host nation in their country. They are 3-1 in such circumstances, losing to Equestria on the road in the group stages of IBC 29, while defeating Græntfjall twice in the group stages of IBC 30, and then defeating Delaclava in the IBC 31 Championship Game. Coach Lavaga said that they will draw upon that experience, especially the final on home soil for Delaclava, to get a sense of what kind of environment the Banijans will be playing in here on Myana Island.
- Coach Lavaga called the individual matchups for Chromatika 'fascinating'. The Chromatiks have a size advantage at every position except small forward, where Bullo only has a few inches on his counterpart. Still, expect Lavaga to try and go to Bullo early. On the flip side, the Banijans will be facing another superstar point guard in Jung-Hyuk Park, who is playing at his own home arena. Pundits talked about how the 1-3-1 has to be focused and designed to stop Jung-Hyuk, as he is a player "who is capable of going off for 30, or even 40, every single night." If he gets going early, expect Lavaga to try and employ a few doses of creativity to try and stop him.
Bania v. Sarzonia Round of 16 match, played at Saints Arena in Eyrods, Myana Island
Nation Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total
Sarzonia 17 10 13 17 57
Banija 18 19 23 17 77
Banija Box Score v. Sarzonia
| Position | Name | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Turnovers |
| Starters | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| PG | Ibezimako Akabueze | 26 | 8 | 1 | 8 | 2 |
| SG | Ebrahima Faye | 23 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| SF | Ezekiel Bullo | 27 | 10 | 9 | 2 | 1 |
| PF | Kizza Alonso | 27 | 9 | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| C | Antouman Ceesay | 25 | 16 | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| Bench | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| PG | Odion Ozoemena | 14 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| PG/SG | Tigrian Tesheme | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| C/PF | Sadio Bartaba | 7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| SG | Israel Arefani | 15 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| SF/PF | Zufan Hawani | 9 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| C | Oluwasegun Tionge | 10 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| SF/PF | Koman Shomari | 10 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
