Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
By, Adegboye Adeyemo
Renowned Nigerian sports journalist and archivist, Kayode Tijani sadly passed away on Wednesday 7th of February 2024 at the age of 55, after battling a prolonged illness.
Kayode died on the same day the Super Eagles defeated the Bafana Bafana of South Africa via a 4 – 2 penalty win to earn a place at Afcon 2023 final.
African Cup of Nations (AFCON)
The victory over South Africa would have been one the ace journalist would have cherished and I do hope that he’s smiling down and will be cheering on the Super Eagles from the other side on Sunday when Nigeria take on the host country, Ivory Coast in a bid to win a 4th Afcon tournament.
Meeting the Veteran Journalist
I first met this soft spoken icon of journalism in London in 2016 when he visited Deluxe Studios, after being a great admirer of his work for many years. We also met at St Petersburg for the second time while he was covering the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
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He had a remarkable collection of historic stats, videos and Nigerian sporting files that is unmatched. In fact he was an encyclopedia of not just Nigerian sports, but also African football. Tijani was also connected in elite sporting circles and was highly respected amongst his peers.
We were always in touch and his humility and simplicity was second to none. Tijani, who was the Chief Executive Officer of SportsXclusive and Sports Focus International, had a highly successful career, attending numerous sporting events around the globe and interviewing many high profile sporting icons.
Contributions to Sports Journalism
He started sports journalism at a young age becoming one of Nigeria’s most respected sports archivist and football analyst. His contributions included over 280 interviews with sports personalities and celebrities.
Tijani served as the Chief Press Secretary to the late former Minister of Sports, Chief Alex Akinyele. His extensive career saw him work for publications like The Guardian Newspaper and Complete Football Fame magazine, later heading the Sports Desk at Channels TV and becoming the Head of Sport for BEN TV in the United Kingdom.
Legacy they say, is not leaving something behind for other people. It’s leaving something behind in other people. Sir Kay as I fondly call him, left an indelible mark in the history of Sports Journalism in Nigeria.
Kayode Tijani is survived by a widow and children, leaving behind a strong legacy of great contributions to Nigerian and African sports journalism as a whole. He will be sorely missed and may his gentle soul rest in peace.
NRTC Contributors is a News Round The Clock (NRTC) initiative established to give students, scholars and readers the opportunity to air their opinions on various issues, topics and reviews of trending episodes in our society and other parts of the world.
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