Chimaobi Isaac Onuegbu and Lucky Chinasa Favour, at the weekend, won the top honours at the South-East Junior Tennis Classics held at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri.

The competition, sponsored by Chief Kingsley Uduh, saw Onuegbu, representing Owerri City Secondary School, outclassing Chibueze Nweke of Emmanuel College 6-4, 6-3 in straight sets to lift the U-16 boys’ title. For his efforts, Onuegbu pocketed the N40,000 top prize, while Nweke settled for N30,000 runners-up money.

In the girls’ final, Favour Lucky proved too strong for Adachukwu Otuka, cruising to a 4-2, 4-1 victory to claim the N40,000 winner’s purse, while Otuka went home with N30,000 as runner-up.

The U-14 boys’ category saw another Onuegbu—Chinaecherem David dominate Ezichi Ewuzie of Anambra State with a 6-4, 6-2 win. Chinaecherem walked away with N30,000, while Ewuzie received N15,000.

Ebube Otuka won the U-14 girls title with a 5-3, 4-0 defeat of Ginikachi Uwaleke. She won the N30,000 top prize money, while Uwaleke earned N15,000 for her efforts.

In the U-12 boys’ final, Netochukwu Obed from Enugu State triumphed over Kosisochukwu MacDonald 4-1, 5-3, clinching the N30,000 prize money.
Apart from the first and second place finishers, there were also consolation prizes for the semifinalists in all the categories.

All 20 players eliminated in the preliminary stages were not left out as they each received N3,000 in appreciation of their participation.Speaking at the closing ceremony, Ugochukwu Uzodike, who represented the sponsor, commended the initiative, noting that the goal is to spotlight and nurture raw tennis talents across the South East.

“Chief Uduh’s support is a bold investment in the region’s sports future,” he remarked. Chairman of the local organising committee, Chief Charles Duruaku, commended the standard of competition and reaffirmed the commitment to talent development. “This tournament is a stepping stone for future champions,” he said.

The tournament featured 40 junior players, with a total prize pool of N400,000 fully funded by the sponsor.