From Aspiring Actress to Basketball Star, Jadesola’s Journey

The young and promising basketball player, Sanni Jadesola, widely known as “Jade,” has revealed her journey so far in the sport.

While featuring on an X space (formerly known as Twitter), Jadesola described her journey as a rough one, but her passion and hard work keep her going without relenting.

The Ogun State-born basketball player explained how she initially aimed to be an actress due to her story-writing skills and movie ideas.

“I wanted to be an actress because I love writing stories. I still have some of my stories at home,” she said. “But things changed, and I started playing football. My father wanted me to be a basketball player. When I lost him in 2016, I had to work towards fulfilling his wish by focusing on basketball. That’s how I started playing basketball fully. Despite starting late, I’m still focusing on getting better and moving forward.”

Jadesola, who hails from Ijebu Igbo in Ogun State, chose Sarah Ogoke of the D’Tigress and Emilagba Bolaji, who has represented Nigeria before, as her role model in basketball. She explained how these two professionals motivated her.

“Choosing Sarah Ogoke and Emilagba Bolaji as my role models is something great for me. Sarah is a very good player; I always see her as a reflection of myself. I’m really moved by her excellent performance, and I learn a lot from her hard work and efforts. Also, Emilagba Bolaji is a player who plays basketball without any stress. He always makes things easy for himself on the court, and he always stands out with excellent performance,” she explained.

Sanni Jadesola represented Ogun State and Lagos State in 2019 and 2022, respectively, before joining the Sunshine Angels of Ondo State in 2023, where she plays as a small forward.

She acknowledged the efforts of the Ondo State government in providing good facilities and coaches to groom basketball players.

Jadesola appealed to the federal government, through the Ministry of Sports, to channel more energy into basketball to help future stars achieve their dreams and to create more value for the sport.

Jade has gathered a wealth of experience in basketball so far and looks forward to representing her father’s country and raising the bar high.

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Michael Odetunde

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Odetunde Michael Sunday is a Journalist of his generation. He combines the talent and ability of Print, Online and Broadcast Journalist in a rare manner.

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