The President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, Engr. Ishaku Tikon has been elected into the board of the Commonwealth Table Tennis Federation (CTTF).
At the Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Cuttack, India at the weekend, Tikon made the six-man board and the poll also witnessed the election of a new chairman.
India’s Vivek Kohli defeated former chairman England’s Alan Ransome convincingly to emerge as the new helmsman.
Ransome’s 26 years reign came to an end at the well-attended poll.
According to the NTTF boss, the new innovation put in place by the new chairman will complete five the national associations a better face.
However, Nigerian players failed to make it beyond the round of 16 in the men and women singles events with host, India dominating all the seven events at the 21st Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships which concluded at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium yesterday.
In the women singles, Ajoke Ojomu and Nimota Aregbesola fought their way from the qualifiers to the main draw where they were eliminated in the last 16, Bode Abiodun the only surviving Nigeria in the round of 16 of the men singles met his waterloo after losing 0-4 to India’s G. Sathiyan.
Nigeria’s only consolation came in the women team event as the Edem Offiong-led team finished joint third with Malaysia to be awarded bronze medal.
Also, India made most of the ‘home’ advantage and grabbed all the gold medals—seven to be precise—in the 21st Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships which concluded at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium yesterday.
From the men and women singles to the doubles and mixed doubles events, India toppled others to emerge as the overall champions.
With seven gold, five silver and three bronze medals, India claimed the overall title while England came second with two silver and three bronze medals. Singapore settled for third with six bronze medals, while Malaysia and Nigeria finished fourth and fifth with one bronze medal each.
