After six days of intense training, culminating in a two-day tournament under the guidance of ITTF – certified coaches, the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) has selected eight players—four boys and four girls—to represent Nigeria at the 2025 ITTF Africa Hopes Week and Challenge, scheduled for July in Lagos.
The training session, held at the National Training Centre of the National Stadium in Lagos from April 2 to 7, saw the participation of 25 cadet (U-12) players from across the country.
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Supported by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) and ITTF Africa, National Hopes Week provided young athletes with valuable knowledge and experience to aid their development in the sport.
In the boys’ singles, Samson Joshua of Kogi emerged victorious, defeating Umar Ayoola of Oyo 4-2.
In the girls’ singles, Elizabeth Emelike of Abia triumphed over Deborah Faleye of Edo with a 4-1 win.
All semifinalists in both the boys’ and girls’ singles events were selected to form Team Nigeria for the continental Hopes Challenge.
Joining Joshua and Ayoola in the boys’ squad are Lagos’ Juwon Ogunshakin and Habib Adebayo. The girls’ team will include Lagos State’s Semilore Owoiya and Emmanuella Ahaibu, alongside Emelike and Faleye.
An excited Emelike described the training as an excellent platform for improving her skills and aspiring to dominate the sport in Nigeria.
“I feel happy and great at the tournament, and I hope to become champion in my next tournament and win every tournament in the country. During the training, I learned how to serve, topspin, and receive various types of balls, as well as footwork. I will go back home and train more,” she said.
Joshua believes his victory marks the beginning of a promising career in table tennis. “I feel happy and thank my coach for allowing me to participate and perform well in the tournament. I thank God. My forehand topspin was good in the final match because I knew my opponent couldn’t follow up, so I used my energy to play the game,” the Kogi youngster said.
