The eight African players that will represent the continent in the table tennis singles event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Japan will emerge on Friday February 28, 2020 at the ongoing Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Tunis, Tunisia
The contest will throw up four men and four women in the singles while the pair that will represent Africa in the mixed doubles will emerge on Saturday February 29.
Already, from the 16 players who started the campaign in the women’s singles, eight have been shown the exit while the remaining eight will compete for the four slots available.
These eight players have been drawn into two groups of four players each – with the top two picking the tickets to Tokyo 2020.
Nigeria’s duo of Olufunke Oshonaike and Offiong Edem have been drawn into separate groups.
Edem will square up against Tunisia’s Garci Fadwa and Abir Haj Salah as well as Ethiopia’s Malta Gulti.
Oshonaike will slug it out against Cameroun’s Sarah Hanffou, Algeria’s Lynda Loghraibi and Mauritius’ Nandeshwaree Jalim.
In the men’s singles, Aruna Quadri and Olajide Omotayo have inched closer to qualification after winning all their group matches in the first stage.
Senegal’s Ibrahima Diaw and Congo Brazzaville’s Saheed Idowu also maintained their unbeaten run in the first stage.
On Saturday, February 29, it will be turn of the mixed doubles qualification tournament as Segun Toriola and Olufunke Oshonaike battle Egypt’s Omar Assar and Dina Meshref as well as six other pairs of players from Algeria, Tunisia, Congo DRC, Seychelles, Kenya and Djibouti.
