Lagos – A 10-man National Table Tennis team is set for the Egypt Open Junior and Cadet Open scheduled to hold from June 9 to June 13 in Cairo.
The players would be expected to put their disappointment of failing to feature in the International Table Tennis Federation’s (ITTF) African Junior Championships (AJC) in Mauritius in April behind them in order to face up to the upcoming Cairo event.
Some of the technical officials had counseled the players to use past disappointment as a springboard to perform well in the forthcoming tournament.
It was gathered that the players could not participate at the April championships because of paucity of funds.
Indeed, the country’s absence from Mauritius had denied the players the platform to showcase their vastly improved skills, a situation described as unusual development by some of the participants.
Even Jimmy Vel, the coach of the Seychelles team could not help but voice out his disappointment at Nigeria’s unexpected absence from the ITTF-sanctioned tournament.
“I don’t know why a nation like Nigeria will not be at this tournament considering their contribution to growth of the sport in the continent and beyond.
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“We in Seychelles wanted to attend the Mauritius event to learn from the likes of Nigeria because to me they are the best in the continent.
But not seeing them here alone psychologically dampened the enthusiasm of most members of my team.
“My players have been asking whether Nigeria is coming to the Cairo meet, because some of them are fans of Aruna Quadri and eager to see his compatriots perform in Mauritius,” Vel said.
The coach added that Nigeria’s absence in Mauritius was amply exploited by Egypt, her eternal rival in the continent’s table tennis circuit.
Incidentally, the coach’s fears were confirmed by the North Africans, whose players proved enterprising in sweeping virtually all available laurels on offer at the event.
Patrick Sahajasein the coach of Mauritius had also expressed his disappointment at Nigeria’s absence, which he said dampened the spirit of his team for the AJC.
Sahajasein said that he was familiar with the quality of Nigerian players and that he looked forward to seeing the team in Mauritius.
“I know that if Nigeria had participated in the competition, Egypt would not be making the kind of impact that they are making in the competition’’.
However, in the build up to the upcoming Cairo meet, the players would no doubt be charged up to give off their best in Egypt and compensate for absence in Mauritius.
The country would be represented by10 players – five men and five women – who would be accompanied by two coaches.
Rising female junior, Tosin Oribamise would lead the female team made up of Alimot Ayinla, Ajoke Ojomo, Muyibat Bello and Vivian Okun.
Another upcoming star, Nurudeen Hassan will lead the men’s team comprising, Michael Obayomi, Abayomi Animashaun, Olasunkanmi Oginni and Amen Amadi.
NTTF’s Technical Director, Anderson Bankole said the players were carefully selected on merit as their current forms were taken into consideration in their selection for the event.
“We used their performances from the recent national and international competitions to prune the list to the selected 10. They are the best players presently in the junior category’’ .
Bankole, an Assistant Commissioner of Police said he believed in them. I am optimistic they will perform well in Egypt. They have what all it takes to come out tops in Egypt. I am sure they will perform credibly well,” he re-assured.
Meanwhile, Hassan who would be making his debut at an International tournament expressed his excitement at the prospect of participating in a major tournament to fly the country’s flag.
“It has been my desire to make the national team and to represent the country. Now that I have been provided the opportunity, I don’t want to misuse it.
“I want to set a standard with it and strive to surpass the set standards at subsequent competitions,” he vowed.
The 17-year-old, secondary school leaver added that he had been training at the Union Bank Sports Centre and the National Stadium, Lagos ahead of the competition.
Oribamise, another player promised to put in all her best by using the tactics she had learnt over the years.
She said that she would be cautious so as guard against careless serves that made some players to lose points in the past.
“I am going to be focused, so as not to get distracted by anything. This competition is a serious one and must be approached with all seriousness,” she said.
The 16-year-old, Alimot Ayinla said this would be her third time going out to represent the country at an international competition. “I have been to China and Egypt previously to participate in tournaments. I have long overcome my frights.
“I have confidence in myself as I am not afraid of challenging anybody irrespective of the country the person is representing,” she said.
She added that she would be aiming at reaching the finals of the tournament this time around.
The 12-year-old, Micheal Obayomi, who would be making his second appearance at an International tournament vowed to target a gold medal.
The Ilupeju Junior Grammar School JSS3 student said that he had been training consistently under the tutelage of Samsoon Ajayi, the coach of Union Bank club. “My first appearance was last year in Kenya and I have been looking forward to another international outing.
“I am targeting the exposure that the competition will offer in order to learn some new things in the sport,” he said.
The Wahid Enitan-Oshodi NTTF board has no doubt repositioned the sport in the country through exposure of the nation’s elite and budding players to the right type of competitions to have competitive edge.
The upcoming tournament is yet another forum for the players to put in their very best to achieve a complete revival of a sport that the country once dominated for decades in the African continent. (NAN)