Nigeria men’s Table Tennis team dethrone Egypt as African champions

Nigeria Men’s Table Tennis team have broken an 8-year-old jinx by dethroning their Egyptian counterparts to emerge champions of the 2018 ITTF African championships.

The Nigerian team, comprising of Quadri Aruna, Bode Abiodun and Segun Toriola defeated Egypt’s Saleh Ahmed, Assar Khalid and El Beiali Mohamed 3-1 in the final of the event in Mauritius.

As a result of the victory, Nigeria will represent Africa at the 2019 ITTF World Team Cup in Tokyo, Japan – a competition they will be competing in for the first time since they last participated in 2010 in Dubai.

Read Also: AFCON: Eagles can’t afford to disappoint Nigerians again – Ezenwa

Meanwhile, the Nigeria women’s team settled for silver in the women’s category after they fell 3-1 to their Egyptian counterparts in the final.

The trio of Dina Meshref, Farah Abdel-Aziz and Yousra Helmy defeated Nigeria’s trio of Edem Offiong, Olufunke Oshonaike and Janet Effiom to retain their title in the continent.

The Egyptian women continue their dominance in the category at the continental level, and will join the Nigerian men’s team to fly Africa’s flag in Tokyo.

The tournament, scheduled to hold in November next year, is a test run for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics which kicks off in July.

 

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