The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation has postponed the closed camping of its players ahead of the 11th All Africa Games scheduled to hold in Congo Brazzaville in September.
The (NTTF) has called up 20 players for the closed camping, which was scheduled to commence on monday.
Africa’s most decorated table tennis player, Segun Toriola and 2014 ITTF Star Player, Aruna Quadri top the list of players invited to camp.
Segun Toriola
Chief coach of the nigerian table tennis team , Nosiru Bello, disclosed that the team is waiting to get directives from the nigerian national sports commission for a new date.
yes we were supposed to commence camping today, but we are awaiting the directives from the NSC, almost all the players are in town already and hopefully we should have Aruna Quadri and Funke Oshinaike in lagos this week.
Nigeria finished second behind Egypt with three gold medals at the last edition of the all africa games in mozambique.
The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) has called up 20 players to resume camp for the 11th All Africa Games holding in Congo Brazzaville.
According to chief coach, Nosiru Bello, the invited players were selected based on their performance in some of the international and national competitions in the last one year.
Africa’s most decorated table tennis player, Segun Toriola and 2014 ITTF Star Player, Aruna Quadri top the list of 10 male players invited to camp.
ITTF Africa Senior Championship: Nigeria Dominates Men’s Doubles Event
Also, Seun Ajetunmobi, who has been out of the national team in the last two years will be returning to the team as one of the invited players.
Other male players include Ojo Onaolapo, Kazeem Makanjuola, Olaniran Boboye, Olawale Fagbamila, Hammed Hafeez and junior sensations, Nurudeen Hassan and Olasunkanmi Oginni.
The female players will be led by Germany-based Funke Oshonaike and Edem Offiong, while others are Cecilia Otu-Akpan, Janet Effiom, Rashidat Ogundele, Bosede Odusanya as well as junior sensations, Tosin Oribamise, Ajoke Ojomu and Halimot Ayinla.
Nigerian Women’s Team, at the 2015 ITTF-Africa Senior Championships
“All the invited players have proven themselves in most of these competitions and that is why we have invited them to be part of the camp and we hope some of these junior players can learn from the experienced ones so that they can also be warming themselves into the senior team. We are not inviting anybody without proven records. We hope that at the end of the day, the best will be selected for the country,” Bello said.
10 players made up of five male and five female will make the final list to AAG.
At the 2011 edition of the multi-sports championship in Mozambique, Nigeria finished second behind Egypt with three gold medals while Egypt won four to emerge as the overall best team for the first time since 1999 that Nigeria has been dominating the table tennis event.
After one day rest, action will return to the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium on Friday as the final of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) national league holds.
Eight teams will compete in the knockout stage for places in the semifinal stage of the men’s event. In the women’s category, four teams will battle for places in the final.
Other teams will slug it out with favourites like Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Union Bank Sports Club.
The NSCDC team will be led by Kazeem Makanjuola and Ganiyu Ashimiyu while the Union Bank female team will be spearheaded by Fatimo Bello and Halimotu Ayinla against highly-rated NSCDC inspired by National Sports Festival champion, Rashidat Ogundele.
For the pairing in the men’s round of eight, NSCDC will face Nigeria Police Force while Union Maritime will face G-20.
Springfresh Smashers will clash against Union Bank while IAR&T battles Sunshine of Akure for places in the last four.
The Union Bank’s duo of Fatimo Bello and Halimot Ayinla will spearhead the bankers’ team campaign when the team takes on the Nigeria Police Force team led by Sidi Yaya for a place in the final.
In the second semifinal tie, highly-rated NSCDC ladies will battle Springfresh Smashers.
Prior to the commencement of the league, Sunshine’s Boboye Adeniyan admitted that they are ready to confront any team in their bid to repeat the feat they achieved during the pilot league.
“I know it is going to be tough and we can also do what we did during the pilot league. It is obvious that it is a tall order for us in the final but we are indeed in top form to battle any opposition that may come our way,” Adeniyan said.
Nigeria Table Tennis Federation
Also Makanjuola said they will be unstoppable for the title. “I don’t think we will play to the gallery unlike what happened to us when we started the league. This is the final and we have to be at our best if we want to clinch the title. We are battle ready and I am sure we will lift the trophy,” Makanjuola said.
With N2.5m at stake as prize money, the federation has said that the finale will be glamorous as top dignitaries.
Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) has fixed October 9 for the official kick off of its national league.
According to the Secretary of NTTF, Chinedu Ezealah-Ogundare, the league became necessary following the success of the pilot league staged early this year, while 30 teams across the country are expected to take part in the tournament holding at the National Stadium in Lagos.
Four players are expected to make up a team and the Olympics system of play would be used in order to acquaint the players with the new format of play.
Also, the new International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) approved plastic balls will be during the competition in order to acquaint the players with the new balls.
According to the national coach, Nosiru Bello, the new ITTF approved balls would be deployed during the competition as this ball would be used in most ITTF major competitions including the forthcoming African Championships holding in November in Sudan.
Nigeria’s Ojo Onaolapo serves the ball to India’s Kamal Sharath Achanta (unseen) during their Bronze Medal Team table tennis match at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on July 28, 2014. AFP PHOTO / ANDREJ ISAKOVIC
According to the referee of the competition, John Peters, the tournament would also help the federation to select players for the forthcoming African Championship while individual performance would be considered in the final selection of the players.
In the prospectus, the league would involve 20 male and 10 female teams made up of four players per team and they are expected to garner points to qualify for the top eight and top four, which is the grand finale holding on October 17 at the Teslim Balogun Stadium.
The deadline of team’s registration has been fixed for October 3 while teams are expected to arrive Lagos for the competition on October 8 to finalise their registration for the championship scheduled to hold at the knock-up hall of the National Stadium.
“We want to ensure that our players are in top shape for major competitions and this is one of the ways we want to achieve this. Also, we are going to use it to select the remaining two slots in the male national team for the African Championship holding in Sudan. Already three players have been penciled down based on their performance in recent times and we also want to give the local players the opportunity to be part of the team and that is why we are going to use the competition to pick the remaining two players.
In the female category, we are hoping that we can pick the best to represent the country in Sudan. We want to be selecting players based on their recent form and with this tournament we will do this,” the NTTF scribe said.
Among the teams lined up for the league are Union Bank Sports Club, Springfresh, Union Maritime, Police Machine, G20, Nigerian Civil Defence Corps, Sunshine of Akure, Calabar Rovers, Rivers Angel and a host of others.
As the maiden Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF)-organised elite junior and cadet training camp enters final week, players taking part in the exercise are still in cloud nine over the quality of coaching coupled with the superb organization of the 14-day training camp.
The two weeks camping exercise was initiated by one of Africa’s most decorated table tennis players, Segun Toriola assisted by national coach, Nosiru Bello and Friday Aba.
The 18 players taking part are made up of nine boys and nine girls and they were drawn from Lagos, Ogun, Kogi, Kwara, Ondo, Ekiti and Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja and they are between the ages of seven and 16.
For the trio of Tosin Oribamishe, Abayomi Animashaun and Afeez Solanke, the exercise has imparted so much on them as they had acquired new skills as well as correct some of their lapses in the game.
sther Oribamishe is one of the players taking par in the ongoing NTTF elite junior and cadet training camp holding in Lagos1
Oribamishe, one of the most travelled junior players and the current national junior champion, believes that the “elite junior and cadet training camp” should be staged regularly.
“we have never had this kind of camping before and I want to appeal to the federation not to make it a one-off event especially with the presence of Toriola, who has played to the highest level in the world. His presence alone served as a motivation to us because we have seen some of things he has been able to achieve with the game and we are also hoping that we can follow in his footstep.
this camp has revealed my mistakes and I have been able to correct it while I also pick up new skills. So this exercise should be sustained especially for the young players,” Oribamishe said.
For 12 year-old Animashaun, the camping has been an eye opener especially with the presence of his role model, Toriola, whom he said has impacted so much in him during the exercise.
His words: “In the camp, I leant not to be on the defensive side when playing and that I must be on the offensive. Also, my top-spin as well as my looping is now perfect because they are now staying on table.
Also, I have been able to adjust my movement on the table which I found very difficult to correct before. All these are things I have been able to do within the first week of the camping. As we enter the final week, I am hoping that I will pick up new things.”
Solanke, winner of the maiden DAWN Games, admits that being part of the exercise has been worthwhile.
“I am so happy that I made it to the camp and for me this is an opportunity for me to perfect my skills especially as I am looking forward to making it to the national junior team.
I can say that Toriola has really impacted so much in us while the organisation of the camping has been so impressive since last week. We are also hopeful that this week will be more interesting than last week,” the southpaw player said.
According to the President, NTTF, Wahid Oshodi, the players were selected based on their performance in competitions sanctioned by the federation and with the aim of teaching them the basics of the game.
For the initiator of the camp, Toriola, the country still blessed with enormous talents in the game, while efforts should be geared towards nurturing these skills to stardom.
“It is very important for former players that had represented this country to see how they can help to improve the game through this kind of exercise which I believe if staged regularly will surely help the young players to improve and rub shoulders with the world’s best.
Most of the players are just playing without understanding the basics especially in pushing long balls and also the need for them to be on the attack because nobody plays defensive game these days.
With what I have seen so far, I think there are bright prospects in the game.
Also our former players should change their mind that until they become national team coaches before they can contribute their own quota towards the development of the game.
Experience and youthfulness came to fore on Monday at the ongoing 2014 World Team Table Tennis Championship in Tokyo, Japan, as Segun Toriola inspired Team Nigeria to a 3-0 bashing of Indonesia in their opening match of the competition.
Toriola, who also took the mantle of tutoring the team following the late arrival of the national coach, Nosiru Bello to Japan ensured that the young players followed his footstep when he won his match 3-0.
Ojo Onaolapo, who is making his second appearance in the tournament, acted the script handed to him by Toriola when he also won his encounter at 3-0.
To complete the routing of the Asian team, debutant, Kazeem Makanjuola, whose superb form in recent times earned him a place in the team, was in also a good actor when he took a cue from Toriola with another 3-0 bashing of his opponent.
However, on Tuesday April 29, the team will face their biggest challenge when they battle division two number seed, Czech Republic and Belgium.
The Czechs who were relegated to division at the last edition in Dortmund, Germany is aiming for a return to the elite division while Belgium, which has former World Champion, Jean-Michel Saive, who has been attending the tournament since 1980s with a lot of experience to his kitty.
Although the Belgian’s tie against Toriola at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in China was the major highlight of the championship with the Nigerian having an edge over Saive.
But when both sides clash in Tokyo, the two teams will rely on the experience of Toriola and Saive who have both featured in more than five Olympics.
A confident Makanjuola said he is in Tokyo to make a meaningful impact.
“For me this is a rare opportunity and I will want to utilize to the fullest by giving my best against any player regardless of their ranking because rating does win game. I am happy winning my first match in Japan and I look forward to learn from Toriola in order to win more matches,” the Lagos Classics bronze medalist said.
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