Nigeria Finishes Second At ITTF WJC In Egypt

With four gold medals and three bronze medals Nigeria finished second behind host – Egypt at the ITTF World Junior Circuit (WJC) in Egypt.

Host and winner, finished ahead of others with seven gold while Slovenia won three gold medals to settle for third spot on the medal table.

Over 15 countries from Africa, Europe and Asia took part in the one-week championship held at the 6th October Hall in Cairo.

Nigeria made the second spot on the final day of the championship with Esther Oribamise, Abayomi Animasahun and Amadi Omeh claiming gold in the cadet and mini cadet event.

Animasahun defeated Egypt’s Yehia Saad 3-0 in the mini cadet boys’ singles final, while Amadi Omeh increased the gold to two when he also accounted for the 3-0 defeat of Egypt’s Marwan Abdelwahab in the cadet boys’ singles final.

The star player for Nigeria was Oribamise who had earlier failed to excel in the junior girls’ event but had to measure up in the cadet girls’ singles when she beat Egypt’s Rolan Hesham 3-0 to clinch the third gold for the West African giant.

In the cadet girls’ doubles, Oribamise partnered Tunisia’s Fadwa Garci to beat Egypt’s Roa Amro and Farida Badawy 3-0 to add to her medal haul in Cairo.

ANIMASHAUN Abayomi- Nigeria

An elated Animasahun said: “I give God all the glory for being able to achieve this in my first international appearance. I listened to my coaches and I ensured I followed them and this is one of the reasons I was able to win a medal in Egypt. I am so happy for this medal. It was not easy at all during the five-day tournament. The competition gets much difficult as it progresses from one level to another, but I am happy that I achieved something.”

Oribamise however said: “I did not believe I could salvage anything in this competition because I was hopeless after a poor showing in the junior girls’ events. I did not also believe that it will end up in my favour in the cadet event. I thank God for my medals because it is through Him I was able to achieve this. I tried all through the competition to give a good account of myself because many people were looking out for me,” she said.

ITTF Egypt Junior Open: Nigeria Misses Out In Team Event Final

Nigeria failed to make it to the final of the junior boys and girls team events at the ongoing ITTF World Junior Circuit tagged Egypt Junior and Cadet Open holding at the 6th October Hall in Cairo.

What started like a good run was thwarted on Tuesday by host – Egypt in the semifinal of the team event after the Olasunkanmi Oginni and Esther Oribamise inspired Nigerian side fell 3-0 respectively in the boys and girls semifinal.

African Junior Champion, Egypt’s Aly Ghallaby inspired the North African team in the semifinal tie against Nigeria with a 3-0 rout, while Amira Yousry also deflated the Nigerian girls with a 3-0 bashing of Oribamise and Alimot Ayinla.

However, teenager sensations, Abayomi Animasahun and Michael Obayomi were in good form in their quarterfinal tie as they combined well to defeat the combination of Egypt and Tunisia 3-1 to qualify for the semifinal of the cadet boys’ team event.

Obayomi started the with 11-6, 11-9, 12-10 victory over Egypt’s Marwan Nader while Animasahun failed to increase the lead after he fell to Tunisia’s Youssef Ben Attia 7-11, 15-13, 10-12, 11-9, 11-8 to put the match at 1-1.

ANIMASHAUN Abayomi- Nigeria

Obayomi and Animasahun combined very well in the doubles match to restore Nigeria’s lead with 4-11, 8-11, 7-11 win over the duo of Egypt’s Nader and Tunisia’s Ben Attia.

To affirm Nigeria’s victory, Animasahun rediscovered his form against Egypt’s Nader with 11-0, 12-10, 9-11, 8-11, 5-11 victory to give Nigeria a 3-1 win over the North Africans.

Meanwhile, Qatar’s Mohammed Al-Naggar has lauded the quality of Nigerian players at the tournament.

“I will do my best so as to make the finals of the singles but I was really surprised with Nigeria’s style of play because they came out all fighting. They are motivated to play and fight hard on the table but I don’t see them as a threat”

“I was shocked about Nigeria’s performance and how they played. I was not expecting them to play this good and I must admit that Nigerian players are good players but we didn’t play well” he added.

Nigerian Teenagers Thrilled By Experience In Egypt

In Nigeria, they were respected for their exceptional skills and this endeared them to the hearts of many. But they never had opportunity to showcase their talent in an international tournament but at the ongoing ITTF WJC tagged Egypt Junior and Cadet Open, debutants – 12 year-old Abayomi Animasahun and Muibat Bello believe coming to Egypt would add to their knowledge of the sport.

Before leaving Nigeria to Egypt on Sunday June 7, Animasahun was full of live from the Airport and even when he boarded the plane he was excited for this rare opportunity in a country of 200 million population.

When he landed at the Cairo International Airport, his face was brightened when he realized that he had arrived Egypt. At the hotel – Pyramids Park Resort, he conducted himself as he was eager to get to the venue.

His first game against Egypt’s Ammar Attia was a delightful encounter as the young Nigerian ensured that he did everything right to win the match at 3-0.

Abayomi Animasahun could not describe his feeling after tasting action at his first international tournament.

“For me to be here in Egypt, is a great privilege that I will forever cherish all my life. This is indeed the beginning of my career. It is a rare opportunity for me to be considered among the over 200 million people in Nigeria. It has always been my desire to play table tennis internationally and I am happy the dream finally came to pass. It is an honour to be here and I thank the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) for the exposure” he said.

Like Animasahun, 11 year-old Muyibat Bello, who despite losing her first match in the tournament, coming to Egypt would afford her the chance to improve her game.

“I am here to improve on my skills as a player. I am also here to win medals as well as learn some new techniques from my opponents from other countries. After the competition I know I won’t go back home the same way I came because I would have acquired more knowledge. I hope to return to Nigeria to continue to work hard and build on the new things that I would have learnt from the tournament” she said.

A nervous 12 year-old Vivian Oku was still admiring the facilities when she played her first game which she lost. But the young Nigerian said:

“On the table I realise that I was shy and afraid and it affected me during my first match. After the game, the coach has tutored me on how to overcome this stage fright and he advised me to focus on the table without looking into my opponent’s eyes” she said.

ITTF Egypt Junior Open: Nigeria defeats Qatar, Iraq

Nigeria yesterday lived up to her rating as the boys’ team was in excellent form at the ongoing ITTF World Junior Circuit (WJC) tagged Egypt Junior and Cadet Open with an emphatic win over Qatar and Iraq.

The boys’ team led by Olasunkanmi Oginni were in superb form against the Qataris as his combination with Nurudeen Hassan dazed the highly-rated Gulf team with a 3-1 win.

Few hours later, the team returned to the table to deal with Iraq with a 3-0 rout to set up a final group clash against Egypt Team B.

ANIMASHAUN Abayomi- Nigeria

Also, the girls’ team inspired by Esther Oribamise showed what to expect in the competition as they pummeled Egypt’s Team D 3-1 to record their first group win in the junior girls’ event.

It was mixed fortunes for Nigeria in the cadet event, as the boys’ team spearheaded by Abayomi Animasahun wasted no time in dismissing Egypt Team D 3-0 while the Nigerian girls’ team led by Muibat Bello and Vivian Oku fell 3-0 to Egypt Team D.

Meanwhile, the participating teams have commended the organizers, Egypt Table Tennis Federation (ETTF) for providing world class facilities at the stadium while bemoaning the fact that the low turn-out of fans is taking the glamour from the championship.

NTTF Names Team For ITTF WJC In Egypt

The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) has named a 10-man team for this month’s International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Junior Circuit (WJC) holding in Cairo, Egypt.

The team will be led by African Youth Games champion, Olasunkanmi Oginni as well as national junior champion, Esther Oribamise.

Others in the boys’ team are Lagos Open revealation, Nurudeen Hassan; national junior champion, Amadi Omeh; cadet champion, Abayomi Animasahun as well as southpaw Michael Obayomi.

For the girls’ team, Oribamise will be joined by Ajoke Ojomu, Alimot Ayinla, Vivian Oku and cadet champion, Muibat Bello.

National junior champion, Tosin Esther Oribamishe

The team is at present tuning up for the competition at the National Stadium in Surulere under the watchful eyes of Italy-based Michael Oyebode and Bode Ajayi.

The team is expected to depart aboard an Egypt Airline flight on Sunday June 7, 2015.

Over 14 countries including Nigeria will compete at the one-week tournament holding at the ultra modern October 6 Hall in Giza, Cairo.

Other teams expected at the championship, which serves off on Monday June 8 are Algeria, Botswana, India, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Romania, Slovakia, Togo, Tunisia and host – Egypt.

ITTF African Junior Championships: Nigeria picks silver, bronze as Egypt dominates team events

With the dominance of Egypt unabated at the ongoing International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF)-sanctioned African Junior Championship, Nigeria on Thursday picked silver and bronze in the team events of the competition.

The tournament holding in Cairo has more than 10 countries from the continent taking part with the host – Egypt claiming the top spot in all the events.

In the teams’ event of the junior and cadet divisions, Egypt won all the gold medals at stake leaving two silver medals for Nigeria in the girls’ category while Nigeria also settled for bronze in the mixed doubles.

To pick silver, Nigeria fell 3-1 to Egypt in the final of the junior girls’ team event, while the Nosiru Bello-tutored side also conceded defeat to the Egyptians in the cadet girls with same margin.

Another opportunity for Nigeria to play in the final was also denied, when the quartet of Esther Tosin Oribamise and Olasunkanmi Oginni as well as Ajoke Ojomu and Joseph Osendukwu failed to run over the Egyptians in the semifinal of the mixed doubles event.

In the doubles event, Nigeria could not move beyond the quarterfinal stage as the Egyptians again stopped them from advancing.

On the medal table so far, Nigeria is still playing second fiddle to Egypt and they are closely followed by Tunisia and Congo Brazzaville.

A table tennis analyst however was not surprised with the outcome of proceedings at the tournament, saying, ‘The Egyptians are just reaping the result of investing in youth development.”

“As long as I will want to commend the present board of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) with their efforts to focus on grassroots, I want to say that what we are witnessing in Egypt is as a result of the long years of neglect of youth development by previous boards of NTTF. What Egypt is achieving today in table tennis is not magic but conscious and sincere efforts to groom talents that will rule the game. So for us, we are not dazed by the performance of the country and we just hope that NTTF will remain focus and continue with what they are doing,” he said.

Meanwhile, the singles event served off on Thursday with the preliminary matches while the finals of all the singles will climax the competition, which ends today in Cairo.