Girls’ singles defending champion, Taiwo Akanbi started her title defense at the 3rd Dr. A. A. Efunkoya National Cadet Table Tennis Championships taking place at the Indoor Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos.
The tournament which is being bankrolled by former players and friends of table tennis is organized to honour the former President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, Dr. A. A. Efunkoya whose tenure changed the fortunes of the sport in the country.
Players from 10 states of the federation and nine clubs are currently slugging it out in the singles, and doubles events as 64 boys and 37 girls are aiming to mount the podium come Saturday, October 1 at the grand finale of the three-day championships.
According to the referee of the tournament, John Peters, the turnout of the players showed the growth of the tournament while the standard continues to improve annually.
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An excited 13-year-old Rokibat Adeyemi of Okla Club of Maryland could not hide her joy competing against some of the best cadet players in the country.
The junior class student of Immaculate Comprehensive Junior School described the tournament as a veritable platform for her to hone her skills. “I am so excited about competing against some of the best players in the country. In the last edition which was my first outing, I did not make it beyond the group stage and this year, I am hoping to exceed that stage. I love table tennis and I will continue to work harder to improve my skills.”
“And I am very grateful to our sponsor, Ganiyu Okanlawon who has been helping us to sharpen our skills at the club and I look forward to more tournaments like this,” she added.
The tournament ends on Saturday with a new champion expected to emerge in the boys’ singles in the absence of two-time champion Kuti of Lagos State.