The Nation Newspaper

Tag: African champion

  • Omotayo battles African Champion at Hungarian Open

    Olajide Omotayo will face his first biggest test in 2019 as he has been drawn against current African Junior Champion – Egypt’s Youssef Abdel-Aziz in the first round of the preliminary of the ITTF World Tour tagged Hungarian Open.

    Bore his departure to Budapest at the weekend, Aruna Quadri and Bode Abiodun added to their laurels in the Portuguese elite league after the Nigerians claimed their fifth Portuguese Cup title with Sporting.

    To claim the title for fifth consecutive times, Sporting defeated GDCS Juncal 3-0 to emerge as champion just as their women’s team also defeated GD Toledos 3-1 to reclaim the gong for the first time in the last five years.

    Quadri and biodun played crucial roles in the Sporting’s triumph with Quadri winning the first match against Russian Andrei Bukin 3-0 (11-5, 11-2, 11-6), while Abiodun partnered Portuguese international – Diogo Carvalho in the doubles to beat Juncal’s pair of David Bessa and Andrei Bukin 3-0 (11-2, 11-4, 11-9) to lift the trophy.

    Today at the Budapest Olympic Hall, Omotayo, a semifinalist at the 2018 African Championship in Mauritius will square up against Egyptian southpaw – Abdel-Aziz in what promises to be battle of supremacy between two of African’s future stars on the centre court in Budapest.

    Also in the first round of the preliminary, Kazeem Makanjuola and Jamiu Azeez will face Herculean task when they confront Austria’s Alexander Chen and France’s Andrea Landrieu.

    Other African stars starting their campaigns from the first round include Egypt’s trio of Khalid Assar, Dina Meshref and Yousra Helmy.

    Khalid Assar will face Switzerland’s Dorian Girod, African women champion – Dina Meshref will slug it out against Switzerland’s Rahel Aschwanden while Yousra Helmy will face a big task against Ukraine’s Tetyana Bilenko.

    Quadri and Egypt’s Omar Assar will also be in action later today in the second round of the preliminary as the tournament is in a knockout format.

    Over 200 players from 53 coutries will be competing in the $170,000 prize money championship, which serves a dress rehearsal for the 2019 World Championship in April this year.

  • Aruna succumbs to Egypt’s Assar in men’s singles final

    Aruna succumbs to Egypt’s Assar in men’s singles final

    Despite moving steps ahead in his quest to become African champion, Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri on Monday fell to the superiority of Egypt’s Omar Assar in the men’s singles final of ITTF Africa Senior Championship held in Agadir, Morocco.

    From the start of the match, the fans were not disappointed with the display by the two best players in Africa with the powerful shot of Aruna Quadri thrilling the fans, while Omar Assar was also up to the task against the Nigerian.

    It was the Egyptian who drew the first blood with 12-10 win. But Aruna Quadri restored parity with 11-6 win.

    The quality of the match gave the spectators something to cheer but it was Omar Assar that carried the day with a 4-3 (10-12, 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 12-10, 6-11, 11-9) win to retain his title.

    An elated Omar Assar told NationSport after the match: “It was really a crazy match because against Aruna is always very exciting. I think I gave my 100 per cent concentration and I listened more to my coach, Helmy Ashraf. I think Aruna played very well because he was always changing service and he was more aggressive on his forehand. I am so happy retaining the title and I hope I can play better than this in a future tournament,” Assar said.

  • ITTF Nigeria Open: It’s Nigeria time to clinch titles – Toriola

    ITTF Nigeria Open: It’s Nigeria time to clinch titles – Toriola

    Twice Nigerian players have made it to the final of the ITTF Premier Lotto Nigeria Open but they have not been able to clinch the title, and with just a few days to the kick off, former African champion, Segun Toriola believes the title will not be beyond the reach of Nigerian players.

    Toriola, a finalist in the 2013 edition of the competition, said he is optimistic that Nigerian players have the wherewithal to claim the laurel but three-time winner, Egypt’s Omar Assar has been ‘extra-ordinary lucky’ to have claimed the titles ahead of the local players.

    “I think Nigerian players have always been capable of winning the title in all the three editions of the competition. It was just that we were unlucky not to have won the title, having made it to the final twice. I played the final in 2013 and Aruna Quadri made it to the final in 2015. Apart from this, Nigerian players have always been making it to the semifinal stage. I believe we can win the title this year because most of the foreign-based players have been doing very well in their various clubs and the skills and talents of the local players cannot be underestimated,” he said.

    The former Commonwealth champion who will be attending his seventh Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil was, however, thrilled with the turnout of players, particularly participants from Europe and this he says would help raise the standard of the sport in Nigeria. “I believe the presence of players across the globe, particularly the ones from Europe will surely help our players who have not been playing against Europeans. The eyes of the world are now on Nigeria with the giant stride the country has made in the last four years by hosting such quality competition. I am hopeful that our players will surely gain from taking part in the tournament and the profile of the sport will continue to improve in the country,” he added.

  • 3rd CCSF International Taekwondo Opens: African champion, Otuadinma talks tough

    Prior to her gold medal at the 2015 African Games, Uzoamaka Otuadinma has won bronze at the 2014 Commonwealth Championship as well as the best female athlete at the 2014 Korean Ambassador’s Cup. However, the 25-year-old taekwondist believes she would be unstoppable at the 3rd Chika Chukwumerije Sports Foundation (CCSF) International Open holding in Abuja

    In the last three weeks, Uzoamaka Otuadinma has been honing her skills in readiness for the two-day tournament and she told SportingLife yesterday that being her second appearance at the tournament, nothing would stop her from clinching the gold that eluded her in 2014.

    “I am indeed looking forward to the CCSF Open because it will afford us the opportunity to test our strength against some of the best athletes in Africa. Apart from aiming for the gold, it will help most of us to be focused ahead of the Olympics qualifiers particularly the use of the electronic head gear which we will be using for the first time as athletes. I know it is going to be easy but I am eager to do better than the bronze medal I won in 2014 when the second edition of the championship was held,” she said.

    For Otuadinma, making it to the Rio 2016 Olympics remains her priority but competing at the CCSF Opens would have put her in good shape as well as the right frame of mind for the Olympics qualifiers holding in Morocco next year.

    Recalling her moment at the African Games in Brazzaville, Otuadinma admitted that she would forever cherish the period after her final tie against the Egyptian which fetched her gold medal in her debut at the games.

    Meanwhile, 24-man Malian team yesterday departed Bamako by road to Abuja to be part of the championship holding this weekend at the Abuja Sheraton Hotel. The team arrives Abuja through Lagos on Wednesday October 21.