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Tag: Aruna Quadri

  • Why it took me long to accept Aruna Quadri’s proposal- Wife 

    Why it took me long to accept Aruna Quadri’s proposal- Wife 

    Nigeria’s No.1 Table Tennis player, Aruna Quadri’s wife, Ganiyat, has disclosed why it took her two years to agree to Aruna’s marriage proposal.

    Ganiyat who is a former national tennis player revealed that she was not keen on dating any one in her camp while working on being a successful table tennis player.

    She said: “He asked me out in 2004 but I refused to be his girlfriend He sent people to me and I refused. But after a while, I decided to yield to people’s advice, after weighing the proposal, I decided to give it a trial. Now I feel so good and blessed because it gives me joy being married to him.”

    Shedding more light on how they met, she said that initially, they had met at ANOCA Games and later at the national camp where they were all preparing for the Commonwealth Games which she did not qualify for.

    Ganiyat who is presently a mother of three told NationSports that she would love to go back to table tennis after nursing her kids.

    She said: “I am into business, I am still breastfeeding our third child, it is not easy combining two things together  with the help of my husband taking care of me.”

    The Ogun-State born lady does not, however, see her husband’s tight schedule affecting her home negatively.

    According to her, as a sports lady, there is no choice but to cope: “Though I miss him a lot, anytime he travels”, she said.

    It has not however been a bed of roses for the Quadris as she explained that they had gone through thick and thin. She described their humble beginning as ‘suffering and smiling’.

    Ganiyat, a former national table tennis player noted that there was a time they had accommodation challenge: “We both had accommodation problem so we had to rent a room and started living together. We both attended University of Lagos, while I did a Diploma, he went in for a Degree.

    In 2010 he travelled to Portugal, three months after he brought me in. In 2011, we got married at

    the Ikoyi Registry.”
    When asked if she feels threatened by Aruna’s success, she said: “I put everything into God’s hand it is not easy but you have to be prayerful as a wife and also endure. If you can’t endure, you can’t have a happy home .”
    Ganiyat described her husband as being responsible: “He has been a good husband, his kids love him. . I call him when he annoys me and whenever he says sorry everything dies there,” she stated.

  • Aruna Quadri dazzles with wife at The Nation

    Aruna Quadri dazzles with wife at The Nation

    It was a show of class and acknowledgement of professional skills as Africa’s best table tennis player – Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri displayed his worth in the ping-pong game as he visited the Lagos office of The Nation. 

    Despite his tight schedule and busy preparation for tournaments, the humble and easy going athlete made the visit in the company of his agile and ever young looking mother, Madam Shakirat Atinuke Quadri and his delectable wife Ganiyat Aruna.

    His wife, Mrs Aruna who was also a National Team start player in the same game was not in anyway short of expectation as both husband and wife displayed unparalleled skills during their exhibition game to the admiration of staff at the game centre.

    Picture Caption: Aruna Quadri(middle) in a group picture with workers at The Nation.

    Aruna’s visit came at a time The Nation is preparing for the 2017 Nigeria Union of Journalist (NUJ) Games reported to begin next month(July). Prospective athletes that will represent the media house in the game could not miss the opportunity to play with the international player to beef up their preparations for the annual game. Aruna played not-less than 10 opponents and he won all.

    Recall that Quadri competed for Nigeria at the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Olympics, reaching the quarter-finals in the latter competition.

    Latest reports also have it that the 2014 ITTF Star Player is among the 24 foreign players listed for the maiden Ultimate Table Tennis League holding in Chennai, India.

  • Aruna Quadri begins campaign in men’s singles

    Aruna Quadri begins campaign in men’s singles



    Quadri Aruna will begin his campaign today in the men’s singles at the ongoing ITTF World Championships amidst wild jubilation from the German fans.
    The Germans are familiar with Aruna Quadri, as his exploits in Dusseldorf in 2014 is still fresh     in their memory when he stunned the world with his ferocious forehand, coupled with his athleticism to become the first African and black man to make it to the quarter-final stage of the annual ITTF World Cup.
    For defeating some of the world’s top players before succumbing to the former world and Olympic Champion – China’s Zhan Jike in the quarter-final, Quadri Aruna endeared himself into the hearts of the Germans with his powerful forehand which had been described as one of the best in the world.
    What transpired in Dusseldorf 2014 also shot Quadri Aruna to the top 30 in the world rating while he was also adjudged the 2014 ITTF Star Player.
    As if that was just a tip of the iceberg for the Nigerian, Quadri Aruna also broke the hearts of the Germans when he became the player to bundle out German star – Timo Boll at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil. Rather than hurting the Germans, his profile in Germany rose and he became a household name among the table tennis family in Germany.
    To confirm the popularity of Quadri Aruna in Germany, Senegal’s Sow Hamidou, who plies his trade in the fourth division of the German Bundesliga with Schott Jena said: “Prior to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Quadri Aruna was very popular among the Germans and when he defeated Timo Boll at Rio, his popularity soared and I can tell you that a lot of Germans are coming to Dusseldorf to watch the Nigerian who has remained the most popular African in Europe.”
    Also, Segun Toriola will taste action in the knockout stage alongside Nigeria’s rave of the moment, Olajide Omotayo who will also be aiming for a place in the main draw.
  • Ahead of 2017 World Championships: ITTF tips Quadri as title contender in Germany

    Ahead of 2017 World Championships: ITTF tips Quadri as title contender in Germany

    Less than one month to the 2017 World Table Tennis Championships, the world table tennis ruling body – International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has tipped Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri as one of the title contenders at the global tournament.

    According to ITTF, Quadri’s rising profile globally has made him a major contender in Dusseldorf, when the world championship serves off on May 29.

    Relying on his surprise performance at Rio 2016 Olympic Games as the Nigerian became the first African to reach the quarterfinal stage of the men’s single event of the Olympic Games.

    In an article released on ITTF website at the weekend, Quadri was listed alongside world and Olympic champion, China’s Ma Long as well as German favourite – Timo Boll.

    “Super humans with super powers. Sure they can be seen in the cinema, but don’t be content with pixelated powers; we want to see comic book heroes in the flesh. Lucky we have the Contenders heading to the 2017 World Championships. Everything they do next month in Düsseldorf will seem impossible. The Flash is fast, but Ma Long’s forehand can tap in to the Speed Force too. Captain America may have big heart, but as big as Quadri Aruna? Wonder Woman’s sword can pierce Doomsday but Miu Hirano has broken China’s defences. It’s going to be a gladiatorial contest and only two heroes will be left standing,” the article stated.

    Meanwhile, Aruna has been seeded number three in the 2017 ITTF World Tour tagged Croatia Open.

    The 2014 ITTF Star Player will begin his campaign in the main draw of the men’s singles event while he will also partner 2016 Lagos Open Champion, Finland’s Benedek Olah in the doubles event of the championship. However, Quadri and Olah will begin their campaign in the men’s doubles event in the preliminary round today.

  • ITTF World Ranking: Quadri moves up to 35th

    ITTF World Ranking: Quadri moves up to 35th

    The chance of Aruna Quadri playing in the main draw of the 2017 ITTF World Championship next month is getting closer as the Nigerian moved to 35th in the April 2017 World Ranking released yesterday by the world table tennis ruling body.

    Also yesterday, despite recording an emphatic victory over world number 14, Portugal’s Marcos Freitas in the French Premier League, Aruna Quadri could not save Jura More from suffering a 3-2 away defeat to Pontoise-Cergy.

    In the ranking, Aruna Quadri maintains his status as the best ranked African player in the world, occupying 35th place. Quadri who dropped to 36th in the March ranking from 25th following his inactivity in March maintained 2395 points to rising by a step to 35th in the latest rating.

    However, his continental rival – Egypt’s Omar Assar also moved up to 56 from 59 to play second fiddle to Aruna Quadri in the world rating.

    With this rating, Aruna Quadri may be listed among the top seeds at the 2017 World Championship holding in Dusseldorf, Germany who are expected to begin their campaigns from the main draw (round of 64).

    In the league match played late on Tuesday, Aruna Quadri who failed to inspire Jura More in their last two league matches was in fine form away to the star-studded Pontoise-Cergy. Having recorded a convincing win against France’s Tristan Flore and Marcos Freitas, Aruna Quadri’s teammates – Andre Silva and Zhen Wang failed to win their matches to give the home team a 3-2 win.

    Despite the loss, Jura More still maintains their fifth place on the league table with 27points from 13 matches. The team has recorded eight losses and five wins in the French elite league.

  • Injury knocks out Quadri from Qatar Open

    Injury knocks out Quadri from Qatar Open

    A back injury has forced Africa’s highest ranked player – Aruna Quadri to withdraw from the men’s singles event of the 2017 ITTF World Tour tagged Qatar Open.
    The tournament serves off today in Doha with most of the top players in the world including world and Olympic Champion – China’s Ma Long are expected to compete in the $200,000 prize money championship.
    With the top 16 players in the world already seeded in the main draw, Aruna Quadri who is supposed to begin his campaign in the preliminary round of the men’s singles had to withdraw based on doctor’s advice.
    “I thought I will be able to manage, to compete in the competition but after speaking with the doctor, I was advised me to rest my back. It was not a serious injury but a back strain which was caused by stress. So they had cautioned me to rest because playing in the preliminary will be tougher as some of the top players who could not make it to the main draw will be aiming to qualify from the preliminary stage,” he said.
    He, however, said that he would feature in the doubles event which serves off tomorrow as the back pain may have reduced then. “I will surely partner Omar Assar of Egypt in the men’s doubles and we are expected to play against top Swedish players in the preliminary round of the doubles. It is painful but my health is very important to me as I still have a lot of competitions ahead of me,” he lamented.
    With this development, Quadri has joined the league of top players that had withdrawn from the championship due to injury. An ankle injury for Ding Ning, and for Germany’s star – Timo Boll, it is a recurrence of a neck injury. This has forced Ning and Boll to withdraw from the championship.

  • Magdy: Quadri has raised the bar for African players

    Magdy: Quadri has raised the bar for African players

    Shady Magdy is an Egyptian who never hid his fascination for Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri and the 21-year-old admitted that Quadri has raised the bar for African players in world table tennis.
    The 2016 Nigerian Open U-21 champion told NationSport yesterday that he was yet to come to terms with the fact that the feat achieved by Aruna Quadri at Rio Olympic Games has put most them under pressure, adding that it is a huge task for any player to equal.
    “Of course, Aruna Quadri is our African inspiration after his result at Rio 2016 Olympic Games. He has raised the ceiling of all African players’ ambition. Apart from his quarter-final outing in Brazil, he is now well respected across the globe and this alone has inspired a lot of us to target his feat. Also in Africa, the performance and results of Aruna Quadri and Omar Assar have had a great effect on me especially when I see myself winning important matches and tournaments. So it makes me to train harder and never quit even when I fall,” Magdy said.
    The Egyptian, however, said that he looks forward to this year’s Nigerian Open, which he described as one of the best organised tournaments in the continent. “Having a great and well-organised tournaments in Africa like the Nigerian Open ITTF World Tour and many other tournaments with the good results of our African players in big tournaments, this will surely have positive effect on table tennis popularity in Africa and now Africa is well known with the great players like El-Sayed Lashin, Omar Assar, Aruna Quadri, Ahmed Saleh and I hope I can make a difference for my country and our continent,” he added.
    However, a car accident in September 2016 nearly scuttled Magdy’s dream, as he had to stop playing for more than a month. But undeterred by this setback, Magdy has picked up the pieces of his life to return to the table where he is still nursing the dream of conquering Africa.

  • Aruna Quadri may set new world table tennis record

    Aruna Quadri may set new world table tennis record

    Record setting Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri is inching closer to inking another feat when the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) releases the February 2017 ranking.

    In 2016, Quadri set unprecedented records after becoming the first African to qualify for the quarterfinal stage of the men’s singles of table tennis event of the Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil as well as the only table tennis player from the continent to be ranked 25th in the ITTF world ranking.

    However, a new record may be in the offing for the Oyo State-born athlete in 2017 after his exceptional performance at the just concluded ITTF World Tour tagged Hungarian Open where his quarterfinal berth may have earned him some crucial ranking points that will push his ranking up the ladder when the February rating is released next week by the world table tennis ruling body.

    Seeded number nine in the men’s singles of the Hungarian Open, Quadri beat two of the world’s best from Germany and the Czech Republic to become the only African to ever made it far in the history of the Hungarian Open.

    Having started the year as world’s number 25th, Quadri’s imminent rise will be officially confirmed on February 1 with the expected new ranking for February.

    Meanwhile, the 2014 ITTF Star Player will lead his French club – Jura Morez against Villeneuve, which has French internationals Adrien Mattenet, Antoine Hachard and Stéphane Ouaiche in the elite French league on January 21.

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  • Aruna Quadri may set new world table tennis record

    Aruna Quadri may set new world table tennis record

    Record setting Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri is inching closer to inking another feat when the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) releases its February 2017 ranking next week.
    In 2016, Quadri set unprecedented records after becoming the first African to qualify for the quarterfinal stage of the men’s singles of table tennis event of the Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil as well as the only table tennis player from the continent to be ranked 25th in the ITTF world ranking.
    However, a new record may be in the offing for the Oyo State-born athlete in 2017 after his exceptional performance at the just concluded ITTF World Tour tagged Hungarian Open where his quarterfinal berth may have earned him some crucial ranking points that will push his ranking up the ladder when the February rating is released next week by the world table tennis ruling body.
    Seeded number nine in the men’s singles of the Hungarian Open, Quadri beat two of the world’s best from Germany and Czech Republic to become the only African to ever made it far in the history of the Hungarian Open.
    Having started the year as world’s number 25th, Quadri’s imminent rise will be officially confirmed on February 1 with the expected new ranking for February.
    Meanwhile, the 2014 ITTF Star Player will lead his French club – Jura Morez against Villeneuve, which has French internationals Adrien Mattenet, Antoine Hachard and Stéphane Ouaiche in the elite French league on January 21.
    Aruna Quadri 2

  • Nigeria table tennis team now competitive – Onaolapo

    Unlike in the past where players were handpicked to feature for Nigeria in major competitions, but to make the national table tennis now is as hard as a camel passing through the needle, says Portugal-based Ojo Onaolapo.

    Onaolapo who failed to make it beyond the preliminary round at the just concluded Hungarian Open in Budapest told NationSport that after being exempted from the nation team after his last outing at the 2016 World Championship in Malaysia, he hopes to work his way back into the team with hard work and discipline.

    “From the quality of players we have in Nigeria coupled with the competitiveness of the team, it is now very hard to make the team because you need to prove yourself that you are worthy to be in the team. You must also be disciplined to be part of the team which has quality and disciplined players like Segun Toriola and Aruna Quadri,” he said.

    On his early exit at Hungarian Open, he said: “But I know if I continue going to competition from time to time, I will reclaim my place back in the national team. I just have to keep going to tournaments because I now realised that tournament arena is different from the club so I need to keep going to ITTF World Tour,” he said.

    He added: “In most of the matches, I was leading only to lose. While the racket my opponents were using were not the ones I was used to. Apart from the defeat, I think I learnt a lot from taking part in the competition and it makes me believe that nothing is impossible and I got to know the latest in table tennis around the world.”

    Onaolapo could not hide his fascination for his compatriot – Aruna Quadri saying, “Seeing Aruna Quadri playing and winning against some of the top players will make people believe that Africa can do it. His performance gives me confidence that nothing is impossible in table tennis. That it is just hard work and ensure that I attend tournaments regularly. Also, I noticed that Aruna Quadri play strong short while he moves a lot on the table. He fights for every point on the table and this is a quality I must follow.”

    He hopes to feature in tournaments in Luxembourg and Slovenia before the 2017 World Championships in Germany. “I intend to play more competitions in Luxembourg and Slovenia before the World Championship. What I believe is that if I keep focusing and attending tournaments while also performing very well, I think I can be a regular in the Nigeria national team,” he said.