The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Segun Toriola

  • NTTF championships: 300 players begin hostilities

    NTTF championships: 300 players begin hostilities

    The Indoor Hall of the National Stadium was on Tuesday ignited as over 300 players across the country begin the race for titles and cast rewards at the maiden Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) National Championships.

    With 18 titles at stake at the five-day N2.8m prize money championship, the team event kick-started the competition.

    20 female teams and over 40 male teams will jostle for honours in the event while the para and junior, as well as cadet events, will begin today at the National Training Centre.

    According to the competition manager, John Peters, the turn-out of players and teams would be the biggest in the last three years as some of the retired players are also taking part in the championship.

     Among the ageing players rubbing shoulders with the young ones is Taofeek Maya, who was a former African champion in the 1990s.

    Maya, who recently won a tournament in Gabon told NationSports that he hopes to use the championship to inspire the junior players. “I am more than 50 years of age but I can tell you that there is no age barrier in table tennis and that is why Segun Toriola can still be competing with the continent and world best in major competitions. For me, table tennis is my life and I am enjoying every moment.

    I hope to make a statement with my performance in this competition. I must also commend the NTTF under the leadership of Wahid Oshodi for restoring the glory of the sport. Now table tennis is now getting popular as it used to be in the 1990s. I am happy that I am part of this resurgence,” May said.

  • Quadri remains 25th in ITTF World Ranking

    Quadri remains 25th in ITTF World Ranking

    Despite not making it beyond the first round at the ITTF World Cup coupled with his second place finish at the last ITTF Africa Senior Championships, Aruna Quadri maintained his 25th spot in the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) world ranking released at the weekend.
    Also in the November world ranking, African women’s singles champion, Olufunke Oshonaike made a giant stride in the world rating as the Germany-based star rose to 206 from 253 as the highest ranked Nigerian female player in the world.
    Seven-time Olympian, Segun Toriola also moved up the ranking as the former African champion is now rated 101 from 109 where he was in October. Toriola maintained his place as the third highest ranked African player in the world.
    Bode Abiodun also moved from 183 to 175 in the ranking while Azeez Jamiu, Olajide Omotayo and Nurudeen Hassan made entries into the ranking list.
    Quadri’s conqueror at the ITF Africa Senior Championships, Egypt’s Omar Assar fortune improved in the latest ranking as the Egyptian rose from 57 to 49.
    Meanwhile, Quadri has solicited the support of his fans globally to vote for him as the ITTF Star Player of the year through the ITTFStarawards.com.

  • ITTF Africa celebrates Quadri’s Rio Olympic feat 

    ITTF Africa celebrates Quadri’s Rio Olympic feat 

    For becoming the first player in Africa to make it to the quarterfinal stage of the Olympic Games in Rio, Brazil, the executive council of International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Africa has acknowledged the feat of the Nigerian with an award of outstanding performance.

    The presentation of the award was performed by the ITTF Africa President, Khaled El-Salhy including Vice President of ITTF, Cherif Hajem.

    The ITTF boss said it was coincident that two Nigerians – Segun Toriola and Aruna Quadri put Africa on the world map in Rio and for this, the Executive Committee agreed at their meeting that the two players must be acknowledged and honour in order to motivate upcoming players to aim high like them.

    “We were overwhelmed with the huge publicity that Africa got in the table tennis event of Rio Olympic Games because of the performance of Aruna Quadri because, in the history of table tennis, no African has made it to the last eight of the Olympic Games.

    “Players like Aruna Quadri are very rare and I know his performance was due to his commitment and hard work which were obvious in his performance. This honour is not just to celebrate him but to also inspire other players to work hard because without hard work and discipline it will be impossible for any player to make it to the world stage,” he said.

    “From his performance at the 2014 World Cup in Germany where he became the first African to make it to the quarterfinal round of the competition to being named the 2014 ITTF Star Player at the Star Award, Aruna Quadri has raised the bar for others to aim at and with his performance of record, more people in the continent are now paying attention to the sport and we hope he will continue to move up and other African players will surely come through,” El-Salhy added.

  • Nigeria halts Egypt’s clean sweep of medals in Morocco

    In the last three years, Egypt has been dominating continental table tennis championships but at the just concluded ITTF Africa Senior Championships in Morocco, the Segun Toriola-led Nigerian team halted the Egyptians ruling of the sport.

    From the seven gold medals at stage, Nigeria beat Egypt to two of them in men’s doubles and women’s singles.

    It was a day to the end of the championship after Egypt had won three gold medals in women’s doubles, team events (men and women) as well as mixed doubles, Segun Toriola and Aruna Quadri overwhelmed Egypt’s Ahmed Saleh and El-Sayed Lashin 4-2 to claim the first gold medal for Nigeria.

    However, the women’s singles title which has continued to be the birth-right of Egypt was snatched from them by an experienced Olufunke Oshonaike, while what would have been the third gold medal skipped away when Aruna Quadri narrowly lost the men’s singles title to Egypt’s Omar Assar.

    With two gold medals, three silver medals and one bronze medal to emerge as the second placed teams among the 17 teams that featured in the one-week championship.

    To become the overall champion, Egypt won five gold medals.

    Meanwhile, the executive council of ITTF Africa has lauded the organisers of the championship, Morocco Table Tennis Federation (MTTF) for putting together a good show.

     

  • ITTF Africa honours Toriola

    ITTF Africa honours Toriola

    • Tasks players to emulate Nigerian star

    For his exemplary lifestyle on and off the table the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Africa has joined the league of those impressed with the feat achieved by Nigeria’s Segun Toriola at the Olympic Games as the first athlete to attend seven Olympics from the continent.

    At the colourful ceremony held during the ongoing ITTF Africa Senior Championships, Toriola who is the most decorated table tennis player in Africa was given a plaque by the President of ITTF Africa, Khaled El-Salhy assisted by a member of ITTF Africa Executive Board and the President of Morocco Table Tennis Federation, Monqid Hajji.

    According to ITTF Africa boss, it was the decision of the Executive Council of ITTF Africa to honour Toriola for putting the continent on the world map as the first athlete in any sports in Africa to feature in seven Olympic Games.

    “It was the decision of the Executive Council EC to give such award to Segun Toriola, who is a legend of Table Tennis not only in Africa but also in the World following his great achievement of being the first African to make seven appearances at the Olympic Games from 1992 to 2016. WE also we believe that he has the chance to break his own record by making it to Tokyo 2020, which the quality he still possesses,” El-Salhy said.

    For upcoming players, the ITTF Africa helmsman believes Toriola would serve as a role model for young players in Africa with his 100 per cent commitment to the sport on and off the table.

    “Toriola commitment to table tennis is 100 per cent and this is why he will remain an inspiration to young players in Africa. He is also an ambassador of Table Tennis when it comes to fair play. His excellent performance at every competition coupled with his humility are traits that singled him out among other players in Africa ,” El-Salhy added.

  • Nigeria battles Egypt in mixed doubles final

    Experience and youthfulness will come to fore at the ongoing ITTF Africa Senior Championships as Nigeria’s duo of Segun Toriola and Olufunke Oshonaike battle against Egypt’s Omar Assar and Dina Meshref in the final of the mixed doubles event.

    From the round of 16, it was his experience that gave Toriola and Oshonaike the victory as they overcame South Africa, Algeria and Egypt to set up a final against the defending champion, Assar and Meshref.

    Ahead of Thursday’s final,  Egypt’s Meshref said: “In the final against two of Africa’s most experienced players in Africa, Nigeria’s Segun Toriola and Olufunke Oshonaike, I am so excited playing against these top players. I look forward to an exciting match and I hope we can retain our title.”

    However, a confident Oshonaike said: “In the final, we are just going there to win the first title for Nigeria and it will be good that it is going to be Toriola and I that will win be playing and hoping to win the title. But I must also acknowledge the quality of Assar Omar and Meshref Dina as the defending champion and we will surely try our best in the final.”

    Meanwhile, the draws for the singles and doubles event hold today with all eyes on Aruna Quadri and Omar Assar – the tournament’s top seeds.

  • ITTF Championships: Egypt quakes over Toriola’s arrival

    ITTF Championships: Egypt quakes over Toriola’s arrival

    The arrival of Segun Toriola in Morocco late on Monday has thrown Egypt into technical confusion at the ongoing ITTF African Senior Championships holding in Agadir, Morocco.

    Prior to the arrival of Toriola, who is regarded as the most successful table tennis player in the continent, the Egyptians were relieved that they would have an easy ride over Nigeria with only Aruna Quadri as the only threat in the team.

    But late on Monday, when the North African heard about the arrival of Toriola, their camp has been thrown into confusion with some of their players describing it as a huge challenge for them to reclaim their title in the men’s team event.

    Even some of the Egyptian coaches were eager to make an enquiry about the players that would be presenting for the tournament while they took their time to size up Nigerian players like Olajide Omotayo, Nurudeen Hassan and Jamiu Azeez.

    They were also convinced that they would have a smooth win over the Nigerians after watching the West African team sweating hard to defeat Tunisia 3-1 in their group match on Monday.

    One of the most experienced players in the Egyptian team, Ahmed Saleh told NationSport that Toriola is a dangerous player with a lot of experience, adding that Toriola’s present form might pose a lot of problem to them in the team event.

    The Egyptian team are eager to reclaim their title after losing the men’s team title to Nigeria at the 2015 African Games.

  • I’m not done with national team – Toriola

    I’m not done with national team – Toriola

    • Targets Tokyo 2020

    The first African to feature in seven Olympic Games, Segun Toriola believes he still a lot to offer in terms of his experience.

    The former African champion told NationSport on Monday in Lagos that his decision to continue with the national team was based on his passion for the sport that has brought him fame and fortune.

    “I think I can still continue playing for the national team because this is all I know how to do. Table tennis is my passion and I cannot be specific on when I would stop playing because my body can still carry me. I might be old in terms of age but when it comes to the game I am active. The motivation of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) coupled with the need to support the upcoming players is some of the things that inspired me to continue playing the game,” Toriola said.

    However, Toriola is hoping to be part of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Japan. “I am still one of the best in my sport despite my age and my consistency in table tennis which sees me playing in two top regular clubs in Europe would remain an added advantage for me as I continue to play in world class competitions,” said Toriola.

    He added: ““Being 42 years old is one thing-being fit enough to continue playing top table tennis is another.” He continued, “I am very discipline and I religiously follow the things that will continue to aid my fitness in the game. Come Tokyo 2020, I will still be good to represent Nigeria in top grade international competitions until after the Tokyo Olympics.”

    It would be recalled that Toriola was one of the stars at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games as the Nigerian was honoured by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) for his feat as the first table tennis and African athlete to compete at seven Olympic Games.

     

  • ITTF world juniors: NTTF to unveil team this week

    ITTF world juniors: NTTF to unveil team this week

    The team that will represent Nigeria at the 2016 ITTF World Junior Championship in South Africa will be unveiled after days of rigorous training cum trails expected to be concluded this week.

    The 18 players in camp are expected to fight for shirts in the ten-man team that will fly the country’s flag at the global tournament.

    According to the coordinator of the camping exercise, Segun Toriola, the players have continued to give their best in order to be part of the team, adding that the final list would be made known this week.

    “There is no doubt that the players are eager to be part of the team to the tournament in South Africa and I am really impressed with the performance of the players in camp and I am hoping that we will select the best for the country. However, we will organise trial for them to pick the best hands and this will be our yardstick to name the team,” he said.

    However, some of the players in camp include Amadi Umeh, Abayomi Animasahun and Azeez Solanke, believe they cannot afford to miss their places in the team having been part of the team to Algiers where the team picked a spot to the global tournament.

    The invited players were part of the team that featured at the ITTF African Junior Championship in Algiers where they qualified for the World Juniors, while outstanding players from the National U-16 tournament also made it to the camp.

    For the President, Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Wahid Oshodi, the camp becomes necessary as some of the players would tutor on the latest rudiment of the sport. “The selected players will later go into close camping before the championship in November and they will continue to train in readiness for the competition. Segun Toriola will surely depart to his base after the camping and we hope the coaches around can continue to sharpen the skills of the players before the tournament which has Egypt, Nigeria, Algeria and Tunisia representing Africa in Cape Town, South Africa.”

  • ITTF World Juniors: Fight for shirts hots up

    ITTF World Juniors: Fight for shirts hots up

    The fight for places in the Team Nigeria contingent to the 2016 ITTF World Junior Championship in South Africa hots up at the National Training Centre of Lagos National Stadium.

    According to the coordinator of the camping exercise, Segun Toriola, the players are given their best in order to be part of the team, adding that the final list would be made known by next week.

    “I am impressed with the response of the players because every one of them wants to make the team to South Africa. For now we will still be watching them because we intend to organise a trial where the best will be selected for the world championship in Cape Town, South Africa by end of the year,” he said.

    However, the duo of Abayomi Animasahun and Azeez Solanke believe they would make the team having been part of the team to Algiers where the team picked a spot to the global tournament.

    The invited players were part of the team that featured at the ITTF African Junior Championship in Algiers where they qualified for the World Juniors, while outstanding players from the National U-16 tournament also made it to the camp.

    For the President, Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Wahid Oshodi, the camp becomes necessary as some of the players would tutor on the latest rudiment of the sport. “The selected players will later go into close camping before the championship in November and they will continue to train in readiness for the competition. Segun Toriola will surely depart to his base after the camping and we hope the coaches around can continue to sharpen the skills of the players before the tournament which has Egypt, Nigeria, Algeria and Tunisia representing Africa in Cape Town, South Africa.”

    NTTF will cater for the players’ feeding and accommodation while their states are expected to offset their transport fare.