President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, Tayo Adesoji, says Nigeria’s table tennis development programme is heading in the right direction following the country’s success at the 2026 ITTF Africa Youth Championships in Accra, Ghana.
Nigeria’s U-19 boys produced a major upset by defeating Egypt to retain the continental team title, denying the North Africans a clean sweep of the four team events. The tournament ran from July 20 to 27 in Accra.
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The result has strengthened Adesoji’s belief that the federation’s emphasis on grassroots development and youth programmes is beginning to deliver tangible results.
“The development of table tennis in Nigeria is on the right track. Retaining the title shows that the work we are doing at the grassroots is beginning to produce results.”
Nigeria’s success is particularly significant given Egypt’s longstanding dominance of African table tennis. The Egyptian system has consistently produced some of the continent’s strongest players, making victories over their youth teams an important benchmark for Nigeria.
Adesoji believes continued investment in young players will eventually allow Nigeria to compete more consistently with Egypt at the highest level.
The 2026 championships also demonstrated the depth of talent emerging across Africa, with Egypt dominating several team events while Nigeria prevented a complete sweep by taking the U-19 boys’ crown.
Nigeria’s youth programme has also benefited from increased exposure to international competition and structured development opportunities. The federation’s recent efforts have focused on identifying promising players early and providing them with regular high-level competition.
The success of the U-19 boys therefore provides another indication that Nigeria’s next generation is capable of challenging Africa’s established table tennis powerhouse.
Adesoji believes that with sustained grassroots investment and continued international exposure, Nigeria can gradually close the gap on Egypt and establish itself as a consistent force in African table tennis.
