Ondo State triumphed in the Mixed Doubles event at the 56th Molade Okoya-Thomas National Table Tennis Championships, held at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall in Teslim Balogun Stadium.
The duo of Joshua Oladiran and Kehinde Adeyinka secured the title by defeating Edo’s Amadi Omeh and Anu Ajuwon in a thrilling 3-2 match (12-14, 11-7, 11-9, 9-11, 13-11).
After three days of intense preliminary rounds in the Men’s and Women’s Singles, the knockout stage is set to begin on Thursday, January 30.
The para events have also been highly competitive, with Paralympians dominating their categories.
In the women’s para category, Commonwealth Games medallist Faith Obiora was unexpectedly knocked out by Kwara’s Taiye Oyinloye.
Oyinloye advanced to the final but was defeated by another Commonwealth Games medallist, Kate Oputa of Delta, who won 3-1 (11-3, 7-11, 11-6, 11-9) to become the Women’s Class 1-5 champion.
Out of 109 players registered for the Men’s Singles, 16 have been seeded, while the remaining 93 competed fiercely for the 16 available slots in the main draw.
The successful players will join the top seeds in the first round of the main draw, starting on Thursday, January 30.
The competition is expected to be fierce, with top players like national champion Matthew Kuti, Abulbasit Abdulfatai, Jamiu Ayanwale, Muiz Adegoke, and Amadi Umeh all vying for the title.
Former champion Rilwan Akanbi expressed his ambition to win the tournament now that it has become a national event.
He said: “I am happy that the tournament has gone national now, and this will surely allow the best players in the country to compete, unlike when it was meant for Lagos state players alone. Now it is obvious that it is going to be tougher to win the title this year, but I have been training for this, and I hope I can make it this year again, having won the previous editions of the competition.
