Coaching clinic to kick-start 2nd Daniel Ford Elite Table Tennis Championships
An intensive two-day coaching clinic will kick off the 2nd Daniel Ford Elite Youth Table Tennis Invitational Championships from Wednesday, December 18 to Thursday, December 19 at the National Training Centre of the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos.
According to Adesoji Tayo, Vice President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), the sponsor decided to include the coaching clinic this year to better prepare the athletes for the main event on December 20 and 21.
“We are excited that our sponsors are taking a special interest in the real development of the players, having observed some top stars across the globe. With their generosity, they have added an extra two days to the tournament this year, with the first two days dedicated to the coaching clinic led by national coaches, including Dotun Omoniyi.
“This training will surely help the players to be in top shape for the main event and bring out their best. We hope they will take advantage of this opportunity to outshine one another at the event, and we look forward to an exciting tournament this year,” Tayo said.
A total of 64 players, comprising of 32 boys and 32 girls in the U-15 and U-19 categories, have been confirmed for the tournament.
Among them is 2023 African Games silver medalist Matthew Kuti, who will lead the boys’ competition. In the U-19 category, national team stars Abdulbasit Abdulfatai and Muiz Adegoke will compete alongside Kuti.
The invited players will be divided into four groups of four players each, with round-robin matches within each group. The top two players from each group will advance to the knockout stage quarterfinals.
The tournament will take place from December 20 to 21 at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium and it is organized by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) and funded by United Kingdom based Daniel Ford International.
