Visa issues prevent Bello from competing at ITTF World Cup

The highly anticipated debut of Fatimo Bello at the ITTF World Cup has been postponed due to visa complications. The Nigerian table tennis star was unable to secure a visa to travel to China for the prestigious tournament.

Bello was one of four female African players set to compete at the ITTF World Cup in Macao. 

However, her absence led the world table tennis governing body to replace her with Hong Kong’s Chengzhu Zhu.

According to a source within the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Bello, who is based in Italy, had her visa application denied by the Chinese Embassy in Lagos. Despite being initially listed by the ITTF, this setback prevented her from making the trip.

Bello earned her spot in the tournament by finishing among the top four in the Women’s event at the 2025 ITTF Africa Cup held in Tunis earlier this year. The former Olympian had been eagerly anticipating the competition and waited until the weekend, hoping to secure the visa from her base in Italy.

Unfortunately, Bello will now have to wait until next year to make her much-awaited debut at the ITTF World Cup in 2026.