Administrators Blamed For Under Development In Table Tennis

Upcoming table tennis player, Bose Odusanya, has blamed sports administrators in the country for the low level of development in table tennis.

According to Odunsanya, who crashed out of the 2011 Asoju Oba Table Tennis Championship at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos,   the administrators have failed upcoming players by not encouraging them to reach the peak of their game.

Odusanya said one of the shortcomings of the administrators is their partiality when it comes to selection of players for major international tournaments.

“I don’t know why they like selecting players that do not take part in trials for major championships. This attitude is killing the game in the country. I think athletes should be selected for any championship based on merit and their performance during the trials,” she said.

Odusanya tasked the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, NTTF, to get more sponsors  for the game in the country.

She opined that more table tennis championships would afford upcoming players the opportunity to showcase and refine their talents in the game.

She, however, hailed the organisers of the Asoju-Oba Table Tennis Championship for their vision and passion for the development of table tennis in the country over the years.

Odunsanya said the championship has been encouraging young players to remain focused in the game.

— Olusegun Abidoye