28 Nigerians to compete as WTT Lagos Contender starts June 19

Aruna Quadri will be the headline star when the 2024 World Table Tennis (WTT) Contender commences in Lagos on June 19.

In a statement on the WTT website on Monday, the organisers confirmed the 35-year-old is scheduled to make his first Contender Series appearance on home soil next month.

The competition will be held in Lagos for the second consecutive year in place of the now-retired ITTF Nigeria Open.

Aruna withdrew from the previous edition due to an engagement with Fakel-Gazprom Orenburg, his former club, in the Russian table tennis league.

WTT said $80,000 in cash prizes will be available to players across several categories.

At least eight of the top 50 players in the world from Brazil, China, India, and Germany, among others, are expected to arrive in Lagos for the Contender series.

The biggest names include Germany’s Dimitrij Ovtcharov, who lost 4-1 to China’s Zhao Qihao in the 2023 edition’s final, alongside Brazil’s Hugo Calderano and Lim Jonghoon of Korea.

In the women’s singles category, China’s Shin Yubin hopes to defend the title she won at the last edition.

At least 28 players will represent Nigeria, including Olajide Omotayo, Offiong Edem, and Bello Fatimo — the trio who recently booked qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The WTT Contender Lagos will be held from June 19 to 23 at the Molade-Okoya Thomas Indoor Sports Hall in Lagos.