INTERVIEW: Funke Oshonaike on being jilted ‘several times’ and why she hates football

Funke Oshonaike’s name is easily synonymous with table tennis in Nigeria and Africa. Beautiful, ever looking young, very frank and talented, Funke, tells the story of her life to TheCable, including the positives and the negatives of her life and tennis career. The five-time Olympian, who was born on October 28, 1975, speaks German and Italian.

GROWING UP WAS TOUGH

While growing up, I started representing Nigeria at 14. Maybe, yes because of the fact table tennis is a sport I love so much and my dream was to go international on it. Yes, I knew I was going to be like this because I gave it more than 100%.  Growing up was like learning a lot from people, it was tough, I got jilted, I got tainted, I got humiliated, which a lot of people don’t know anything about. People are like this girl, I would love to be like her but they don’t know all that. But I learnt a lot in the hard way. But one thing I can tell you frankly is that all those things I learnt then, they made me who I am today, they made me very, very strong. That is why a lot of things that will happen to me now, I will just overlook it and say to myself, ko matter jare (it doesn’t matter)’. Growing up was very tough but then I don’t have any regrets at all. So, now I just look back and when I see people going through the same thing I will be able to advise them. That what’s happening right now, it will soon be over. So, my growing up was very very tough.

MY DAD IS MY BIGGEST FAN

My parents never discouraged me. Especially my dad. He is like a foreigner. He normally takes me everywhere for competitions. My dad is my number one fan. So, he never discouraged me. I remember a time, I don’t normally have supporters, every time I was always playing then, the spectators were always against me, always booing me. I remembered a time when I went to meet my dad, asking him what I have done to these people that made them to detest me? My dad would just be like, Funke don’t worry, they just want to make you tough. Just go there, play against your opponent and make sure you win. He assured me that with time they would give in to you. And it’s true, that has helped me a lot. If I am playing against my opponent now and I don’t have a supporter, who cares? It doesn’t move me because that is the way I grew up. Even when I got jilted, got duped, my parents stood by me, they never for once asked me to stop my career. Even up to this stage. Now even if I tell my daddy that I want to stop because of old age he still continued to encourage me to go on. He was there for me and he is still there for me.

TABLE TENNIS DELAYED MY EDUCATIONAL PURSUIT

Yes, table tennis stopped my education for a while. I went to University of Lagos for my diploma, this one year thing that time around 1992-1993, all these challenges of schools being shut down due to one cultism activities or the other. You know that after my diploma, I had wanted to go for a degree in Mass Communication because that is what I have always wanted to do in my life but unfortunately due to all these problems I couldn’t. So,that is when I packed my bags and moved to Europe. And you know that education is very hard because of the language. Yes, it disturbed me a little bit but then in Germany here I am still doing a lot of courses here and there. I still do what I love to do but what I actually love to study, table tennis stopped me from doing that.

MEN STILL TOAST ME IN SPITE OF WEDDING RING

The overtures I get from the opposite sex are even more than what I got when I was single. So, many temptations here and there but like I said I thank God for the wisdom, but it’s not easy.

MY HERO IS OLAWUNMI MAJEKODUNMI

The biggest table tennis name I most adore is sister Majekodunmi (African table tennis queen for decades). You see what I actually had in mind while growing up was that I should grow up so that I could beat all of them. I see them play and I will be like ‘You can be better than them’. It was a challenge for me like I said when I started playing. I started playing in junior level but before you know it, I started playing in the senior level and by then I had started beating some of them that were still active. So, I can’t say I really have big names in Nigeria that I actually looked up to in the profession. Maybe I was looking up to the Chinese players because they were the best. But talking about Nigeria, I think it is sister Lawunmi Majekodunmi.

I can’t remember the names of the Chinese players I loved because they are too many in China. I grew up saying I want to play and be like them. But sister Majekodunmi stood out for me in Nigeria because I really loved the way she played, and wanted to play more than her. In Nigeria, they only play like African champion. We’ve never been world champion. But me, I was thinking about wanting to be the world champion. But I never knew it is very hard.

MY CHINA EXPERIENCE

For the first time, yes it was tough for me. I was like, wow look at the table tennis hall. But now, it is nothing. It is fun. I see them like family. Every time there is a big competition like that I just say I want to go and see my family. I want to go to what I love to do. So, anytime I am playing it’s just fun all the way. Maybe the only time I felt it was not fun was this last competition I went for in China because I had to play against the number one. I felt it, I was like how am I going to do it. And it’s in China and she’s a Chinese. But what readily came to mind was my growing up when people will be against me. But then, immediately the game started I just forgot all about it and I do what I love to do best. If I win, fine. If I lose, all right too. And I forgot about me and started doing what I live to do and it was all fun. So, there’s really nothing to it because it is part of me.

MY MOST CHERISHED MOMENT

My most cherished moment in was at the All Africa Games in Abuja in 2003. Because I just had my first child six months early. And I won four gold medals. It’s a thing I can never forget. It’s a thing when I am going to write something about me, I will put down that marriage shouldn’t stop you from doing what you love doing. Having children shouldn’t stop you from doing what you love to do. After my baby, my cherished moment is that. Because after experiencing childbirth, I still came back and defeated everybody and won four gold medals for Nigeria. I can never forget it.

MY MOST TRYING MOMENT

I remember. That was in India. That was the time I almost gave up. I came to Nigeria. But unfortunately, during the trials I was very sick. And I couldn’t play in the trials and I called my coach and told him that I was not feeling well. And he said don’t worry, you are the champion. But I never knew they had another plan. And that they had a lot of things against me. I called them later that I felt better but he said Funke don’t worry, you are going. That I shouldn’t bother coming. But they left without me. And I felt so bad about that. I took it very hard. I almost gave up not playing any more. I told my husband and he was like I should forget about these people. That is it because of the money you are getting or what? That you have achieved a lot for Nigeria, that if they don’t like you just leave them. That was the most trying moment for me because I wanted to give up. I was so angry with them. Angry with the bad way they behaved. But again, the love I have for the game made me continue. I was really sad but I continued. I went back to playing for my club in Germany, I even thought of playing for another country. But what pushed me on is the love I have for the game and my country.

NIGERIA ONLY PAYS ATHLETES DURING COMPETITIONS

Here in Europe and other developed table tennis countries, the players are being paid every month. They pay them salaries. But in Nigeria there is nothing like that. Nigeria only pays athletes during competitions. After that, Nigeria doesn’t pay athletes. So, you cannot truly compare Nigeria to other countries. Here, they know that you are doing it as a job. You get allowances. You get salary. And even get paid during competitions. But in Nigeria, if you are not going for competition you are going to get nothing. The difference is too glaring. I just pray that one day it is going to be like that too. Where Nigeria is going to pay salaries to athletes instead of athletes waiting for a competition that could only be just for a year. Forgetting that athletes have equipment or things they need to get them prepared for competitions. A lot of things will have to be done in Nigeria to improve us.

I PAY MY WAY TO REPRESENT NIGERIA

A lot of times, I do pay my way to competitions I participate in. I spent my money. I wrote the NSC but can’t wait for them forever. So, I had to get my ticket which was double the amount because I didn’t do my registration on time. Nigeria did not sponsor me or those of us that went to China. That’s what I am talking about. Even the organisers did not believe me when they asked for my teammates because they could not afford it. Last year, was the All Africa Games, we need all these training, going to a lot of competitions, getting us prepared so that we can win a lot of medals for Nigeria. As it is now, when you don’t win anything for Nigeria, they will call you ‘olodo’ (failure). But whose fault is it? Most athletes don’t do anything outside sports. How are they going to cope, if Nigeria doesn’t care for their welfare? Or don’t get them to go for competitions regularly?

I remember in 1990, when I was in secondary school and how many times I had to change schools. If we have to camp in Kwara, I have to go to school in Kwara. We are always in camp for a year or one-and-a-half years before going for any competition. But now, if you are going for All Africa Games or the Commonwealth games or the Olympics, they will just camp like two or three months. And then they will be expecting a miracle? And things in Nigeria are not really getting better.

ADMINISTRATORS EXPECT MIRACLES WITHOUT PREPARATIONS

We should go for competitions. Nigeria doesn’t go for competitions. Let’s take table tennis for instance: it is rare before we can go two or three times in a year. And apart from that, we need training. There’s nothing like miracle. If we can beat the Europeans first, then we won’t have problems with the Chinese in the long run. What we need is to have a lot of training and go for competitions. And also provide grants for the athletes so as to make them feel comfortable to do their job well. Like most of us living in Europe, we are the ones taking care of ourselves, it’s when there’s a competition that they will call us. Sometimes, they will give us our grant. Sometimes, they will give you nothing. They don’t care. I  really enjoyed sports in Nigeria way way back. I remember while growing up that we used to have competition every month in Nigeria. I will go for a lot of competition but look at what is happening right now. It is not just in table tennis but all sports. So, they have to do something. And they have to put the right people to do the job. They are always putting people that don’t know about sports. Put the right people to handle the job. Not people that don’t know anything about sports. They will gamble and destroy everything. The thing wey dey pain me be say, dey will say na the athletes (they will blame the athletes and it is very painful to me).

NIGERIA DESTROYED OTHER SPORTS FOR FOOTBALL

That is why you will never see me sit down and watch football. I grew up not liking football. When we travelled together for competitions, they will treat footballers like Kings while treating other athletes like second-class citizens. That is why up till this moment, I cannot sit down and watch Nigeria play against any country. I do not care. And that is what they are putting in lots of athletes heart now. And it is bad. Just like me now, I have two boys. And if I love one more than the other, automatically the one I don’t love will do something against the one I love. It is natural. Even if they can give thirty percent of what they are giving football, At least all the other sports will also grow and they will not be saying this sport is good, that sport is not good. What are you doing to make other sports good.

That sport that is not good, what are you doing to make them good? I just don’t understand the way Nigeria is thinking. They will put some sports aside and say it is not good. What do they mean by that? Why can’t we just do something about it so that it can be good too? So, talking about football, i don’t like football at all, Nigeria made me not to like football at all. If they like, they win. If they like, they lose. I don’t care. Because if they win, they get money. If they lose, they also get money. So, I don’t care o. I don’t have any problem against the players but I am not just happy with the way our sports administrators treat other sports because of football. Which is very bad. I am in Germany and everyone can see that no sport is lacking anything. Same focus and attention is given to all sports here. Every sport has its body and they always get their budget to run their sports. They don’t rob Peter to pay Paul which is what Nigeria is doing.

MEDIA ALWAYS INVADING MY PRIVACY

It was hard. But I never read about my supposed affair with Dr. Tijani Yusuf (former sports administrator). But the one that got to me was the one about Funke being battered by boyfriend. Because when I got to the stadium, everybody was just looking at me that so you go through all this in your relationship and you will still come to the stadium smiling and acting it happy. It affected me then but doesn’t affect me any more. Dr. Yusuf was a very special friend then. Very very special. But that was then. Everybody has moved on. It doesn’t move me now whatever they write. You know that’s what makes a star. If they write positive, good. If they write negative, just ignore and overlook it and move on with your life.

WHY I WON’T HAVE A BABY GIRL

My husband? My boy. My kids? They are my world. When people asked if I don’t want a girl, I always tell them no. Because I am the queen in my house. I am the only girl and I don’t want any rival. And also I have locked my ‘abe’, no more children for me. My boys are great. They are always looking after me, asking me ‘Mummy do you want anything?’ My husband is very supportive. Every time I tell my husband that I don’t want to play again, he will tell me that but you are still strong now. You can continue. He is always there helping with the kids and all that. Sometimes, I won’t want to go for any competition, but he will tell me to go as he will take care of the kids. That is why my husband and children are my world and I don’t like leaving them. But thank God that I have a husband that has been very supportive. My family have been so good to me and I am very grateful to God for them. They are my boys and I truly truly love them so much.