Players brace up for 48th Asoju Oba Cup

Players hoping to share from the mouthwatering prize money for the annual Asoju Oba Molade Okoya-Thomas Table Tennis Cup are at present honing their skills across Lagos in readiness for the tournament.
The annual tournament remains the oldest competition in Nigeria, having started in 1968 and has been staged uninterrupted for over 48 years.
Some of the products of the championship are National Coach, Babatunde Obisanya, who won the maiden edition in 1968, as well as the current African women champion, Olufunke Oshonaike.
Training centres dotted around Lagos have been besieged by the players who are eager to sharpen their skills under the guidance of their adopted coaches while stage is also set to unveil packages for this year’s championships.
From junior boys defending champion, Nurudeen Hassan, to men’s singles champion, Ahmed Adeyinka, the target for the title remains their priority.
Hassan, a member of the senior national team to the last ITTF Africa Senior Championship held in Morocco, hopes to exceed the round of 16 he exited the tournament last year.
He said: “I am ready to battle for the men’s singles title because of the experience I have had playing alongside the likes of Aruna Quadri, Bode Abiodun and Segun Toriola would be helpful for me in this year’s championship.
“I hope I can be a title contender and not pretender because I also want to be a winner of the Asoju Oba Cup because most the players that have won the competition in the past made their way into the national team to become African stars.
“I must also admit that it is not going to be an easy task for me because there are a lot of quality players in Lagos State.
“But I hope to try my best on the title this year.”
For Adeyinka, holding on to the title is his priority as he is targeting the record set by Oladele Sumbo who has won the tournament more than any player since its inception in 1968.
Meanwhile, the family of the late sponsor of the championship, Chief Molade Okoya-Thomas, has promised to continue to add glamour to the tournament annually.
They pledged to continue the legacy of the late business mogul who started the championship in 1968.