The male and female winners at the championships will represent Africa at the Table Tennis World Cup in Argentina in October.

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The maiden International Table Tennis Federation, ITTF, Africa Top 16, on Friday served off at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.

Thirty-two players with the highest points were selected to take part in the championships.

The male and female winners at the championships will represent Africa at the Table Tennis World Cup in Argentina in October.

According to ITTF, the tournament is a continental one as other continents are organising such to select their representatives at the World Cup.

Four players consisting of two males and two females are to represent each country at the tournament.

The Nigerian number two seeded player, Quadri Aruna, is in Group 3 alongside Suraju Saka of Congo Brazzaville, Steve Ngoma of Congo Democratic and Ibrahim Kamara of Sierra Leone.

The number one seeded Nigerian player, Segun Toriola, is in Group 4 alongside Saheed Idowun of Congo Brazzaville, Adem Hmam of Tunisia and Kokou Fanny of Togo.

Nigeria’s Olufunke Oshinaika is in Group 3 with Nadeen El-Dawlatly of Egypt, Marta Gulti of Ethiopia and Rachelle Ngoma of Gabon in the female category.

Another Nigerian, Offiong Edem, is in Group 4 with Onyinyechi Nwachukwu of Congo Brazzaville, Cynthia Kwabi of Ghana and Khanyisile Madlala of Russia.

The winners will get $1,500 (N244, 000) each, $700 (N114, 000) for runners up, while the semi-finalists will earn $500 (N81, 000) each.

(NAN)