By Victor Kanayo
As the 2025 ITTF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, approach, African stars are set to make their mark from May 16 to 25, 2025.
Despite Africa’s strong presence at past Championships, the continent is still chasing its first medal, with the best performance being a quarterfinal finish.
In recent individual ITTF World Championships held in Houston, USA, and Durban, South Africa, African players like Quadri Aruna of Nigeria and Omar Assar of Egypt have showcased their talent by reaching the quarterfinals in 2021 and 2023, respectively.
Aruna Feats
Aruna made history as the first African to reach the quarterfinals of this prestigious tournament in Houston, defying the odds and setting a path for others.
Aruna has been a trailblazer, achieving numerous firsts for Africa in table tennis.
His remarkable performance at the 2014 ITTF World Cup in Düsseldorf, Germany, where he became the first African to reach the quarterfinals, earned him the ITTF World Player of the Year award.
At the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Aruna’s skill was on full display as he defeated former World No. 1 Timo Boll of Germany to become the first African to reach the Olympic quarterfinals.
In the 2021 ITTF World Championships in Houston, Aruna continued to impress, defeating India’s Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Sweden’s Kristian Karlsson to reach the quarterfinals, where his run was halted by Sweden’s Truls Moregard, the tournament’s Vice Champion.
Following in Aruna’s footsteps, Egyptian star Omar Assar became the first African to reach consecutive quarterfinals at the Olympic Games, matching Aruna’s record at the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics. In Durban, Assar equaled Aruna’s ITTF World Championships record, becoming the second African to reach the quarterfinals. Assar’s journey included victories over Croatia’s Tomislav Pucar, Ecuador’s Alberto Mino, Kazakhstan’s Kirill Gerassimenko, and Sweden’s Truls Moregard, solidifying his status as one of Africa’s brightest table tennis stars.
In a touching display of camaraderie, Aruna embraced Assar on the field after his win over Pucar. Although Assar’s run ended in the quarterfinals against eventual champion Fan Zhendong, his performance highlighted the quality of African players on the global stage.
As the world turns its attention to Doha, Africa hopes for another standout performance from its players, including established stars like Aruna, Assar, Dina Meshref, and Hana Goda, as well as debutants and teenage sensations like Tunisia’s Wassim Essid and Nigeria’s Matthew Kuti, who are ready to challenge the elite in Qatar.
