The country’s best student-swimmers, table tennis stars will converge on the National Stadium, Lagos, on Sunday for the 2025 Nigeria School Sport Federation (NSSF) Table Tennis and Swimming Championships, which will end on June 25.

The three-day event will see the student-athletes vying for a spot on Team Nigeria’s squad for the inaugural African School Games, scheduled for July 2025 in Algeria.

Organised by the NSSF, the championships will serve as a key selection platform for the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA)-backed continental event.

To ensure a successful event, the Nigeria Aquatic Federation and the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) are working closely with the NSSF to build a strong national contingent.

The table tennis event will be held on Monday and Tuesday, while the swimming championship starts on Tuesday and ends on Wednesday. According to the NSSF’s secretary, the tournament is a strategic opportunity to discover and nurture young talents while preparing them for international exposure.

“We are fully aware of Nigeria’s rich pool of sporting talent. At NSSF, our goal is to create a level playing field for students nationwide to showcase their abilities. This tournament is not just about competition, it’s about giving every student a chance to be seen, supported, and developed into future stars,” Usman said.

He emphasised that the event aligns with the federation’s broader mission of exposing students to elite-level competition beyond Nigeria’s borders.

“We’ve invited teams from across the country, and we’re confident this will provide a valuable platform for athletes to test themselves against their peers. With the involvement of national technical crews, we’re ensuring that the best talents are identified and prepared for the African School Games in Algeria.” He advised all the participating teams to arrive early in Lagos to complete registration ahead of the tournament’s kick-off on Monday.

The first-ever African School Games, organised by ANOCA, will hold in Algeria from July 26 to August 5, 2025. The multi-sport event will be hosted across the cities of Constantine, Sétif, Skikda, and Annaba, featuring over 3,000 young athletes aged 14 to 17 competing in 25 different sports disciplines.