Zhou Kai of China and Shin Yubin of Korea Republic, yesterday, won the men and women’s singles category respectively at World Table Tennis Contender Championship held at the indoor sports hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.

Kai defeated Dimitrij Ovtcharov from Germany 4-1 to win the men’s singles title, while Yubin defeated China’s Li Yake to be crowned the women’s singles champion.

Yubin, who won the women’s doubles title with fellow Korean, Jeon Jihee, commended the organisers of the WTT Contender Championship for giving table tennis stars the platform to hone their skills and compete for ranking points.

Also speaking on the competition, Kai said that hard work and determination to succeed gave him the victory over his German opponent.

“The final game was tough. My German opponent played well, but I believe my preparations played out during the game.
“I will continue to give my best to win more world championships and I thank the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) for organising this event,” he said.

Earlier, Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) President, Ishaku Tikon, promised to support Nigerian players in their quest for good ranking points to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

He said: “The NTTF is delighted by the success of the WTT Contender Championship. Our next goal is to prepare Nigerian players well for the next WTT Championship in Tunisia.”

“The NTTF is also working hard to groom more players from the grassroots. With the success of the WTT Contender Championship in Lagos, more Nigerian players have gotten the needed exposure and experience to compete against the best stars in the world in subsequent championships. We will not relent in creating more platform for players to excel,” he said.

The president also apologised for the few minutes light blackout during the women’s singles finals, saying it was a slight technical hitch that was resolved immediately.