Nigerian table tennis star Quadri Aruna will begin his campaign for global honours on Saturday as the 2025 ITTF World Championships commence in Doha, Qatar.
The tournament, which runs from 17 to 25 May, will feature the world’s top players competing in five main events: Men’s and Women’s Singles, Men’s and Women’s Doubles, and Mixed Doubles at the Lusail Multipurpose Hall and Qatar University Sports Complex.
This year’s edition marks a symbolic return to Doha, 21 years after it became the first Middle Eastern city to host the Championships in 2004.
Aruna, the first African to reach the quarter-finals of the World Championships, will open his Men’s Singles campaign against Brazil’s Victor Ishiy, whom he defeated 4–2 at the 2021 tournament in Houston, USA. He will be hoping for a repeat performance in Doha.
Other African players in the Men’s Singles include Darara Dufera (Ethiopia) vs Oh Junsung (South Korea); Aly Ghallab (Egypt) vs Eduard Ionescu (Romania); Fabio Rakotoarimanana (Madagascar) vs Darko Jorgic (Slovenia); Kokou Fanny (Togo) vs Alexis Lebrun (France); Wassim Essed (Tunisia) vs Juan Perez (Spain); and Mohamed El-Beiali (Egypt) vs Anton Kallberg (Sweden).
Also Read: Africa’s Best Ready for World Table Tennis Finals in Doha
In the Women’s Singles, African champion Hana Goda of Egypt will take on Australia’s Jiamuwa Wu. Other fixtures include Yousra Helmy (Egypt) vs Jocelyn Lam (New Zealand); Hope Udoaka (Nigeria) vs Giulia Takahashi (Brazil); Rochica Sonday (South Africa) vs Chen Xingtong (China); Mariam Alhodaby (Egypt) vs Sabine Winter (Germany); and Danisha Patel (South Africa) vs Andrea Todorovic (Croatia).
Hana Goda of Egypt
The Mixed Doubles category will also see strong African representation: Olajide Omotayo & Kabirat Ayoola (Nigeria) will face Mahmoud Helmy & Hend Fathy (Egypt), while Matthew Kuti & Ajoke Ojomu (Nigeria) are set to play Japan’s Sora Matsushima & Miwa Harimoto. Other African pairs include Fabio Rakotoarimanana & Hanitra Raharimanana (Madagascar) and Milhane Jellouli & Amina Kessaci (Algeria).
The 2025 ITTF World Championships promises a thrilling showcase of skill, determination, and African pride.With top players from across the continent including Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Ethiopia, Uganda, South Africa, Madagascar, and Togo.
