Six African Juniors Named for ITTF World Hopes Week in Sheffield
Four African nations will be represented at the 2026 ITTF World Hopes Week & Challenge, with six players from the continent named among the participants. The event runs from October 12 to 18 at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, United Kingdom.
Nigeria has two players on the list, Umar Ayoola and Elizabeth Emelike. Egypt also contributes a pair in Zeina Farouk and Adam Lashin. Tunisia's Ritej Charif and Uganda's Joseph Sebatindira complete the African entry.
Altogether, 36 athletes aged under 12, drawn from 26 Member Associations, were picked for the International Table Tennis Federation talent development initiative.
Places were earned through performances at the Africa Hopes Week and Challenge, staged earlier this year in Accra, Ghana.
The ITTF and Table Tennis England are co-organisers of the Sheffield gathering, which closes out the Continental Hopes Programme, a year-long effort to spot and sharpen promising players worldwide.
Youngsters from Africa, Europe, Asia, the Americas and Oceania will spend the week in intensive training and competition.
Selection for the global event came via each continent's Hopes programme, with the strongest performers moving on, according to the ITTF.
Elite international coaches will run high-level technical sessions, and the Challenge competition forms the other half of the programme.
Results alone will not determine how players are rated. Assessors will also weigh technical ability, attitude in training and the potential for long-term development.
Standout participants could be chosen for the Hopes Team, a route into the ITTF High Performance programme.
The African six will line up against peers from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Colombia, England, Spain, Finland, France, Guyana, India, Ireland, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Paraguay, Peru, Qatar, Romania, Thailand, Uzbekistan and Venezuela.
Beyond the table, the week offers the youngsters a chance to mix with contemporaries from other countries and cultures, adding international experience.
For the African contingent, Sheffield marks a notable point in their development and a test against some of the leading players of their age group worldwide. Their presence reflects a widening push on youth development in Africa as the continent works to bring through its next generation of international table tennis players.
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