Since its debut in 2023, the tournament has never witnessed a player successfully defend a title, but that narrative may change this year as the winners arrive in the country determined to break the cycle.
From May 19th – 24th, the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium will once again transform into the beating heart of table tennis in Africa, where champions rise, rivalries intensify and history beckons.
Anders Lind, ranked world No. 16, leads the men’s charge and is looking to extend his strong start to 2026 with another triumph on African soil. He will meet strong opposition, including world No. 18 Shunsuke Togami of Japan and 2024 champion Dimitrij Ovtcharov of Germany.
Nigeria’s Olajide Omotayo also qualifies directly for the main draw. Making his third appearance of the WTT Series this season. The 30-year-old will look to harness home support to ignite his campaign after setbacks in Tunis and Taiyuan.
In the women’s draw, Hashimoto will contend with her compatriot, Satsuki Odo, her conqueror at the WTT Star Contender Chennai 2026 and WTT Contender Taiyuan 2026.
Another of Odo’s conquerors in Taiyuan, Japan’s Hitomi Sato, is also in Lagos alongside Korea’s Joo Cheonhui, runner-up at WTT Contender Tunis 2026, and wild card Yashaswini Ghorpade of India, among others.
The Lagos event, which started in June 2023 as the successor to the ITTF Nigeria Open, has consistently attracted elite talent from across the world and offers $100,000 in prize money as well as 400 ITTF World Ranking points.
 Contender Lagos, will be returning for a chance to defend their titles in Nigeria.){kind=link}