The 2026 ITTF Hopes Week & Challenge Africa came to a successful conclusion in Accra, Ghana, with Uganda’s Joseph Sebatindira and Egypt’s Zeina Ayma Mohammed emerging as the top performers in the boys’ and girls’ categories, respectively.
The six-day development programme brought together 40 of Africa’s most promising Under-12 players from 15 Member Associations, alongside 21 coaches, for an intensive week of high-performance training, education and talent identification.
The events were organised by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) in partnership with the African Table Tennis Federation (ATTF) and the Ghana Table Tennis Association (GTTA).
The programme provided young athletes with elite coaching and an opportunity to compete for qualification to the ITTF World Hopes Week & Challenge and potential selection to the ITTF Hopes Team.
After an exciting week of training and assessment under the guidance of Head Coach Eva Jeler and the continental coaching team, the event concluded with the presentation of awards to the standout performers.
Boys Category
In the boys’ category, Uganda’s Joseph Sebatindira claimed top honours, ahead of Nigeria’s Ayoola Umar Olawale in second place.
Egypt’s Adam Lasheen Aly finished third, while Ghana’s Ransford Antwi placed fourth.
Girls Category
Egypt celebrated another outstanding performance in the girls’ category, with Zeina Ayma Mohammed securing first place.
Uganda’s Patience Anyango and Tunisia’s Ritej Cherif shared second position, while Nigeria’s Elizabeth Emenike finished fourth.
Coaching development also took centre stage, with three promising coaches receiving ITTF coaching scholarships in recognition of their commitment and performance throughout the camp.
At the conclusion of the programme, Event Coordinator David Senyo told ITTF-Africa that the success of the event was made possible through the collective efforts of all stakeholders.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the ITTF for this invaluable initiative, as well as the President of the Ghana Table Tennis Association, Mr Mawuko Afadzinu, for facilitating the programme,” Senyo said.
“Together with the African Table Tennis Federation, we have delivered a successful programme that has positively impacted the players, coaches and everyone involved. We look forward to building on this success in future editions.”
