Jamiu Ayanwale of Rivers and Sukurat Aiyelabegan were flawless in their triumph at the 4^th Michael & Felicia Alabi Memorial National Table Tennis Championships which ended in Ota Ayegbaju in Osun State at the weekend.

The five-day tournament has been upgraded to a ranking event by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) and was organised by the Osun State Table Tennis Association (OSTTA) with support from Michael & Felicia Alabi Memorial Foundation and Canada-based Jodal Health Care.

Earlier in the day, Delta’s Ese Onakpoberuo had beaten Favour Ojo of Ondo 3-2 (11-7, 5-11, 11-3, 7-11, 11-4) to emerge winner in the girls’ U-15 while Kwara’s Hussein Faruq of Kwara defeated Joseph Marvelous of Delta 3-1 (8-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-6) to win the boys’ event.

Players from 28 states featured in this year’s event being the record entries from the previous editions and the tournament lived up to expectation with some tops seeds exiting early in the championships as number three seed Emmanuel Augustine of Lagos was shown the door by unseeded Mustapha Mustaph of Borno in the round of 16, while Joshua Oladiran of Ondo, who was 2023 runner’s up was bundled out by unseeded Wasiu Azeez of Oyo in the semifinal of the men’s singles.

In his quest to lift the men’s singles title, Ayanwale was unmatched from the knockout stage to the final where he also dominated Oyo’s Azeez with a commanding 4-1 (11-4, 11-6, 11-4, 9-11, 11-6) to win the tournament for the first time.

Like Ayanwale, Aiyelabegan continued her dominance over Lagos State champion Bose Odusanya with an overwhelming 4-0 (11-8, 11-8, 11-5, 11-8) to be crowned the women’s singles champion.

OSTTA Chairman and sponsor of the tournament Ayodeji Alabi lauded the players for putting up a good display while pledging his commitment to continue to improve the standard of the tournament annually.

“I am very grateful for another opportunity to host this tournament again and I am happy that at last, it has become a ranking event for all Nigerian players based on the sanction by NTTF. I hope and believe we can produce the next Quadri Aruna from this tournament, and it will afford us the opportunity to sharpen the skills of the players for major international competitions,” he said.

Alabi, however, hailed Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun for his commitment for sports development, adding that since inception the tournament has been receiving the support of the state government.

A French police union has warned  of potential disruptions to the Olympics torch relay before the start of the Paris Games in July unless officers receive bonuses.

The Alliance union stated that special Olympics payments pledged to police, amounting to as much as €1,900 ($2,032), were being delayed by the French prime minister’s office and economy ministry. The union cautioned that a demonstration was scheduled for Thursday and indicated that further actions might occur, including potential disruptions to the torch relay.

Such warning highlights the dilemma for French authorities as they navigate negotiations regarding Olympics bonuses for public sector employees, who are being requested to work during the traditional summer holiday season. The largest union representing civil service staff, the CGT, has announced a strike threat among its members throughout the duration of the Olympics, starting on 26 July.

The torch relay is scheduled to commence in Marseille on Wednesday 8 May, but before then, the handover ceremony is slated to occur at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, Greece, on Friday, 26 April. The event is set to commence at 17:30 CET.

After the handover, the flame will stay overnight at the French Embassy in Athens. The next day, it will embark on the three-masted ship Belem and set sail for France.

Following this, the flame will journey across the country, making stops at overseas departments and regions (including New Caledonia and French Polynesia), before reaching Paris for the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games on 26 July.

Despite pledging an “Olympic truce” last September, the nation’s militant air traffic controllers have also declared a strike scheduled for this Thursday. Additionally, employees at the national mint, responsible for producing medals for competitors, have also gone on strike, advocating for bonuses due to the strenuous nature of their work.

“I hope that we welcome the whole world in the best possible conditions and that we don’t ruin the party,” chief Games organiser Tony Estanguet said in February, after being quizzed about the risk of stoppages in the strike-prone nation.

The upcoming Olympics in Paris, will, in fact, be the first in a century, and are scheduled to occur from 26 July to 11 August, followed by the Paralympics from 28 August to 8 September.

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Leicester City earned promotion back to the Premier League on Friday after nearest rivals Leeds United were beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers, ensuring the Championship leaders will finish in the top two in the standings.

This means that the Super Eagles duo of Kelechi Iheanacho and Wilfred Ndidi, both players of Leicester City again taste action in the English Premier League next season.

The result of Leed City and QPR left second-placed Leeds’s chances of automatic promotion from the second-tier Championship hanging by a thread. They trail Leicester by four points with one game left to play and are only a point ahead of Ipswich Town, who have two games in hand.

It was a dream first half for QPR as the London side scored two goals without reply.

First Ilias Chair scored with a deflected effort from outside the area, while a curled finish from Lucas Andersen midway through the first half made it 2-0.

Leeds tried to up the pressure in the second half but with little effect, with French forward Georginio Rutter pulling a shot wide from the middle of the penalty area.

Scottish forward Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field both scored headers from set pieces in the second half to complete the 4-0 win.

Leeds manager Daniel Farke turned to his bench to try and influence the game and it was one of those substitutes, striker Mateo Joseph, who came closest, seeing his close-range attempt turned wide by Rangers keeper Asmir Begovic

-Reuters