Top Stars Compete for $100,000 as 2026 WTT Contender Begins Today

Kunle Adewale

Today marks the start of the race for a $100,000 prize and 400 ITTF World Ranking points at the 2026 WTT Contender, which opens in the Molade Okoya‑Thomas Sports Hall of the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, Lagos.

During a press conference announcing the event, Chairman of the Local Organising Committee for the 2026 WTT Contender Lagos, Adesoji Tayo, pledged an unforgettable experience for both players and fans as the tournament runs from today until May 24.

“Nigeria is prepared to deliver an unforgettable experience filled with energy, culture, and top‑tier table tennis. As one of the most popular tournaments on the WTT calendar, the Contender Lagos continues to raise the bar in organisation and hospitality, offering athletes and fans a truly unique atmosphere,” Tayo said.

Tournament Director Dr. Kweku Tandoh explained that the event reflects 13 years of growth in Nigerian table tennis.

“This event started in 2013 as the Lagos International Table Tennis Classic under the sponsorship of the Lagos State government. It gained the attention of the International Table Tennis Federation, which approved it and it became the ITTF Nigeria. For 13 years, we have not missed one edition, and you can imagine the impact that it has had on the development of table tennis in Nigeria. What we have to do is that,” Tandoh noted.

Lekan Fatodu of the Lagos State Sports Commission, represented by Dr. Yomi Olwasanmi, said Lagos is honoured to host such a large gathering of notable table tennis players and officials from around the world.

“We are glad that we have had this honour over a couple of years now. We note with great pleasure that this tournament has enabled many of you to visit our dear country, Nigeria, over and over again. Through this and other tournaments, Nigeria has been richly blessed by the emergence of players who are now making waves at the world scene. Many of them are currently representing Nigeria at different international table tennis competitions and continue to bring the attention of the world to Nigeria to see how our country is highly blessed in many areas of human endeavours, particularly in different sports. We thank the organisers of the tournament for their continuous trust in us to host such a high‑level tournament. We promise that Lagos State as a Centre of Excellence and Nigeria’s economic, financial, and cultural powerhouse in Africa will always live up to expectations,” Fatodu expressed.

The elite field will feature top table tennis nations such as Japan, South Korea, Germany, and France, while players from Denmark, the USA, India, Portugal, Romania, Cameroon, Benin Republic, Belgium, Canada, Togo, the Netherlands, Ghana, Wales, Egypt, Italy, Chile, Slovenia, and hosts Nigeria are also expected to compete fiercely.