Nigeria’s table tennis star, Aruna Quadri, has expressed frustration over what he described as years of neglect by the Federal Government despite his consistent international exploits.
In a lengthy Facebook post on Sunday, Aruna traced his 15-year journey as a professional player, saying that his success had been primarily funded by private sponsors and individuals rather than government support.
Aruna recalled how he left Nigeria for Portugal 15 years ago to play in the Portuguese Super League, competing almost every weekend.
He wrote, “Internationally, I was playing a minimum of one tournament in a month with the support of Barrister Wahid Enitan Oshodi, the present president of the Africa Table Tennis Federation, and this financial support from him made me improve rapidly.”
The world number 19 lamented that he had played 99 per cent of his tournaments without a coach because the government failed to provide one.
Aruna further stated, “With zero support from Nigeria government, I played 99% of the tournaments without a coach, and I travelled most of the time alone.”
He recounted how, during the 2014 World Cup in Düsseldorf, his then sponsor, Joola, provided him with a German coach, Adomeit, while Oshodi personally paid for his flight and hotel. That support, he said, helped him reach the quarter-finals.
“Years after, the same Barrister Wahid Enitan Oshodi got me the only sponsor ever I had from Nigeria, Babajebu, for three years, and this played an important role in my 2016 Rio Olympic Games preparation where I got to the quarter-finals,” Aruna said.
According to him, while he typically featured in 12 tournaments annually, the Nigerian government only funded participation in one, usually within Africa, leaving him to self-sponsor the rest through support from his German equipment sponsor, GEWO.
Speaking on his recent participation at the 2025 World Championships in Doha, Aruna said he once again had to finance himself.
“I bought my ticket myself because Nigeria refused to buy my ticket on time, and I had to be in Doha days before my participation,” he wrote.
He explained that he started the competition with Nigerian coach, Dotun Omoniyi, but was later informed that Dotun could not continue because there was no money to reschedule his flight.
“I later paid a friend from Togo to change his flight to coach me in my round of 32. With the help of Fanny as my coach from Togo, I got to round of 16 in Doha World Championships,” he added.
The African champion urged the government to prioritise investment in emerging talents to secure Nigeria’s future in table tennis.
“It’s time, it’s very important Nigeria starts to invest in the present young players to attend tournaments regularly,” he stressed.
Aruna ended his post by appreciating fans and sponsors who had stood by him throughout his career.
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