By Gabriel Ameh
China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) athletes dominated the 5th Opay Cup China-Nigeria Table Tennis Tournament in Abuja, with Segun Yunusa Adesanya emerging as the standout performer after winning gold in both the men’s singles and doubles categories.
The tournament, organised by the China General Chamber of Commerce in Nigeria (CGCCN), concluded on Sunday at the Huawei Sports Complex in Abuja, bringing together athletes from Chinese companies operating in Nigeria and the China Cultural Centre in Nigeria.
Participants competed in the men’s and women’s singles, group singles and men’s doubles categories as part of an event designed to promote sporting and people-to-people exchanges between Nigeria and China.
In the men’s singles, CCECC’s Adesanya defeated teammate Kelvin Ahametula to claim first place, while Ahametula settled for the silver medal.
Yang Yuan of China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) emerged winner of the women’s singles, with Nie Xiaohua of China Geo-Engineering Corporation (CGC) finishing second.
CHEC also secured the group singles title, while CCECC finished second and CGC placed third.
In the men’s doubles, Adesanya and Lu Jinwei of CCECC emerged champions. Wang Xiang and Guo Hanqin of the China Cultural Centre in Nigeria finished second, while CHEC’s Lin Maomin and Yang Hang claimed third place.
The winners received trophies, medals and cash prizes in recognition of their performances.
Sports as a Bridge Between Nigeria and China
Speaking at the award ceremony, Yang Jianxing, Cultural Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria and Director of the China Cultural Centre, described the tournament as an avenue for strengthening friendship and mutual understanding between Nigerians and Chinese nationals.
Yang congratulated the winners, particularly the Nigerian players who secured the top two positions in the men’s singles, as well as the Chinese participants who competed across the various categories.
He noted that table tennis occupies an important place in China’s sporting culture and said the tournament demonstrated the power of sports to connect people across national boundaries.
“Sports has the charm to transcend the border of nations,” Yang said.
He expressed hope that the Chinese Embassy, China Cultural Centre and Chinese companies operating in Nigeria would continue to organise more cultural, tourism and sporting exchange programmes.
According to him, such initiatives would create more opportunities for Nigerians and Chinese nationals to interact, develop friendships and strengthen people-to-people relations.
Adesanya: We Corrected Our Mistakes
For Adesanya, the victory marked the culmination of three years of determination, learning and improvement.
The CCECC player recalled that his team failed to win a medal when they first participated in the tournament three years ago. Last year, they improved to finish third before returning this year with the aim of going all the way.
“Last year we came here for the same tournament. We took third last year. We went back home, went back to our drawing board, looked at our mistakes and corrected them immediately,” he said.
The strategy paid off as Adesanya secured the men’s singles title before partnering Lu Jinwei to win the men’s doubles.
He described the double victory as a major milestone for himself and CCECC, expressing satisfaction with the progress made by the team.
Adesanya also commended the China General Chamber of Commerce in Nigeria for creating a platform where Nigerian athletes could compete alongside Chinese nationals and representatives of Chinese companies operating in the country.
“I give them kudos for what they have been doing so far in Nigeria,” he said.
He, however, urged the organisers to broaden participation in future editions by attracting more Nigerian players and Chinese fans to the tournament.
Looking ahead to the 6th edition, Adesanya said he would be aiming for an even stronger performance as he seeks to maintain his dominance in the competition.
