Claims Glory as Saidi, Elbasoumy Crowned Champions at ITTF Africa Youth Cup

Nigeria’s Nathaniel Ezekiel confirmed his place as one of the best quarter-mile hurdlers here in Glasgow last night as he stormed to the men’s 400m hurdles gold of the 2026 Commonwealth Games. Nathaniel hit the finish line in 48.47secs to win the gold while England’s Jake Minsull who clocked 48.99 settled for the silver medal. Jamaica’s Assinine Wilson took the consolatory bronze medal with 49.22. The win by Ezekiel was a welcome relief for Team Nigeria officials who were worried that their projection of winning 16 gold medals here in Glasgow was slipping away. Nigeria won 12 gold medals at the last Games in Birmingham. In the men’s 200m final Udodi Onwuzurike won another silver medal for Nigeria with a season best time of 20.09 in the race won by South African Sinesipho Dambile with 19.96secs. Jamaica’s Christopher Taylor (20.11) won the bronze. Earlier on Wednesday and Thursday, three of the gold medal projections slipped as favourite sprinter for the men’s 100m gold, Kanyinsola Ajayi could only manage to pick the bronze medal. World record holder in the women’s 100m hurdles, Tobi Amusan also failed to win the gold as poor start occasioned by a painful toe made her settle for the silver while another projection of a gold medal in the para-weightlifting event, Roland Ezuruike, won silver. Today in Glasgow, Team Nigeria will hope to increase the medals haul here when the country’s mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Edidiong Udo, Esther Joseph, Samuel Ogazi and Patience Okon-George run in the final of the event. In the heat yesterday, the Nigerian quartet stormed to victory with 3 mins: 14.58secs, to set the event’s first-ever Commonwealth Games record. Team Nigeria officials are banking on this quartet to deliver on their promise. In the field events, Ruth Usoro, who booked her place in the women’s Long Jump final today with a leap of 6.77m on her first attempt during qualifying round has promised to emulate Ese Brume who won the precious gold medal in Birmingham four years ago. However, former African track queen, Mary Onyali, told THISDAY last night that the projection was not out of place as the athletes brought her by Team Nigeria had the capacity to win the country’s best outing. “The projection was not wrong. It was based on the forms of the athletes that were listed for the gold medals.” While speaking from experience as an Olympic bronze medalist, the former African champion stressed that other vagaries happen on competition day to deny an athlete the expected medal. “We all saw how Kanyinsola (Ajayi) swept through the American NCAA as well as the World Athletics Diamond League. He was the favourite to win the gold here in Glasgow but couldn’t. Same with Tobi Amusan in the 100m hurdles who as world record holder also settled for a bronze. These things happen in track and field,” concludes Onyali. The 2026 ITTF Africa Youth Cup unfolded as a festival of grit, redemption, and rising stars. At the heart of it all was Nigeria’s Matthew Kuti, who finally broke through to claim his first continental crown in the boys’ U-19 singles. For years, Kuti had chased glory without success, but on July 29 at the Borteyman Sports Complex, he delivered a performance that silenced doubts. Facing compatriot Sultan Agunbiade in the final, Kuti’s 4–1 victory was more than a win—it was a statement. His journey to the title was marked by vengeance: earlier in the semifinals, he avenged his painful quarterfinal exit at the Africa Youth Championships by overpowering Egypt’s Abdelmalk Elsayed 4–2. Agunbiade’s own path was equally dramatic. Drawn against Tunisia’s top seed Wassim Essid, the defending champion, Agunbiade stunned the crowd with a blistering 3–0 start. Though Essid clawed back a game, the Nigerian sealed the tie 4–1, proving that the balance of power in African youth table tennis is shifting. In the girls’ U-19 singles, Egypt’s Habiba Elbasoumy emerged as the new queen of the continent, defeating Algeria’s Jade Morice 4–1. The semifinal had already promised a fresh champion after top seed Yara Elbadawy bowed out in the quarters, leaving Elbasoumy and Morice to battle for supremacy. The U-15 girls’ singles brought another tale of redemption. Tunisia’s Ela Saidi, who had narrowly lost 3–2 to Uganda’s Patience Anyango at the Youth Championships, returned with fire in her eyes. This time, she left no room for doubt, sweeping Anyango aside 3–0 in a dominant display that crowned her the new African U-15 champion. Egypt’s Asser Sameh, nicknamed “Mr Perfect,” lived up to his moniker in the boys’ U-15 event. With an unbeaten run across singles, doubles, and team competitions, Sameh capped his flawless campaign by dismantling Uganda’s Joseph Sebatindira in the final. His consistency and composure have made him the standout star of Accra, the only player to remain undefeated across all events.