Sports Minister and Chairman, National Sports Commission, Tammy Danagogo Wednesday received with joy the news of Nigeria’s table tennis star, Aruna Quadri ‘s award as the International Table Tennis Federation’s Star Point of the Year winner and has congratulated him for the honour.
The Oyo State-born player made the country proud by defeating other nominees to win the prestigious award at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Star Awards which held in Dubai on Wednesday.
Dr. Danagogo said Quadri’s victory is a proof that talents abound in the country and that with proper monitoring and provision of standard facilities and support from both the public and private sectors, Nigerian athletes could match the best from any part of the world.
“I am particularly proud of his progress in the sport this past year during which he moved from a ranking of over 200 in the world to 30. He has shown consistency and resilience and today his hard work has placed him at the highest pedestal in the sport,” the minister said in a press statement from his Special Assistant on Media, Patrick Omorodion.
“As a government and the National Sports Commission, we will continue to provide the enabling environment for our athletes to be able to compete with the best in the world and excel. This is why we have been calling on the private sector and other well-meaning Nigerians to support the efforts of the government towards taking our sports to the next level,” he stressed.
He commended the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation ably led by hardworking Enitan Oshodi for its development programmes which has helped to revive the sport and position it for greater achievements as the country prepares for the 2015 All Africa Games in Congo later in the year.
