The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation has submitted a petition to the International Table Tennis Federation after its players were denied entry visas to compete at the ongoing 2025 World Youth Championships in Romania.
Nigeria qualified for the 2025 ITTF World Youth Championships in Romania after winning the boys’ U-19 team event at the 2025 African Youth Championships in Lagos in July.
Matthew Kuti, Abdulbasit Abdulfatai, Muiz Adegoke and Matthew Fabunmi make up the U-19 team, while the U-15 team includes Tobi Adebakin, Usman Ayoola and Atuwon Quadri.
Their visa denial sparked concern within Nigeria’s table tennis community, as the setback threatens the country’s participation in one of the sport’s most prestigious youth tournaments.
In a letter signed by NTTF President Adesoji Tayo, the federation condemned the decision, describing it as a violation of the principles of international sportsmanship, inclusivity, and fair participation that ITTF and its partners uphold.
“As an official representative of Nigeria and Africa in this prestigious global event, I firmly believe that the reasons provided for the visa refusal are unjust, discriminatory, and contrary to the spirit of unity which international sports is designed to foster,” Tayo stated.
Despite weeks of intensive training by players and coaches, the visa denial has dampened the spirit of the contingent and resulted in financial losses for the federation. Nigeria was set to represent Africa in the boys’ U-19 and U-15 team events, having qualified as continental champions at the African Youth Championships in Lagos.
The NTTF further noted, “Since our inability to participate is not a fault of NTTF, we hereby formally notify the ITTF and the host federation, Romania Table Tennis Federation, that NTTF will not be liable for any penalties or financial obligations arising from accommodation or hospitality reservations made in relation to this event.”
Tayo urged ITTF to urgently intervene to prevent similar occurrences in the future, stressing that the visa refusal has disrupted Nigeria’s ambition of grooming another generation of world-class players.
The ITTF World Youth Championships 2025 features competition in both U-19 and U-15 age categories, with events in boys’ and girls’ singles, boys’, girls’, and mixed doubles, and boys’ and girls’ team competitions.
It runs from November 23 to 30.
Coach Abdulrahman made a direct appeal to Nigerians as the long qualification journey begins. “Keep supporting the team,” he said.
Nigeria’s challenge starts in Tunis, but the weight of expectation stretches far beyond this first window. The country looks to D’Tigers to ensure that another World Cup does not slip from its grasp.
