Veterans Table Tennis: Benin topple Ghana in Accra
BENIN romped to a resounding success over hosts and defending champions, Ghana, as well as Togo, sweeping both individual and team gongs when the curtain fell on the 2024 Veterans Table Tennis four-nation tournament last Saturday in Accra.
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Benin took top honours in both 50-59 and 60+ years categories, finished atop the team competition and also had their player named the best of the one-day tournament reserved for players 40 years old and above.
A friendly tournament that began in Togo in 2018 featuring the neighbouring Ghana and Benin, had expanded to include Nigeria for a scheduled four-nation competition this year in Accra, but a last-minute bereavement knocked the Nigerians out.
In order to ensure the competition still went ahead via the scheduled format, the Ghana Veterans Table Tennis Association (VTTAG) quickly came out with a solution to create two teams, Ghana 1 and Ghana 2, to battle the opponents from Togo and Benin.
Benin took full advantage of the Ghana split with top two finishes in two divisions as player of the tournament, Sunday Kenouezan overcame compatriot, Martin Ganye 12-10, 7-11, 11-9, 11-5 in the 50-59 years final while Wakilou Dine took gold in the 60 plus age event after defeating compatriot, Tiburce Adjovi, in straight sets, 11-0, 11-9, 11-6 in the decider.
There was respite for the hosts though, following a clean medal sweep in the 40-49 years category, which was topped by David Ashong, who routed Edem Hayford Esiam 11-9, 13-11, 11-4 in the final, with Reuben Okine also upstaging Stephen Lord Kinful to take the bronze medal.
Benin combined to also emerge victorious in the 50-59 team tournament after winning all three matches against Ghana 1, Ghana 2 and Togo, who finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th in that order.
Individual awards went of course to Benin's Sunday Kenouezan as player of the competition whilst Ghana's David Ashong took home the prize for going unbeaten in the 40-49 division.
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VTTAG President, Christopher King, hailed another successful tournament and revealed that processes were far advanced for two more West African countries to join the competition and expand to a six-nation event after handing the baton to Togo VTT President, Gbadoe Kouessan Djifa, whose country will play hosts next year.
"It was a fantastic tournament, little by little we are growing. It started with Togo, Ghana and Benin. Nigeria have signed up to it and would have been here if not for a bereavement, Sierra Leone and Côte d'Ivoire have also signed up.
So you can see that we are taking incremental steps to bring about an aggregated interest and commitment to participation in this wonderful sport," Mr King said.
"There are a lot of talents in this country and table tennis can help some develop. This is the best brain sport and it has no age limit, it's aerobic, in fact, the best sport ever. I am welcoming all Ghanaians to come into the sport of table tennis, a healthy mind is found in a healthy body".