The 2026 ITTF Africa Youth Cup is set to start at the Borteyman Sports Complex in Accra, Ghana, from Tuesday, July 28 to Wednesday, July 29.
Following the successful staging of the Africa Youth Championships, the venue will once again come alive as the continent’s finest young table tennis talents battle for honours.
The two-day tournament, has been christened the Babatunde Raji Fashola (BRF) Cup in honour of the former Lagos State Governor for championing the renaissance of table tennis in Africa with the launch of the Lagos Table Tennis Classics in 2013.
The tournament aims to foster healthy rivalry among players while unearthing new talents that can elevate Africa’s standing on the global stage.
Among the headline contenders is Tunisia’s Wassim Essid, the reigning boys’ U-19 singles champion, who will look to defend his crown.
Algeria’s Tania Morice and Bilel Zouitene, winners of the U-15 category last year, have stepped up to the U-19 division, while fresh challengers will vie for glory in the U-15 events.
Organisers have named Essid and Egypt’s Yara Elbadawy as top seeds in the U-19 division, with Uganda’s Joseph Sebatindira and Tunisia’s Ela Saidi leading the U-15 rankings.
The boys’ U-19 singles promises to be a fierce contest, particularly with Nigeria’s Matthew Kuti in scintillating form after guiding his country to victory over Egypt in the team event at the just concluded Africa Youth Championships.
In the girls’ U-19 category, Algeria’s siblings Jade and Tania Morice are expected to mount a strong challenge against the Egyptian favourites.
Meanwhile, Egyptian prodigy Asser Sameh, unbeaten in singles competition of the Africa Championships, will be the player to watch in the boys’ U-15 event.
In the girls’ U-15 division, Tunisia’s Ela Saidi, seeded first, will need to summon her very best to claim the crown in Accra.
