Rwanda will for the first time host the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) regional competition in November. Rwanda Table Tennis Federation (RTTF) President Mr. John Bosco Burungi has revealed, the games are expected to attract around14 regional countries. “This will be our first biggest regional ITTF competition to be hosted in this country,” Burungi noted. Some of the countries expected to partake in the games include: Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Madagascar, Mauritius, (Host) Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya. RTTF believes hosting such bigger competitions will yet again boost sport in terms of awareness and will attract the public to join the sport in Rwanda especially among youth at grassroots. Last weekend, the first ever ‘Ambassadors Table Tennis Cup’ was organized by RTTF on an individual level and was sponsored by Embassy of the republic of China. “We also plan to organize an under-15 summer camp in July and August, parents should register their children who are interested in learning and playing the game,” RTTF President added. Plans are also underway to have U-15, U-18 and U-10 competitions for two-months this year, where the best players can be selected to join the national team. “We have a long term strategic plan, which includes developing the sport in schools, training empires, coaches, on top of increasing the number of clubs countrywide,” he said editorial@newtimes.co.rw
