Rwanda national Table Tennis men’s and women’s teams on Monday morning left Kigali International Airport for Radès, Tunisia, ahead of the 2023 ITTF-Africa Senior Championship slated for September 11-17.
It is the second major continental tournament that the teams are going to attend this year after the African Cup held in Nairobi, Kenya.
Stakes are high this time round as the winning teams will automatically qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The top four countries in the team event will also secure spots at the 2024 World Team Championships taking place in Busan, South Korea.
While heavyweights Egypt and Nigeria are perennial bookies’ favourites, Rwanda still faces daunting competition from the likes of hosts Tunisia, Algeria, Madagascar among others.
Traveling teams
Men: Didier Hahirwabasenga, François Regis Ishimwe, Eric Niyonizigiye and Masengesho Patrick.
Women: Helvine Tumukunde, Regine Twizerane and Thamalie Tuyikunde.
Head coach: Yves Ndizeye.
