Joe Apu

African queen of table tennis, Funke Oshonaike is back to training for the first time since the coronavirus lockdown and she is excited about it.

Oshonaiki, who shed tears of joy and sadness when she won her 2020 African Singles match in Tunis, back in February, and earned a spot to become the first African woman to secure a seventh appearance in an Olympic Games; in a facebook post, expressed her excitement to return to training.

“Finally back at the table!!! Table tennis is back in Hamburg. Start of training with the Bundesliga ladies and #NDRTV. The N3 broadcast a report yesterday, 6;5 at 19;30 pm on the start of training at #Hamburg!!!,” she wrote on her wall.

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Though, the Olympics Games have been moved to 2021, Oshonaike said she remains focused considering the challenges she went through to get a qualification ticket.

“I couldn’t play table tennis for a long time after [the] African Games in Morocco. I had another surgery this year in January, I cried bitterly,” the 44-year-old told Olympic Channel, shaking her head at the memory.

“My name was not on the Africa Top 16 list. I was very sad because I was supposed to be there for the competition.”

I fought but lost. The same people that planned the removal of my name tried to remove me from the Olympic qualification, but God is greater.”