Egypt maintained its dominance at the ITTF Africa Championships in Tangier, Morocco, as Youssef Abdelaziz dethroned compatriot Omar Assar in the men’s singles final, while Hana Goda secured a fourth consecutive women’s singles title on Sunday, October 25.

Abdelaziz produced a commanding performance to defeat three-time champion Assar 4-1, ending his compatriot’s four-year unbeaten run at the continental championships and claiming his maiden African men’s singles crown.

The victory was particularly significant for Abdelaziz, who had reached his first African Championships final in 2025 but lost to Assar. Returning with renewed determination, he reversed that outcome in Tangier to capture the biggest singles title of his career.

Assar’s defeat brought his reign as Africa’s leading men’s singles player to an end, while establishing Abdelaziz as the new continental champion.

In the women’s singles, Goda continued her remarkable run by defeating fellow Egyptian Dina Meshref 4-1 to retain the title and extend her winning streak to four consecutive championships.

The young Egyptian demonstrated composure and attacking precision against the experienced Meshref, maintaining control of the final to reinforce her position at the summit of African women’s table tennis.

Goda had secured her place in the final with a 4-1 victory over Hend Fathy in the semi-finals, while Meshref overcame Mariam Alhodaby by the same scoreline after a fiercely contested encounter featuring lengthy rallies and high-quality exchanges.

However, Meshref could not reproduce that form against Goda, who once again prevailed in their continental showdown.

Egypt sweeps doubles titles

Egypt’s supremacy extended beyond the singles events, with the North African nation winning all three doubles and mixed doubles titles to add to its success in the team competitions.

Defending champions Abdelaziz and Alhodaby retained their mixed doubles crown after edging compatriots Mostapha Badr and Farida Badawy 3-2 in a closely fought final.

Goda and Meshref combined to claim the women’s doubles title, defeating Algeria’s Tania and Jade Morice 3-0 to secure another gold medal for Egypt.

In the men’s doubles, El-Beiali and Abdelaziz completed the clean sweep with a convincing 3-0 victory over Congo Brazzaville’s Saheed Idowu and Algeria’s Sami Kherouf.

The triumph took Egypt’s gold medal tally at the championships to four from the doubles and mixed doubles events alone, complementing its victories in the men’s and women’s team competitions.

Hosted by the Royal Moroccan Table Tennis Federation at the Olympic Arena in Tangier, the week-long championships once again highlighted Egypt’s strength in African table tennis, even as Abdelaziz’s breakthrough signalled a changing of the guard in the men’s singles.

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