Isau Ogunkunle crowned his brilliant stint in the men’s Singles Class 4 event with a Bronze medal, bettering his quarterfinal performance in Tokyo three years ago to become the first Nigerian player to win an individual medal in Para Table Tennis since Tajudeen Agunbiade and Femi Alabi won GOLD and Bronze respectively at the Sydney 2000 Games.
Nigeria has a proud history in Paralympic Table Tennis, having won two GOLD and three Bronze medals since making their debut at the Atlanta 1996 Games, with the last medal being a Bronze in the men’s Team Classes 9-10 in Tokyo.
Ogunkunle had an array of wins from the round of 16 to the quarterfinals, stunning higher ranked counterparts. In his semifinal game against World No 2, Young-Gun Kim of South Korea, Ogunkunle showcased his excellence and mastery in the event, winning the first set in 11-9.
Well, it didn’t take long for the Korean to master the Nigerian’s tricks as he won the next two sets in 5-11, 4-11. Ogunkunle tried making a comeback in the fourth set by taking it to a tie break but Kim prevailed in 11-13.
Despite the loss, Ogunkunle earned a Bronze medal because according to the rules of Para Table Tennis, the two losing semifinalists are guaranteed the Bronze, without needing to play a game decider for the Bronze medal.
