Mariam Aruna, daughter of Nigeria’s table tennis icon Quadri Aruna, is set to make her international debut for the country at the 2025 ITTF Africa Youth Championships, taking place from Sunday, July 27 to Sunday, August 3 at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall, Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.
The 12-year-old rising star is part of Nigeria’s U-15 girls’ team, which also features Fatimoh Ahmed, Chinenye Okafor, and Aziza Sezuo. They will compete against top young talents from across the continent, including teams from Egypt, Tunisia, Uganda, and South Africa.
Mariam, who is coached by her mother and former national player Ganiyat Aruna, is already showing signs of promise on the international stage. She recently made her WTT Contender debut in Lagos on Wednesday, where she impressed with a commanding win over Benin’s Amady Stacy in Group 15.
Despite the win, an earlier loss to fellow Nigerian Abosede Odusanya meant she narrowly missed out on qualifying for the main draw.
Her attention now turns to the week-long youth championship, where she will be hoping to make a strong impact in front of the home crowd.
Earlier this year, Mariam and her siblings made headlines at the João Monteiro Table Tennis Tournament in Portugal.
She clinched second place in the U-15 category, while her brother Aruna Junior also finished second in the U-11 division. Their younger sister Amirah Aruna secured third place in the U-11 category—her first-ever tournament trophy.
With talent clearly running in the family, Mariam’s debut marks another exciting chapter in Nigeria’s rich table tennis story.