By John Barnes Ssentamu.
Uganda’s table tennis women’s national team of Judith Mirembe, Jemimah Nakawala, and Parvin Judith Nangonzi has continued its impressive run at the ITTF Africa Seniors Championship, edging hosts Tunisia to book a place in the team event semifinals.
The Ugandan girls, who arrived in Tunisia last week with the primary goal of qualifying for the London 2026 World Team Table Tennis Championship, which marks 100 years of the sport, have now taken a step further by reaching the semifinals securing at least a bronze medal.
Their qualification for London 2026 came in stellar fashion after they topped their group with three wins over DR Congo, South Africa, and Cameroon. This earned them a semifinal slot against a highly rated Tunisia on home soil.
The intense tie, played at the Salle Multidisciplinaire Rades, demanded resilience from the Ugandan trio.
Parvin Judith Nangonzi lost the opening game 3-0 to Saidi Ela, but Jemimah Nakawala leveled the contest with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Garci Fadwa.
“I am so happy now that we are in the semifinals. This is a game changer. We are hungry for more and hope to do better,” Jemimah said after the match.
Tunisia then restored their lead with Suissi Balkis defeating Judith Mirembe 3-0, putting the hosts just one game from victory.
However, Nakawala stepped up with arguably her performance of the tournament, beating Saidi Ela 3-0 to force a decider. Nangonzi then used her experience to overcome Garci Fadwa 3-1, staging a comeback after losing the first set.
“I am feeling good. It has been a good fight from us. I think it’s like a dream come true,” said Parvin Nangonzi.
A soft-spoken Judith Mirembe added simply, “I am happy with our achievement.”
Head coach Paul Mutambuze expressed his delight.
“They led 2-1, but we kept up the fight, believing in our players, and I can assure you, they didn’t disappoint,” he said.
In today’s semifinal, Uganda will face Nigeria at midday (EAT), after Nigeria advanced through a walkover against Ghana.
The other women’s semifinal features a Maghreb derby between Egypt and Algeria, also at midday (EAT).
On the men’s side, Egypt faces Nigeria, while Morocco takes on Algeria at 2:00 PM (EAT).
The women’s final is scheduled for 5:30 PM (EAT), followed by the men’s gold medal match at 8:00 PM (EAT).
