The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) on Tuesday vowed to boost the capacity of its female players by sharpening their competitive edge in upcoming international competitions.

NTTF’s Coach Bello Nasiru made the assertion in an interview in Lagos against the backdrop of the exclusion of female players from Nigeria’s contingent to the Commonwealth Games.

“We are going to feature only the male team in the forthcoming Games in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, because that is where our strength is and the guys have high chances of getting us medals.

“Although the female were part of the national camp, but over time, and going through previous records of the Games, we realised that their medal chances are uncertain.

“We have therefore proposed a comprehensive programmes designed specifically for females, aimed at improving their technical competence ahead of subsequent Games and tournaments, so that we can have a formidable team,’’ he said.

Nasiru added that previous records on the performances of Team Nigeria in Commonwealth Games, confirmed that the males performed better than the female, hence the resolution to exclude the females.

“When we trace the history of the Commonwealth Games for the females, they have no record of medals, unlike the males that came back with a bronze medal in 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth.

“So, this time around, we have four male players in the Team, some of them are foreign-based, and I am confident that they will be good ambassadors,’’ he said.

He added that two Para-players will also feature in the Para table Tennis Division (PTTD) event at the Games that would hold from April 4 to April 24.

The Commonwealth Games, tagged “2018 Gold Coast’’ which holds in Queensland, Australia, would feature 275 events in 18 sports with 70 Commonwealth member countries participating in the quadrennial sport fiesta. (NAN)