entertainment
Table Tennis Icon Aruna Quadri Closes 2025 As Africa’s Number One.
According to Nivo News, Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri has ended the 2025 table tennis season as Africa’s highest-ranked player, following the release of the final annual world rankings by the International Table Tennis Federation.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
Quadri concluded the year ranked 28th globally with a total of 1,065 points, making him the only African male player to surpass the 1,000-point threshold in the latest rankings, officially listed as the 2026 Week One standings. Egypt’s Omar Assar emerged as the next best African, occupying the 32nd position worldwide with 965 points.
Throughout the year, the 37-year-old Nigerian amassed his ranking points across a demanding international schedule. One of his standout performances came at the ITTF African Cup in Tunis, where his run to the final earned him 350 crucial points.
He also recorded strong showings at major global events, including a semi-final appearance at the WTT Star Contender in Doha and a last-16 finish at the World Table Tennis Championships finals, also held in Doha. Further points were secured from high-profile tournaments such as the Singapore Smash, United States Smash, and several WTT Champions events in cities including Macao, Chongqing, Incheon, Yokohama, and Frankfurt, alongside multiple WTT Contender and Star Contender competitions.
Quadri’s consistency across these events ensured he maintained his position at the top of African table tennis throughout the year, reaffirming his status as the continent’s flag bearer in a sport largely dominated by Asian and European players. On the global scene, China continues to lead the men’s rankings, with Wang Chuqin and Lin Shidong occupying the top two positions, while Brazil’s Hugo Calderano remains the highest-ranked non-Asian player.
The latest milestone further enhances Quadri’s illustrious career. A three-time Olympian, he represented Nigeria at the 2012, 2016, and 2020 Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. In 2022, he became the first African player to break into the world’s top ten rankings. His accolades also include being named ITTF Star Player of the Year in 2014, winning a Commonwealth Games bronze medal the same year, and earning recognition as Africa’s most successful Olympic table tennis player of all time.
entertainment
‘I Was Surprised’ – Krizbeatz Opens Up On What Tiwa Savage Was Doing At Home.
Nigerian music producer Krizbeatz has recounted an experience from a visit to the residence of popular Afrobeats singer Tiwa Savage.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
The producer shared the story while speaking about his Christian faith during an interview on the Zikoko podcast.
Krizbeatz described himself as someone who grew up in the church and has continued to maintain a connection with Christianity.
Recalling his encounter with Tiwa Savage during a music production session, he said he visited the singer’s home to work on her song titled Energy.
However, he was surprised by what he found the award-winning singer doing when he arrived at her residence.
According to him, Tiwa Savage was reading the Bible at the time.
He said, “I am the producer of Tiwa Savage’s song ‘Energy.’ The day I visited her house to produce the song, I saw her reading the Bible.”
Meanwhile, Tiwa Savage recently responded to a social media user who questioned her decision to describe herself as an African Baddie.
The controversy started after the man criticised the singer for using the description despite being in her 40s.
He wrote, “African baddie at 40… this one no serious.”
Reacting, the singer disclosed that she is 46 years old and expressed confidence in her appearance, financial status and music career.
She also dismissed the criticism while promoting her forthcoming song, African Baddie.
Tiwa wrote, “46, fine, paid, unbothered and dropping my super hottttt record ‘African Baddie’ on Friday. What exactly is the problem, boy?😂 #AfricanBaddie.”
entertainment
We Will Work Towards Our Wedding” – Nkechi Blessing Reconciles With Ex-Husband, Falegan.
Nollywood actress Nkechi Blessing has rekindled her relationship with her former partner, Opeyemi Falegan, four years after their highly publicised breakup.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
The actress announced their reconciliation during a TikTok live session on Saturday night, revealing that they had been communicating since February 2026.
However, Nkechi said she had made a public apology a condition for rebuilding their relationship, insisting that Falegan must take responsibility for some of the negative remarks he made about her during their past disagreement.
According to her, his previous comments have continued to resurface online, with some social media users recently using them to ridicule and attack her.
She said: “I told you in February that if we must do this, you have to apologize to me because what you said years ago, some irrelevant nitwits still used it to insult me yesterday. That is to tell you that the internet never forgets. Anything dey outside? Lie, is anything dey outside? I have gone back to square one. You people should watch me and my baby; we will work towards our wedding, my love.”
Falegan subsequently acknowledged his past actions and tendered an apology to the actress.
He said: “From the bottom of my heart to the depth of my soul, I’m sorry, Nkechi. That’s in the past.”
entertainment
‘I Was Shocked’ – Funke Akindele Speaks On Influencer Who Ignored Her Promo Offer.
Nollywood actress and filmmaker, Funke Akindele, has revealed how a social media influencer ignored and turned down her offer to pay for promotional content for her 2024 movie, Everybody Loves Jenifa.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
Akindele made the revelation during a panel discussion at the Creative Africa Nexus Weekend (CANEX WKND).
The actress explained that she was initially hesitant to contact the unnamed influencer but eventually decided to reach out to explore a possible promotional partnership for the movie.
According to her, she waited for several days before receiving a response that the influencer’s management was not interested in the proposed collaboration.
Akindele said she even offered to pay for the promotional content, but the influencer allegedly ignored her message.
Despite the experience, the filmmaker maintained that the rejection did not discourage her from seeking promotional partnerships, adding that she had learnt not to allow such situations to affect her emotionally.
She also disclosed that she later came across claims that she had blocked someone over the disagreement but did not reveal the identity of the influencer.
Recounting the experience, she said:
“There was this influencer I reached out to, I sent a message to them that I would like to create content. One, two, three… for almost a week. And I did not want to send this message, this was during ‘Everybody Loves Jenifa’ but I tried and I was like let me send it, so I sent it.
“The person was like ‘I am sorry, my management does not want me to do this’. And I was like ‘I would pay’ but the person ignored me. Then months after, I read that I blocked somebody because of this.
“I didn’t let it affect me. I embraced it. I didn’t go and reply. I just said, God, take control. I got back to it.”
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