DIAW Ibrahima

Grip
Shakehand (fftt.com, 10 Mar 2020)

Style of play
Attack (fftt.com, 10 Mar 2020)

General
NATIONALITY SWITCH
He was born in France to a Malian mother and a Senegalese father. He won team gold representing France at the 2008 European Junior Championships in Terni, Italy, but struggled to break into the French senior team. "It was very difficult to play for France, mainly because of the rule of only six players allowed per country in international competitions. I was raised by my mother [his father died when he was age 12] and at first I wanted to represent Mali, but Mali did not have a [national] federation. So I knew I should represent Senegal." He was declared eligible to play for Senegal in April 2019, and two days later competed at the 2019 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. "It was a crazy day. I was playing video games with a friend when I received an email from the International Table Tennis Federation [ITTF] that said I could play for Senegal at the world championships just two days later. It was stressful and exciting. I was in a hotel alongside the Chinese team and I found myself having breakfast with Ma Long. Fan Zhendong was also there. I couldn't believe it. When I was going for my first match I said to myself, 'Stop dreaming now, work is about to begin'. I am lucky and proud to say that I will represent Senegal at the Olympic Games." (tokyo2020.org, 02 May 2020)

LIVING IN DENMARK
He grew up in Paris, France, and later moved to Copenhagen, Denmark. He travels back to France regularly to represent his club, Roanne LNTT. "I made up my mind to live in Denmark because it gives me the chance to train with some of the best players. My girlfriend is Danish and she is still studying. It lets us spend time with each other." (ittf.com, 26 Apr 2019)

AMBASSADOR
He was appointed table tennis ambassador for the 2022 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal. "Unfortunately table tennis is not a popular sport in Senegal. But we'll try to develop it for 2022." (tokyo2020.org, 02 May 2020)