Ugandan swimmers and table tennis star shine at Setif Competition

Ugandan swimmer Rahmah Nakasule Kalungi has qualified for the finals after securing sixth place in the semi-finals held in Setif. Kalungi clocked a time of 30.41 seconds, in a race dominated by Egypt’s Elshazly Malak, who finished first at 29.80 seconds.

Kalungi is set to compete again today in the 50m backstroke preliminaries.

Meanwhile, Paula Nabukenya, Uganda’s assistant team captain, also participated in the same race and finished ninth.

In another swimming event, Abigail Mwagale booked her spot in the finals of the 100m breaststroke after placing seventh. Mwagale posted a time of 1:30.00, while Egyptian swimmer Solimani took the top spot.

 In table tennis, Ugandan rising star Imran Luwooza narrowly missed out on a podium finish after a tightly contested quarter-final loss to Ghana’s seasoned player Michael Mensah.

Luwooza won the first game 12–10, but Mensah responded with an 11–9 win to level the match. Luwooza fought back gallantly, stretching the lead to 3–1 with scores of 11–9 and 12–10. However, Mensah bounced back, claiming three consecutive sets 11–9, 12–10, and 11–9, sealing the victory 4–3.

Despite the loss, the match marked a valuable learning experience for Luwooza, an S5 student at Seroma Christian High School, competing in his first-ever international tournament.

“I played under a lot of pressure because I never expected him to keep coming back every time I was in the lead,” said Luwooza. “I’ve learned a lot from this game, and next time I’ll come back stronger.”

Luwooza was Uganda’s sole representative in table tennis at the championship.