Bankole the ‘Hawk’ serves out at 52

On Sunday at about 3:00p.m, one of Nigeria’s table tennis legends, Yomi Bankole, passed on. He was aged 52. The rivalry that existed between Atanda Musa and Bankole in the 1980s was an attraction on its own and pulled a lot of people to the stadium whenever the yearly Asoju Oba and other championships held. Many who had seen both players square up against each other admitted that such rivalry is rare now. Being one of Nigeria’s finest players of all times, Bankole’s ferocious displays and never-say-die attitude earned him the nickname Hawk, and the final of the Asoju Oba Cup men’s singles title between him and Musa produced the largest turnout of spectators ever to watch the game of table tennis in Nigeria. In this story, OLALEKAN OKUSAN captures the strides of the fallen star in table tennis and reactions to the news of his passage by some of the people who knew him.

THE names Yomi Bankole and Atanda Musa are so synonymous to table tennis that the rivalry between the players drew a lot of fans to the game in the 1980s. But on Sunday, January 29, Bankole bade farewell to the game by his passage at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) after battling a heart-related ailment for two weeks.

The news of his demise was broken to The Guardian on Monday night by the Secretary of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF), Segun Oguntade, who described his death as a great loss. Bankole’s first child, Olalekan, disclosed to The Guardian that he was with his late dad on Sunday morning after passing the night with him at LASUTH.

“In the last two weeks, I have been with him at LASUTH because he had been down with a heart-related sickness. I was informed of his ailment when he came back from Port Harcourt where he was engaged as a coach. Since then, he has been down with the sickness. I was not told the nature of the ailment, the only thing I know is that whenever he ate any food, he always vomited,” he said.

“He was operated upon before the nationwide strike and was getting better. But during the strike, we had to return to the hospital when we discovered that he was emaciating and could not eat. Also, the Lagos State Government has been taking care of the bills and drugs during his stay at LASUTH.

“I slept over with him on Saturday and Sunday and decided to go home and bath. It was when I returned to the hospital that the doctor informed me that he had died and his remains had been deposited at the mortuary. For me, it is painful losing a father because we had lost our mother some years back. So, not having the two of them around is painful for me and my sister.”

Bankole’s sibling, Ope, said in the last two weeks his late brother had been bedridden, as the ailment got worse during the nationwide strike. He described his brother’s demise as a blow to the family. According to Ope, “he came back from Port Harcourt with the sickness and was taken to LASUTH, where he was admitted.

“But he succumbed to the sickness on Sunday. His death is a loss to the family because he was a caring person who assisted the family. We will surely miss him but we take solace in God.”

River State’s table tennis coach, Elsie Peterside, told The Guardian from Port Harcourt yesterday that she was shocked to learn about the death of the former international, Bankole, who assisted the state during the last National Sports Festival hosted by the state. She said: “We contracted Bankole for the 17th National Sports Festival and he conducted himself very well during the championship.

“Personally (speaking), he really impacted on the state team. He left after the festival but I got his call few weeks ago telling me about his ailment and that he needed some money for blood, which I sent to him. We were also planning to engage him for the 18th National Festival as well because he was a good hand that could train young players.

“But I was surprised to receive a call from his son on Monday that he died. It was indeed a loss to us in Rivers because for me, he was my mentor as a player. He was an enterprising player whose skills were unequalled. His death is also a big loss to the nation.”

For the Lagos State Commissioner for Youth, Sports and Social Development, Wahid Oshodi, Bankole’s death is a big loss to the state, which he had represented at various competitions in the past. Oshodi said: “He was indeed a great player whose dexterity and determination inspired a lot of players. He was a professional to the core, especially during his playing days.

“We learnt he was engaged by Rivers State during the last National Sports Festival and my plan was to invite him to Lagos so that he could assist in grooming some of the young players. I could remember when I was the chairman of Lagos State Table Tennis Association (LSSTA) I had to insist that they allowed him to take part in competitions.

“I was also surprised that despite his age at that time, he was able to win one of the state’s tourneys ahead of younger players and I believe this showed that he was skillful.”

He added: “When we were informed of his ailment, we decided to take up his expenses at LASUTH despite that he was not working for the state. He was indeed a great player whose records and achievements in the game cannot be forgotten. I was shocked on Monday to hear about his demise. For (Lagos) state and the nation, it was a loss indeed and my condolence goes to the family.”

For the former national coach, Babatunde Obisanya, Bankole was phenomenal in the game because he was a fantastic player and the delight of every coach. According to him,  “as a player, Bankole possessed extraordinary and rare skills. He was a robust and skillful player whose never-say-die attitude endeared him to a lot of fans. He made a very good impact in table tennis and his rivalry with Atanda Musa was keen and healthy.

“Whenever we were selecting team for major competitions, having Bankole and Musa in the team most times gave us confidence that we would do well. In most finals, the two players were always meeting and this also drew a lot of people to the game. He was a kind of player that always behaved professionally on table. He was a brilliant and delightful player to watch but his death was unfortunate for the country.”

Before his demise on Sunday, Bankole made a comeback at 48 in 2008 during the Procold Open Championship, where he got to the last eight of the competition. To many, his participation in the competition came as a surprise, considering that he had not competed in any major championship for some years then. And to some, Bankole had since been cast in the rank of Nigeria’s “former players.”

In his first game, he dazed many people by beating his opponent, David Fayele, 3-2. And though his second attempt at advancing in the singles event of the competition was thwarted by Hamzat Razak, who beat him 4-1, many fans were pleasantly surprised to see Bankole, in his usual flair, stomping about the table in a desperate bid to win.

Bankole won many hearts, even in defeat. Overall, his performance was a testament to the resilience and fighting spirit that hallmarked his game in his hey days, and which earned him the nickname, Hawk. For his performance and achievements in the 1980s and 90s, Bankole, without any doubt, ranked among Nigeria’s greatest table tennis players of all times.

At the height of his career spanning 28 years, the player, alongside the likes of Musa, Titus Omotara and Sunday Eboh, helped to make Nigeria not just the dominant team in Africa but also a force on the global scene. Bankole then was a local player, whose many aspiring players looked up to.

But just when many thought Bankole would go on to achieve even greater success in the game, he fizzled out of public consciousness. This was because of his alleged involvement in an armed robbery case that led to his detention. Following that incident in 2004, the police arrested him. But the man denied his involvement in the incident, saying that he was only linked to the crime because he knew those who were alleged to have committed the crime.

For him, “table tennis is never a power sport. When I was 22, Musa himself was also 22. He was Africa’s No.1 while I was No.2. I remember there was a Yugoslavian player who was 49 years old at the time. We couldn’t beat him. The game relies more on experience, spin and speed.”

In 1985, he was ranked 92nd in the world and represented Nigeria at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, the 1991 All Africa Games in Cairo and the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.