Rt. Hon. Orok Duke PhD has been inaugurated as Chairman of the Cross River State Table Tennis Association, a move widely seen as recognition of his decades-long impact on table tennis in Cross River State and Nigeria. The ceremony took place on Monday, May 4, 2026, and was led by Hon. Etta Lawrence, Chairman of the Cross River State Sports Commission, who also swore in other officials for various state sports associations. Duke, a former chairman of the Cross River State Sports Commission from 2015 to 2019 and former Sports Ambassador since 2007, has long been central to sports development in the region. He played a key role in rebuilding Cross River's table tennis structure after the 1987 creation of Akwa Ibom State, working alongside Coach Richard George Edem to revive the sport through the Canaan Table Tennis Club of Calabar. Under his leadership, the club became a national powerhouse, producing multiple national champions and international athletes. One of his major achievements was the installation of a Taraflex flooring system from China at the U.J. Esuene Stadium in Calabar, making it one of the few International Table Tennis Federation-approved venues in Nigeria. The club has produced notable players including Offiong Edem, who represented Nigeria at four Olympic Games, and Cecilia Otu, who won doubles gold at the 2007 and 2011 All Africa Games and later claimed the national singles title in 2017. Funke Oshonaike and Janet Effiom also emerged from the Canaan system to represent Nigeria internationally, helping to elevate women's participation in the sport. Duke sponsored male and female teams across cadet, junior and senior levels in 2021, leading to the rise of new talents like Idorenyin Udoaka and Vivian Oku. In June 2024, the Canaan Queens finished as runners-up at the African Club Table Tennis Championships in Benghazi, Libya, and in January 2025, the club was nominated by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation to represent Nigeria at the same competition in Tunis, Tunisia. Duke credited Cross River State Governor Senator Bassey Otu for consistent support for sports development. He also organised football clinics and mobilised private sector partnerships during his tenure to sustain youth participation despite financial constraints. His reappointment is seen as timely, given his track record in grassroots development, infrastructure, and athlete welfare.