The KSI’s table tennis hall was opened after renovations in the last days of 2020 . Head of Hungarian men’s sector Gyula LAKATOS was almost in tears after seeing his plan coming to life. The players have top conditions to play in the renovated venue commonly known as the Ice Theater. The former construction which was in poor conditions was dismantled the space is now covered with sports flooring and the walls were repainted with a new color (dark green). The restrooms and the bathrooms and the lighting system all have been renewed and the doors and windows were also replaced. “The Ice Theater which serves as the center for youth men’s education has become the rental property of the Hungarian Table Tennis Association so this infrastructure is rented by the association from the National Sports Centers” said Roland NÁTRÁN President of the HTTA. “This has finally removed all obstacles from the association to develop this infrastructure from its own resources. The second phase of the development is expected to take place next spring when the Ice Theater’s locker rooms community spaces and the restrooms there will be renovated from the association’s infrastructure development resources.” The hall received a much better-than-average lighting system with more than 3 000 lux. “I was the one who requested this. The lighting system is divided into four categories: there is average light training light competition light and when it works at its maximum level the television can broadcast the matches in a very good quality” explained Gyula LAKATOS. “I have been managing KSI’s department for twenty-six years now and I can honestly say that I cried when the renovation work was finished. I am very happy it is a huge thing for me to be able to achieve this” added the head of department. The kids and coaches have already entered in their home in its new robe. “We have been working here for a long time so we know exactly what it was like ” said Ferenc PÁZSY taking the break from the gluing process of the taraflex and who like the others took an active part in the renovation works. “It’s like entering a whole new room. I think it got an atmosphere one can see how the kids enjoy the trainings more in this new hall. Everyone has worked a lot in the last six weeks and many thanks to Gyula LAKATOS for being able to achieve all this. The stand was completely useless without it the space is much bigger. Because of the bigger space the room became a little slower a little more echoed but one can get used to that this way we can set up a lot more tables.This great development is highly supported by the Hungarian government and carried out by the National Sport Center the valued partner of the Hungarian sports as well as the Hungarian Table Tennis Association.”
Alexander BABAKOV re-elected President of Table Tennis Federation of Russia
Dear President Dear friend On behalf of the European Table Tennis Union (ETTU) I wish to offer you my sincere congratulations on your re-election as President of the Table Tennis Federation of Russia Alexander BABAKOV. Your re-election is greatly deserved and reflects the significant progress that has been made by the federation under your leadership. Thanks to your significant contribution Russian table tennis is in a very strong position and is a leading nation not just in Europe but also around the world. The ETTU is grateful for the partnership Russia has shown and continues to show in hosting major European events. I have no doubt that under your leadership table tennis in Russia will continue to advance and achieve even greater successes. I look forward to a working with you for the benefit of a brighter future for table tennis in Russia and throughout Europe. I wish you a healthy happy and successful New Year. Yours in friendship Igor Levitin ETTU President
Meeting of the Executive Board Monday 28 December 2020
On Monday 28 December a meeting of the ETTU Executive Board was held under the leadership of President Igor Levitin. After discussing the current situation regarding the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe and the ITTF calendar for 2021 the Executive Board decided to: 1) determine the country and the date for the European Olympic singles qualification tournament if it cannot be held in Moscow due to problems with logistics; 2) postpone stage 1 of stages A and B of the 2021 European Team Championship to a date after the Olympic qualification tournament; 3) consider hiring a qualified specialist in COVID-19 procedures and protocols to assist in the preparation for the 2021 ETTU competitions and events; 4) confirm that the Extraordinary Congress which will adopt the budget for 2021 will be held during the Olympic qualification tournament; 5) create Working Groups to hold presentations of the 2021 Europe Youth Top-10 and the 2023 European Veterans Championship. President Levitin thanked everyone for their participation and sent New Year’s greetings to the table tennis family throughout Europe. The next meeting of the Executive Committee will be held on Monday 4 January.
Final ONSIDE partner meeting confirms sustainability and legacy of the project
In December 2020 the ONSIDE partners came together online for the final time to plan the final actions towards the completion of the project and confirm concrete plans for sustainability and legacy. The ONSIDE final conference was also reviewed and seen as a great success by partners. This “International Event on Sport Officiating” gathered 250 participants from 39 countries to learn about the ONSIDE project and advance the global sport officiating agenda. The partners are looking forward to the publication of the final outputs of the project and are certain the outputs will be of great value to various stakeholders involved in sport officiating. The ONSIDE e-learning platform and modules were also discussed including the issue of access to the e-learning after the project has ended. The partners then turned to the issue of sustainability. The International Federation for Sport officials (IFSO) is the legacy partner of ONSIDE and will be have a key role in promoting the products in the long term. A sustainability strategic action plan was discussed and agreed to ensure long term dissemination and impact of the ONSIDE project. The meeting ended with a celebration of the project and the three-year journey the partners have been on together. Each partner gave a testimonial about their feelings about the project both from a professional and personal point of view.
The ITTF Rankings will be known as the Table Tennis World Rankings from 2021
Grand Smash events will sit at the top of the new Table Tennis World Rankings after the ITTF Executive Committee approved a new rankings structure for table tennis in 2021. The new Table Tennis World Rankings will play a crucial role in bringing WTT events to life while acknowledging the tradition and importance of ITTF events. Grand Smashes will join the ITTF World Championships and the Olympic Games as the three events at the top of the rankings pyramid and will each award 2000 points for the winners. With up to four Grand Smashes planned each year performance at these events will become the most critical in determining a player’s Table Tennis World Ranking. Grand Smashes will debut in 2021 and grow into the pinnacle of Table Tennis. Since the announcement of our Grand Smash initiative marquee cities around the world have shown their interest in securing the long-term hosting contracts. Announcements of the inaugural two Grand Smash cities for 2021 will be made shortly. The new ranking structure has been established to create a fairer progressive and more dynamic system that will contribute to greater fluctuation for players while making it clearer for fans media broadcasters and sponsors to understand where each event fits and allow WTT to tell the story of each season. The full Table Tennis World Ranking points for event champions is as follows: EVENT RANKINGS POINTS GRAND SMASH 2000 WTTC 2000 OLYMPICS 2000 WTT CUP FINALS 1500 ITTF WORLD CUP 1500 WTT CHAMPIONS 1000 WTT STAR CONTENDER 600 CONTINENTAL CUP 500 CONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP 500 WTT CONTENDER 400 MULTI SPORT GAMES 100 INTERNATIONAL EVENTS 100 ITTF WORLD YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP 75 WTT FUTURE STARS CUP 75 WTT YOUTH STAR CONTENDER 60 WTT YOUTH CONTENDER 20 The structure also re-establishes the pathway from Youth to Senior with Table Tennis World rankings points offered for players participating in the U/19 age category of the WTT Youth Series and ensuring that the WTT journey for players is clearly mapped out from day one of their playing career. Separate WTT Youth Series rankings will be announced in early 2021. The proposal also introduces a number of new rankings initiatives to reinforce the ITTF and WTT’s desire to present a more player and fan friendly structure. These include: Rankings used to determine automatic entry for players into events at the time of the entry deadline Event seeding to be determined by the ranking at the time of the respective draw Rankings published weekly every Tuesday instead of monthly Players to receive rankings points based on round performance Players to receive rankings points for both qualifying and main draw when a player advances from qualifying Ranking points to now expire after 12 months Only the best continental/international event to be included in best of eight count A rankings transition mechanism commencing on 1 January 2021 to transition rankings into the new structure A separate Olympic Ranking list where points earned at WTT events are converted based on the previous ITTF World Rankings The full 2021 rankings structure points allocations and final regulations will be published on the ITTF website commencing 29 December 2020.
Doha to kick off 2021 events with WTT Middle East Hub
Doha Qatar will host the WTT Middle East Hub with two events to take place consecutively at the Lusail Sports Arena between 3 March – 13 March 2021. The Middle East Hub will feature two tiers of the new WTT event structure. A WTT Contender event will get the 2021 calendar under way before players move to the first WTT Star Contender event the following week providing the perfect setting for some of the world’s leading stars to be challenged by the best up-and-coming athletes in table tennis. The cancellation of the postponed 2020 World Table Tennis Championships that were to be held in Busan has also provided WTT with the opportunity to move the Middle East Hub forward from its previously announced dates granting players a chance to compete at WTT events earlier than originally planned. The confirmed dates of the individual events are: WTT Contender – Wednesday 3 March – Saturday 6 March 2021 WTT Star Contender – Monday 8 March – Saturday 13 March 2021 Qatar enjoys a significant and longstanding association with table tennis with the President of the Qatar Table Tennis Association (QTTA) and ITTF Deputy President Khalil Al-Mohannadi spearheading the nation’s contributions to the sport. This year marked the 25th anniversary of the ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open one of the most prestigious events on the ITTF calendar consistently attracting the world’s best players and offering among the highest prize money on the tour. “We are honoured to be hosting the first-ever WTT events in Qatar. We have made many special table tennis memories over the years and we cannot wait to kick off the WTT era on our shores. This confirms Doha as a truly global sports hub and demonstrates the QTTA’s commitment to establishing WTT ” said Khalil Al-Mohannadi QTTA President and ITTF Deputy President To launch the WTT era the WTT Board has approved the prize money levels for the Middle East Hub with these two events offering a combined prize pool of USD 600 000.
2020 World Team Table Tennis Championships cancelled amidst pandemic
With the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Korea Republic in recent days the ITTF Executive Committee together with representatives from the continents decided to cancel the 2020 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships. This came after a report from the President of the Korea Table Tennis Association (KTTA) Ryu Seung-min who had been informed by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency that it would not allow major international sporting events in the next few months. It was therefore unanimously agreed to make the extremely difficult and heartbreaking decision to cancel the World Championships for the first time since World War II. Originally scheduled to take place in March 2020 in Busan Korea Republic the World Team Championships was already postponed three times in light of the pandemic. It had been hoped that the event would be staged in February 2021 however due to the worsening situation in Korea Republic and with the pandemic still problematic in many regions of the world today’s difficult decision was reached. With a 2021 calendar that now includes the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games it was not feasible to postpone for a fourth time. It was also noted that the 2021 World Table Tennis Championships will be held after the Olympics and a process put in place to finalise the details of that event to be announced in January. The Local Organising Committee (LOC) in Busan asked the ITTF to consider them for the event or another major World Title event in 2021. The Executive Committee approved the 2021 World Ranking as proposed by the ITTF World Ranking Working Group. The ranking document will be made public later this week together with an event schedule for the first part of 2021 leading up to the Olympic Games. The new World Ranking will see the WTT Grand Smash events have equal World Ranking points to the Olympic Games and World Table Tennis Championships. Other important decisions taken were that the ITTF Nominations Committee for the period 2020-2022 was confirmed with details to be released in the next week and it was agreed to open applications for the Head of Integrity position that would be in charge of the ITTF Integrity Unit in the future. This continues the enhancement of the ITTF Governance system which will see the new ITTF Tribunal also being implemented in 2021. On a positive final note the ITTF President Thomas Weikert wished everyone a joyous holiday season and happy new year reiterating that he hoped we could again start to meet in person in 2021 something that we are all looking forward to be able to do as soon as possible.
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING Saturday 19th December 2020
On Saturday 19 December a meeting of the ETTU Executive Board was held under the leadership of President Igor Levitin. President Levitin thanked the clubs Linz AG Froschberg and Borussia Dusseldorf for the successful and high-quality organization of the Champions League events. He said everyone in the ETTU family was delighted to see the safe return of these flagship competitions and congratulated the players on their performances. After discussing the current situation with regard to the Covid-19 pandemic in Europe the Executive Board decided:– to reschedule stage 1 A of the group stage of the European Team Championship 2021.– to assess alternative options for holding the European Olympic individual qualification in another European city in case it is not possible to hold it in Moscow due to logistical problems.– to host the 2021 European Top 16 Cup in Montreux Switzerland on 22-23 May 2021. The Executive Board heard from Deputy President Pedro Moura who reported on the negotiations with the potential sponsor of the ETTU development program and outlined the intention to focus development on ITTF category 2 3 and 4 associations. The Executive Board adopted the budget for 2021 which will be submitted for approval to the Extraordinary Congress in February 2021. The Executive Board heard presentations and working plans from the marketing development and competition managers and discussed strategic planning and media relations for 2021. The Executive Board approved the staff structure for 2021-2022. The next meeting of the Executive Board will be held on 28 December. The Executive Board wishes all members of the European table tennis family a Merry Christmas.
BOLL: You have to keep on winning when you play for Borussia Düsseldorf
Final of the Champions League Men 2020/21 in ARAG CenterCourt Düsseldorf Borussia Düsseldorf won its very first title in the 1988/89 season. Fast forward 31 years and 10 more titles later the club is at the top of the Europe again. In the final of the Champions League Men 2020/21 in the ARAG CenterCourt Düsseldorf they overcame 1 FC Saarbrücken TT tonight. “I am so happy. There was a lot of pressure on our shoulders. If you play in a club like Borussia Düsseldorf everyone expects you to win the trophies. KALLBERG played at the position no. one because our plan was to start with a win. We wanted KALLBERG against FRANZISKA and me against SHANG. I lost a previous matches against FRANZISKA so we decided this way; in matches like this you have to keep on winning. I was stretched to full distance but you have to fight until the last point especially in the fifth game when there is only six points. Table tennis is a lot about self-confidence ” said Timo BOLL. KALLBERG posted two victories. “ I wished such an outcome but even I did not believe I could beat both SHAN Kun and Patrick FRANZISKA. We had a great tournament perfectly organised and it was great to play with so many good clubs ” said KALLBERG. For Patrick FRANZISKA it was hard to speak. “We had great moments here but at the end Borussia Düsseldorf played a perfect match especially Anton. We had a good chance when SHANG Kun had 4:0 advantage against BOLL in the first match. It was important and he lost by sudden death point the last match against KALLBERG ” said FRANZISKA.
Borussia Düsseldorf crowned champion of the Champions League Men
Final of the Champions League Men 2020/21 in ARAG CenterCourt Düsseldorf Borussia Düsseldorf the most successful club in the history of Champions League Men clinched the 12th title. In the final in ARAG CenterCourt Düsseldorf they overcame 1 FC Saarbrücken TT. Timo BOLL had a good start and moved to 4:0 quickly before SHAN Kun settled into the rhythm and answered in same style with 6 points in the row. The Chinese international took complete control to win the opening game. In the second game the pendulum swung and after the close game in the middle BOLL took off and made a safe gap. In more aggressive exchanges of the rallies the third game started with BOLL’s dominating. SHAN’s explosive forehand was not as lethal as it was in previous days. BOLL made a 9:4 gap but a couple of errors helped SHAN to move to 9:7; BOLL finished the game in his favor to halt any upsets. In a fantastic start of the fourth game SHAN moved quickly to 5:0. He was all over the table keeping the pressure on and forcing BOLL into mistakes. Already in the first match the decisive game was on the menu. BOLL recovered from being 4:1 down to win the “tie-break” 6:4 and give Borussia Düsseldorf their dream start. In an explosive opening game Anton KALLBERG left Patrick FRANZISKA with two points only. In the second game FRANZISKA’s service slowed down the Swede after KALLBERG was 8:3 in the lead. At 9:6 coach Danny HEISTER reacted and called for time out. FRANZISKA won the first point after the time out but the momentum was lost. KALLBERG closed the game at 11:7. In the third game FRANZISKA switched to a more aggressive mode and moved to 9:6. Anton came close but FRANZISKA halted his progress. Anton dominated in the fourth game 11:6. Darko JORGIC faced a confident Kristian KARLSSON who took the opening game in superb style. JORGIC changed the pace in the next game. His more aggressive approach paid off. He won the second game by taking the lead from the beginning. JORGIC continued to play like he was on fire. From 8:4 to 9:6 he was on the path to victory. Similar to his first exit atr the table Anton KALLBERG showed no weak points at the start. In the next game SHAN turned the table. It was not in furious style like KALLBERG a few minutes earlier but he kept on adding the points to his score sheet and kept the gap persistently. In the next game KALLBERG was back on his feet again and won 11:4. SHAN already forced Timo BOLL to go full distance and he did the same to KALLBERG. Like in previous occasion he lost but only by the narrowest possible margin. 1 FC Saarbrücken TT- Borussia Düsseldorf 1:3 SHANG Kun – Timo BOLL 2:3 (11:7 6:11 7:11 11:4 4:6) Patrick FRANZISKA – Anton KALLBERG 1:3 (2:11 7:11 11:9 6:11) Darko JORGIC – Kristian KARLSSON 3:1 (4:11 11:8 11:7 11:3) SHANG Kun – Anton KALLBERG 2:3 (3:11 11:8 4:11 11:6 5:6) You can see all the results here. You can see pictures here.
