The French table tennis legend died suddenly tonight at the age of 71. Jacques SECRÉTIN the most successful table tennis player in France has died at the age of 71 the Fédération de tennis de table (FFTT) announced on Wednesday.   “His wife called me at 1am to let me know he was dead ” said Patrick MOZILLA a 20-year-old friend of Jacques Secrétin who was hosting the “Ace of Ping” show with him. “I had him on the phone yesterday morning he was fit in fact we were thinking together about the show we were going to relaunch after the confinement”.   European singles champion in 1976 and mixed doubles World champion with Claude BERGERET in 1977 Jacques SECRÉTIN also won 61 French titles and played in 495 international selections between 1962 and 1986. He was voted “best French tennis player” of the Century “and was knighted in the Legion of Honor and the National Order of Merit. In 2007 he published his autobiography “I am a child of the ball”.   A native of Carvin (Pas-de-Calais) he lived in Tourcoing and was still licensed at CP Lys-lez-Lannoy. Last June before the coronavirus pandemic put the sport on hold he was preparing to compete in the World Veterans Championships “This will be my last challenge but it won’t stop me from continuing to play. Holding a racket “It’s important to me.”

Legend of European table tennis in training with the Croatian national team   At the beginning of October SAMSONOV played at the Zagreb Open at the Dom Sportova and won it. A little less than two months after that tournament Vladimir SAMSONOV the legend of European table tennis is in Zagreb again. There are no tournaments this time but one of the greatest Belarusian athletes in Zagreb has decided to train.   The venue is Medarska the National Table Tennis Center of the Croatian men’s national team and home to one of the most trophy-winning Croatian clubs GSTK Zagreb.   “I plan to play a tournament in Spain and when I was looking for a training location I decided to contact CTTA director Renato ČENGIĆ and Croatian coach Neven KARKOVIĆ. We agreed quickly and I am very grateful to CTTA for allowing me to train here ” said SAMSONOV.   It should come as no surprise that SAMSONOV chose Zagreb as his training destination. Realistically the Croatian national team has an excellent training group one of the strongest in Europe. Three players are among the Top 100 in the world Tomislav PUCAR is 37th in the world Andrej GAĆINA 47th Frane KOJIĆ 90th and there are two others who are knocking on the Top 100 WEI Shihao (191.) and Filip ZELJKO (276.). There is also the national team member Filip ČIPIN promising junior Ivor BAN as well as some other occasional former national team members and one of the best young European players Romanian Rares SIPOS.   “Croatia has a very good group of players and I have a very good sparring here. There may be more players in Düsseldorf and Saarbrücken but I have just as good conditions here as everywhere else in Europe. Also I personally love Zagreb which is a very practical city. With all this here is quite a large airport which is well connected with the rest of Europe. Even today in this chaotic time of the coronavirus pandemic ” SAMSONOV will add.   The arrival of Samson to the Croatian national team is a recognition that they are doing well and that it looks good on the outside.   “On who is Samson in the World of table tennis we should not spend too much words. By preparing for the tournament here he shows some confidence that he will get what he is looking for. Playing all the Pro Tours and the European Championship in Zagreb Samson approached our table tennis and CTTA. He won a number of tournaments here and we know from his story that he is happy to come to Zagreb. He practically speaks our language and that is another thing that can connect us more easily. While we have a great training group our guys from the national team are great when someone comes from the sidelines especially a player like SAMSONOV. Also the kids who train here could see he live in training. All this brings more quality to our sport and it is a good story. What we hope is that in the future as far as his obligations allow SAMSONOV will come to training periodically which he said in a way. Such cooperation is very good news for us ” added Neven KARKOVIĆ head coach of the Croatian national team.   Samsonov also confirmed that we will see him more often in Zagreb.   “I hope we will continue to cooperate. Like I said before this is a really good place to train for me. Also I have a lot of friends in Zagreb such as Zoran PRIMORAC Dubravko and Spomenko ŠKORIĆ Goran ŽUFAR Zlatko ČORDAŠ Mario AMIŽIĆ and I am happy to return here ” concluded the 44-year-old Belarusian who holds 26th place in the world.  

During the difficult situation of the second lock down and the suspension of the matches in Greece there is some good news for the table tennis sport. The renovated national hall STIGA at the Peace and Friendship Stadium which had chronic problems with the floor and lighting is completely ready. The inauguration was held last week by athletes of the Pre-Olympic team together with members of the national teams who as an exception have received permission from the General Secretariat of Sports in Greece for training during the lockdown period.   After finding the necessary financial support the Greek federation quickly and effectively dealt with the serious shortages. Quietly and without big words they organized and proceeded with the work which was completed in just over a month. The image inside the venue is now impressive with very high – quality taraflex and not just adequate but – ideal lighting. The renovation brought some very special novelties for the sport in general since the space now is not only for training it can be used for matches and now the best conditions for the athletes are ensured.   The condition of the national hall has been problematic for several years and posed a risk of injury. After tireless efforts which began in 2016 the Federation received this year financial assistance from the Hellenic Olympic Committee and the stadium’s administration.   Initially the plenary session of H.O.C. unanimously approved this grant and the project started immediately at the end of September. In the meantime the administration of the stadium Peace and Friendship fully understanding the situation that had been created hastened and changed the lighting from conventional to LED at its own expense as well as carried out its oil painting again at its own expense greatly alleviating the federation’s finances.   National coach Kostas VATSAKLIS described the area as the best in Europe and international athletes now train in a great mood in a modern and safe place.

Chinese star duo Ma Long and Chen Meng set all-time new records as they were crowned the men’s singles and women’s singles champions respectively at the Bank of Communications 2020 ITTF Finals on Sunday 22 November in Zhengzhou China. Ma Long landed his sixth ITTF Finals title extending the record he already held in the competition. The no.3 seed defeated Fan Zhendong the defending champion and top seed with a classy performance (13-11 11-7 12-10 9-11 11-8). Earlier in the day Chen Meng became the first player to win ITTF Finals gold in four consecutive years. The top seed overcame Wang Manyu the no.4 seed (11-9 11-13 14-12 11-8 11-5) in what was a repeat of the final one year ago also in Zhengzhou. Having suffered a narrow defeat at the hands of Fan Zhendong exactly seven days ago in the final of the Dishang 2020 ITTF Men’s World Cup Ma Long was a man on a mission in Zhengzhou. It was a mission he accomplished with flying colours as he claimed gold for the sixth time since first succeeding in 2008 in Macao. He has now won the ITTF Finals twice as many times as his nearest challenger Wang Liqin who triumphed on three occasions in 1998 2000 and 2004. Over the course of the week Ma was never extended the full seven games distance. After accounting for Germany’s Patrick Franziska the no.13 seed (12-10 11-1 11-6 11-4) he saw off Sweden’s Mattias Falck the no.8 seed (11-5 7-11 5-11 11-6 11-9 13-11) to book a semi-final spot. Increasing in confidence he reserved his place in the final by battling back from a losing position against fellow Chinese great Xu Xin the no.2 seed (11-13 11-9 11-9 11-8 11-7). “I am very happy after winning such a tough battle. Each and every point was difficult to win and I believe that Fan Zhendong could feel it too. At the end it was just a great relief for me. In terms of overall ability on the table Fan is second to none at this current point in time. Since last year we have played each other in several finals including at the Men’s World Cup last week and he had the upper hand. In today’s match I really wanted to challenge him and thankfully I managed to win.” – Ma Long  A silver medallist this time around Fan Zhendong reached Sunday’s showdown courtesy of a semi-final victory over the tournament’s surprise package Korea Republic’s Jang Woojin the no.14 seed (11-8 11-4 13-15 11-8 11-5).  On the opening day of action Jang had caused two of the biggest shocks of the event saving two match points in the fifth game on his way to ousting Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto the no.4 seed (6-11 2-11 11-7 7-11 12-10 11-2 11-5) before knocking out China’s Lin Gaoyuan the no.5 seed at the quarter-final stage (11-7 10-12 1-11 11-7 12-10 8-11 11-6). The first-ever player to win four consecutive titles at the ITTF Finals Chen Meng added to her victories in 2017 (in Astana) 2018 (Incheon) and 2019 (Zhengzhou). In doing so she broke the record of three successive gold medals that she had shared with Liu Shiwen who triumphed in 2011 2012 and 2013. Chen is now level with Zhang Yining on four women’s singles titles at the ITTF Finals. Zhang had previously held the record outright thanks to her wins in 2000 2002 2005 and 2006. Chen grew in strength and stature over her four days in Zhengzhou. In the opening round she was tested by Japan’s Miyu Kato the no.15 seed (11-6 13-11 7-11 11-6 8-11 11-4). Later in the quarter-finals she overcame her biggest challenge recovering from a two games to nil deficit against Germany’s Petrissa Solja the no.14 seed (9-11 10-12 11-5 11-5 11-8 11-6) to claim victory. A semi-final place secured Chen was imperious against Chinese opposition. She defeated Sun Yingsha the no.3 seed in straight games (11-9 11-8 11-8 12-10) to book a showdown with Wang Manyu a player in form. In the penultimate round Wang had ended the hopes of Japan’s Mima Ito the no.2 seed with a powerful display of her own (11-3 11-4 11-9 11-6). That win saw the 21-year-old reach her first international final since last year’s ITTF Finals defeat to Chen Meng but she was unable to strike revenge against her irrepressible opponent. “The first three games were very close. The difference was always by two points. Despite being in the lead most of the time Wang Manyu kept closing the gap and the entire match was always tight. She was really determined and played very good shots putting me under a lot of pressure. I could feel that she really wanted to win. At a few crucial moments she made errors but I made several myself as well.” – Chen Meng Chen Meng boasts a 100% record in 2020 across ITTF competitions. She celebrated victory at the ITTF World Tour Platinum events in Germany and Qatar before the COVID-19 pandemic halted activity worldwide in March. Since the #RESTART series commenced in November she has been the star of the show with gold medal hauls at both the Women’s World Cup and now the ITTF Finals.  The Bank of Communications 2020 ITTF Finals represented the third and final event of the #RESTART series which heralded the return of international table tennis after eight months of suspended activities due to COVID-19. Table Tennis is one of the first sports to return to the international stage since the pandemic broke out and the #RESTART series has been a resounding success bringing action drama and emotions to the entire global fan base. The events have been carried out strictly in accordance with COVID-19 protocols to ensure the highest health and safety standards for athletes and everyone involved at the events. Now attentions turn to WTT Macao a special promotional showcase being held between 25-29 November 2020 which will offer a first glimpse into the future of the sport. World Table Tennis (WTT) which is responsible

The final day of the Bank of Communications 2020 ITTF Finals at the Zhengzhou Olympic Sports Centre will commence without Europeans. Both Swede Mattias FALCK and Germany’s Petrissa SOLJA finished their play in the quarterfinal.   In the re-run of the 2019 World Championships Men’s Singles Final MA Long overcame FALCK in six games (11-5 7-11 5-11 11-6 11-9 13-11). Previously FALCK beat Simon GAUZY of France in seven games thriller whilst MA Long prevailed against Germany’s Patrick FRANZISKA in straight games.   In the Round of 16 Dimitrij OVTCHAROV of Germany suffered by the hands of Chinese Taipei teenager LI Yun Yu 4-2. It was the duel at the knife edge between two club mates from the Fakel Gazprom Orenburg. England’s Liam PITCHFORD lost to Brazil’s Hugo CALDERANO 4-0.   Dimitrij OVTCHAROV’S disappointment at the narrow defeat was clearly evident: “Unfortunately in the fourth game after being in the lead I had one or two mistakes due the lost of focus; with a 3-1 lead the game will certainly be very different. It was very close today. It was definitely better today than last week. I think that at some point I was very good and even better than adversary which also unsettled him. I need few more competitions to settle into the rhythm.”   In the Women’s Singles quarterfinal Petrissa SOLJA lost to top seeded Chinese star and World Cup winner CHEN Meng (9-11 10-12 11-5 11-5 11-8 11-2 11-6). Previously SOLJA overcame FENG Tianwei by same margin.   “It was a roller coaster match a lot of ups and downs. In the last game I was 2-8 down because I rushed it too much because I thought I had the chance to win this match. I tried to stay calm take it slow and I am very satisfied with my performance. I also enjoy being able to play in front of spectators again ” said SOLJA after Round of 16.  

  The third and final stop on the #RESTART series the Bank of Communications 2020 ITTF Finals is taking place between 19-22 November in Zhengzhou China.   The ITTF Finals will see 32 of the world’s best players – 16 in the men’s singles and a further 16 in the women’s singles – battle it out for glory at one of the most prestigious international table tennis events.   On Sunday 15 November Fan Zhendong and Ma Long met in the final of the Dishang 2020 ITTF Men’s World Cup in Weihai. This Sunday there is a chance that the legendary Chinese pair (no.1 and no.3 seeds respectively) could lock horns again in another title-decider in Zhengzhou.   Fresh off the back of clinching his third consecutive Men’s World Cup Fan is looking to defend his men’s singles crown at the ITTF Finals having triumphed last year in Zhengzhou. That was his second success at the event after winning in 2017 in Astana. Meanwhile MA Long has his sights set on what would be a sixth men’s singles title at the ITTF Finals.   XU Xin (no.2 seed) is drawn in the same half as MA Long. The fellow Chinese star won men’s singles gold at the ITTF Finals in 2012 and 2013. In the opening round XU faces Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna (no.16 seed) with a potential quarter-final in store against either Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yun-Ju (no.7 seed) or Germany’s Dimitrij Ovtcharov (no.9 seed). Lin has defeated Ovtcharov in their three most recent encounters.   MA meets Germany’s Patrick FRANZISKA (no.13 seed) at the first hurdle. Pass that test and the reigning World and Olympic champion would line up against the winner between France’s Simon GAUZY (no.15 seed) and Sweden’s Mattias FALCK (no.8 seed). Falck famously battled with MA at the men’s singles final of the Liebherr 2019 World Championships in Budapest in which he won silver and became the first Swede to achieve the feat since 1997. Incidentally Gauzy had fallen to defeat against Falck in the third round of last year’s World Championships and will be looking for revenge in Zhengzhou.   In the other half of the draw FAN Zhendong begins his title defence against Korea Republic’s JEOUNG Youngsik (no.11 seed). Lying in wait in the next round is the winner between Brazil’s Hugo CALDERANO (no.6 seed) and England’s Liam PITCHFORD (no.12 seed). Pitchford has won all three of his meetings against CALDERANO.   Japan’s Tomokazu HARIMOTO (no.4 seed) crosses paths again with JANG Woojin (no.14 seed) in what is a repeat of their third-place playoff at last week’s Men’s World Cup in which Harimoto claimed bronze.   An all-Japanese quarter-final is possible if Harimoto and Koki NIWA (no.10 seed) both progress. In the first round Niwa opposes China’s Lin Gaoyuan (no.5 seed) a player he has not beaten in three encounters since succeeding in the boys’ singles final at the 2011 World Junior Championships.   CHEN Meng (no.1 seed) is aiming for her second title in less than two weeks following her gold medal showing at the Dishang 2020 ITTF Women’s World Cup. Furthermore success in Zhengzhou would see CHEN rewrite the history books. No player has ever won the ITTF Finals for four consecutive years in either the women’s singles or men’s singles competition.   CHEN is drawn in the same half as SUN Yingsha (no.3 seed) her Chinese compatriot and opponent in the final in Weihai. CHEN kicks off against Japan’s Miyu KATO (no.15 seed) with a possible quarter-final against Singapore’s FENG Tianwei (no.6 seed) or Germany’s Petrissa SOLJA (no.14 seed).   Sun starts her campaign against Korea Republic’s JEON Jihee (no.11 seed) against whom SUN enjoys a 100% record in world ranking events. For the winner of that match Japan’s Kasumi ISHIKAWA (no.7 seed) a women’s singles champion at the 2014 ITTF Finals or Korea Republic’s SUH Hyowon (no.16 seed) will lie in wait.   Japan’s Mima ITO (no.2 seed) and China’s WANG Manyu (no.4 seed) could be set for a semi-final showing in the other half of the draw. Ito faces the challenge of an opening round clash with Hong Kong China’s DOO Hoi Kem (no.10 seed). Bronze medallist at the 2020 Women’s World Cup Ito enters the tie as favourite but they have each won four times across their eight meetings to date.   WANG Manyu is drawn against Japan’s Hitomi SATO (no.12 seed) in the first round with a possible quarter-final against Chinese Taipei’s Cheng I-Ching (no.5 seed) or Puerto Rico’s Adriana DIAZ (no.13 seed) a debutant at the ITTF Finals. In their only previous match it was Cheng who prevailed at the 2015 World Championships. Meanwhile Austria’s Sofia Polcanova (no.9 seed) takes on China’s WANG Yidi (no.8 seed) in a first-ever encounter between the pair.  

The ETTU Executive Board under the leadership of President Igor Levitin met virtually on Tuesday 17th November. The President welcomed European representatives to the ITTF Board of Directors to join the discussions about the forthcoming ITTF Board of Directors meeting. All propositions and resolutions on the agenda were discussed. The Board discussed a revised budget for 2021 which will be presented to the Congress for approval in January 2021. An update was received on the Women’s and Men’s Champions Leagues to be played at Linz and Düsseldorf respectively in December. 11 women’s clubs and 15 men’s clubs have agreed the new conditions of participation including the establishment of a secure hygienic bubble environment at each competition venue. An update was received on the 2021 European Team Championships Stage 1 groups. A schedule of groups will be released not later than 1st December. The Covid situation within Europe may necessitate further postponements. The Board received a presentation from JTA regarding future cooperation project in the areas of strategic planning content generation issues management media relations and media monitoring. The Board was presented information on the preparations for a tournament for smaller Associations. The next Executive Board meeting will be held in mid-December.

29/30 August & 5 September 2020   Despite the strict Covid-19 restrictions in Ireland the Irish Association staged its 2020 Junior and Senior Championships in Dublin on 29th/30 August and 5 September 2020. The event was restricted to singles categories only.   Results were as follows:   Men’s Singles Final: Ashley Robinson beat Ryan Farrell  11/8 9/11 11/6 11/9 Women’s Singles Final: Sophie Earley beat Mia O’Rahilly Egan  11/5 11/10 13/11 Mini Cadet Girls: Anjali Singh Cadet Girls: Lucy McIvor Junior Girls: Mia O’Rahilly Egan Mini Cadet Boys: Matthew Mooney Cadet Boys: Max Skelton Junior Boys: Art McLaughlin Under 21 Men: Art McLaughlin