ECLW semi-finals post-game comments (Linz AG Froschberg) Former two-time ECLW champion Linz AG Froschberg from Austria was eliminated in the 2018/19 semis by Poland’s KTS Enea Siarka Tarnobrzeg but Linz president Gunther RENNER is not disappointed: “We as a club must be satisfied with the ECLW season semi-final is always our minimum goal on one side we lost more matches than expected but we had also massive problems with injuries on the other side. We had to accept that Sofia POLCANOVA was at no point 100% fit starting with the European Championships in Alicante 2018 where she had success for Austria but three events at one tournament are too much. We as a small table tennis club are happy that we fixed her physical problems with the genius Franz LEBERBAUER (physiotherapist RB LEIPZIG and Red Bull Salzburg Academy) and we hope next season will also be her top season for the club of LINZ AG FROSCHBERG ” stated RENNER. Linz president praised Sweden’s player Linda BERGSTRÖM: “The most impressive player this year was Linda BERGSTRÖM third year in LINZ who proved her quality to her sceptic she showed that with determination and hard work everything is possible. As a complete team we never competed at our best this season but we reached the minimum goal. The spectators helped us a lot this year we had some sold out events what is not a matter of course. We are sure that our club proved again its value for the European women table tennis in general for the league and for the future of it also.”
MA Long clinched title in Doha
Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open China’s MA Long clinched the title in the Men’s Singles Event at the Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open in Doha. All Chinese affairs the final of the men’s singles event alongside the penultimate round and title deciding contest in the women’s singles competition closed the curtain in Doha. Ma Long the no.11 seed beat LIN Gaoyuan the no.2 seed to secure the top step of the podium (9-11 8-11 11-5 11-5 11-9 11-9). In Women’s Singles DING Ning suffered one of the biggest defeats of her international career; at the semi-final stage the top seed she was soundly beaten by WANG Manyu the no.4 seed (11-6 11-1 11-6 11-4).
Silver for Timo BOLL and Patrick FRANZISKA
Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open In the Men’s Singles final of the Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open MA Long of China will meet his compatriot LIN Gaoyuan. LIN beat Swede Mattias FALCK in the semifinal by narrow margin 4:3 (11:7 11:9 9:11 9:11 9:11 11:9 10:12). In the quarterfinal FALCK overcame Tomokazu HARIMOTO of Japan also in seven games. In the same Round XU Xin overcame Patrick FRANZISKA of Germany 4:1 before MA Long halted his progress. HO Kwan Kit and WONG Chun Ting of Hong Kong overcame Timo BOLL and Patrick FRANZISKA in Men’s Doubles final 3:1. In semis pairings from Germany beat Jakub DYJAS of Poland and Cedric NUYTINCK of Belgium 3:0. In the Women’s Singles semifinal all four players are from china; DING Ning will meet WANG Manyu whilst LIU Shiwen will meet SUN Yingsha. SUN Yingsha and WANG Manyu of China clinched the gold in Women’s Doubles.
Dmitrii BALACHENKOV: Credit goes to our players
TTCLM semi-finals post-game comments (TTSC UMMC) Two Russian clubs Fakel-Gazprom Orenburg and TTSC UMMC will meet in the 2018/19 TTCLM final May 4th and 8th in the reprise of the 2011/12 final when Oreburg won its first out of four titles. UMMC beat reigning champion Borussia Dusseldorf in the recent semi-finals (5:4 aggregate) while Fakel-Gazprom eliminated Vaillante Sports Angers (6:3). Team manager of UMMC Dmitrii BALACHENKOV praised his players for successful semi-finals: “We are very happy that we managed to show our strength and advanced to the final. Borussia Dusseldorf is a very strong rival and our players did their best in both first and second leg. I would like to tell thanks to each player. Especially Andrej GACINA performed very well in Dusseldorf match. Also FANG Bo and Jonathan GROTH contributed to the victory winning games one after another” BALACHENKOV expects fantastic ending of the TTCLM season: “Final matches won’t be easy probably Fakel – is our most principle rival. But many times we were on the winning side there is a plenty of time for practice. We will do our best for the victory in TTCLM.”
Patrick FRANZISKA and Mattias FALCK in quarters in Doha
Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open Patrick FRANZISKA of Germany and Mattias FALCK of Sweden reached the quarterfinal of the Men’s Singles Event at the Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open. In Men’s Double Patrick and Timo BOLL booked their place in the final. In the Round of 16 Patrick overcame Koki NIWA of Japan in seven games whilst FALCK beat Cedric NUYTINCK of Belgium 4:2. In the quarters FRANZISKA will meet top seed XU Xin and FALCK will play against Tomokazu HARIMOTO of Japan. Timo BOLL of Germany suffered by the hands of China’s MA Long 4:0 Jun MIZUTANI of Japan beat Pavel SIRUCEK of Czech Republic 4:0 and LIN Yun Ju of Taipei prevailed against Dimitrij OVTCHAROV of Germany 4:2. In the Round of 16 HAN Ying of Germany suffered by the hands of top seed DING Ning of China in straight games. In Men’s Doubles Timo BOLL and Patrick FRANZISKA will meet HO Kwan Kit and WONG Chung Ting of Hong Kong in the final. Previously they overcame Jakub DYJAS of Poland and Cedric NUYTINCK 3:0.
Four players from Germany in the Round of 16 in singles
Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open Asia dominates at the Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open. In The Men’s Singles Event in the Round of 16 there are 6 whilst in Women’ Singles there are only one European player. HAN Ying of Germany will face top seed DING Ning of China in the Round of 16. In Men’s Singles Germany is also most dominant European country. In the match for the quarterfinal Patrick FRANZISKA will play against Japan’s Koki NIWA Timo BOLL will meet MA Long whilst Dimitrij OVTCHAROV will play against LIN Yun Ju of Taipei. Mattias FALCK of Sweden will meet Cedric NUYTINCK of Belgium. Top seed XU Xin of China will play against Yuya OSHIMA of Japan. In Men’s Doubles Ovidiu IONESCU of Romania and Alvaro ROBLES of Spain will play against HO Kwan Kit and WONG Chun Ting of Hong Kong for the place in the semis. In the lower half of the draw Timo BOLL and Patrick FRANZISKA will meet Masataka MORIZONO and Yuya OSHIMA whilst Jakub DYJAS of Poland and Cedric NUYTINCK will face Mattias FALCK and Kristian KARLSSON of Sweden. In Women’s Doubles in quarter final matches Germany’s Nina MITTELHAM and Sabine WINTER will play against Honoka HASHIMOTO and Hitomi SATO of Japan whilst Barbora BALAZOVA of Slovakia and Hana MATELOVA of Czech Republic will play against SUN Yingsha and WANG Manyu of China. Tristan FLORE and Laura GASNIER of France halted in the quarterfinals.
ECLW: Tarnobrzeg puts pressure on reigning champion
“Dr. Casl is a favourite in ECLW final” emphasizes Zbigniew NECEK coach of KTS Enea Siarka Tarnobrzeg Poland’s most successful women’s club KTS Enea Siarka Tarnobrzeg established itself as one of the best European clubs in last 12 years. They are approaching their 8th finals in both ETTU cups ECLW and ETTU Cup Women since 2007/08 season: five times they fought for ETTU Cup crown and three times for ECLW title including the forthcoming final. Tarnobrzeg’s biggest successes so far is 2015 ETTU Cup title as well as 2016 and 2017 ECLW runner-up spots. Tarnobrzeg beat Linz AG Froschberg in the 2018/19 ECLW semi-finals (twice 3:1) to set up final clash against reigning champion Dr. CASL from Croatia. Coach Zbigniew NECEK is looking forward to the upcoming games to be held in May: “Semi-final matches were a duel of two teams on very similar level so that is why we are so happy that it is us who are in final. Dr. Casl is a favourite ECLW. They have a great five players origin of Asia with a various styles of play and it shows their strength as a team. We hope that final matches will be a great performance for spectators and a promotion of women’s table tennis.”
3382 Players so far – EVC 2019 Budapest breaks the record
European Veterans Championships The deadline for the entries for the European Veterans Championships in Budapest is approaching; the entries will be closed on April 1st. So far the figures promises great Championships. On the list there are 3382 participants from 40 countries. That means that the record is already broke. In Bremen 2013 we had 3250 participants. It was the record until now: Budapest will have more than 3500 players. Traditionally Germany heads the list with 1.070 players followed by Sweden with 201. Hosts Hungary is at the position no. three with 193 and the list goes on with Czech Republic with 186 and England with 184 participants. Most “crowded” Event is Men’s Singles 50 with 759 entries whilst In Women’s Singles 50 there are 258 players.
Andorra invests in table tennis future
ETTU Development manager Neven CEGNAR visited Andorra’s town La Massana as a part of the ETTU National Association Assistance Program Project. In the state at the edge of the Pyrenees. “It is amazing how much Andorra with population of approximately 60.000 people work hard to develop table tennis in their country. They receive huge support from Ministry of Sport as from the entire Government I am very happy and proud to be here with the best young players big talent eight years old Oriol MARTINEZ and coaches from Andorra. I have also great pleasure to meet with President of ADTTF Mr. Lluis ROVIRA and President of local TTCNV Mr. Antonio GOMEZ as well as with Serbian coach Daniel CONIC” said CEGNAR. ADTTF President Lluis ROVIRA and President of local TTCNV Mr. Antonio Martinez GOMEZ created a solid base for coaches to work with youngsters and secure good future for table tennis in Andorra.
Positive social change through table tennis: 2019 TT Dream Building Fund projects announced!
Guided by the mantra “Solidarity through Table Tennis” one of the ITTF Foundation‘s first actions of January 2019 was to launch the TT Dream Building Fund: an annual call for projects using table tennis to support humanitarian projects and promote social welfare across the globe. A total of 74 applicants from 31 countries put themselves forward: a promising outcome for the first edition of the TT Dream Building Fund which is open to any legally established and locally recognised non-profit table tennis sport or social organisation with a project of bringing about positive change in its local or foreign environment through the means of table tennis. Subsequently a shortlist of 10 applicants was created based on eligibility criteria project quality and capacity to have a positive social impact. Each of the projects is committed to using table tennis as a means to reach wider humanitarian objectives linked to one or more United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). These 10 projects were then presented to a panel for vote consisting of highly knowledgeable figures with experience of using table tennis as a tool for social development: Georg Schlachtenberger (External Advisor and founder of the IPC Agitos Foundation); Sarah Hanffou (ITTF Athlete Commission Member and ITTF Foundation Ambassador); Steve Dainton (ITTF CEO); Petra Sorling (ITTF Vice President) and Leandro Olvech (ITTF Foundation Director). “BUILDING DREAMS FOR A BRIGHTER FUTURE” “Many organisations around the globe applied to the TT Dream Building Fund and it was challenging to select the best programmes. Based on the criteria we selected projects which we expect to make a sustainable contribution to the relevant target group and the UN Sustainable Development Goals through table tennis activities. I was particularly impressed by two project proposals we received and reviewed: one by an organisation from Ecuador (FUDELA – Fundación de las Americas para el Desarrollo) and one from the Netherlands (Ping Pong Alkmaar). In both projects table tennis will be an important tool to support refugees and their integration into society. Both projects form part of a community approach in partnership with other organisations of the civil society. I look forward to seeing more and more of these projects in the future.” Georg Schlachtenberger “It was extremely pleasing to see such a rich diversity and quality of projects. I am really impressed by the Slum Ping Pong project and the day-to-day commitment of the project leader and supporting team. The selected programmes have the potential to make a huge social impact. They fit perfectly with the values and goals of the ITTF Foundation.” Sarah Hanffou “This is an historical moment for the ITTF Foundation and I wish to sincerely thank all applicants for sharing their project ideas with us. We are motivated to witness so many people who like us at the Foundation want to bring positive change to their community through table tennis. I was positively surprised by the total number of quality project proposals we received which made the selection process extremely competitive. I am confident that the chosen programmes will be a big success. Projects such as Llevalois will contribute greatly towards the advancement of table tennis for health while the Talent4Development project stands out for its sheer sustainability. The future is bright and I look forward to next year’s call where I hope to see even more project diversity. In honour of this first Dream Building Fund we have decided to celebrate the World Table Tennis Day 2019 with one of the fund recipients Slum Ping Pong. We will be spending 6 April in Kampala Uganda and then heading to the town of Hoima to visit an ongoing project there. I am eager to see their work first-hand and collectively to celebrate the power that table tennis can have for improving the lives of children residing in slums.” Leandro Olvech The ITTF Foundation would like to thank all applicants for sharing their dreams and high-quality proposals. Unfortunately not every project could be selected but the ITTF Foundation staff is committed to providing feedback on all applications via email by mid-April 2019. SIX PROJECTS FOR POSITIVE SOCIAL CHANGE THROUGH TABLE TENNIS The ITTF Foundation sends its congratulations to the 2019 TT Dream Building Fund recipients: Slum Ping Pong (Kampala Uganda) Three-year project which aims to use table tennis as a tool to provide access to education for young people in slums reaching 100 new children and integrating them into schools and presenting them with greater life opportunities. The project will be playing an integral role at World Table Tennis Day 2019 hosting this year’s marquee event on 6 April in Kampala. Levallois Sporting Club Tennis de Table (Levallois France) Three-year project which aims to deepen the understanding and promote the practice and benefits of table tennis for people with Alzheimer’s and those in remission of Cancer. Ping Pong Alkmaar (Alkmaar Netherlands) Three-year project which aims to provide accessible table tennis activities for the whole community of Alkmaar with a focus on breaking down barriers and stereotypes concerning migrant and refugee populations promoting their integration into society. FUDELA – Fundación de las Américas para el Desarrollo (Northern Ecuador) Two-year project which aims to use table tennis as a vehicle of change and opportunities for youth and for the integration of Venezuelan and Colombian migrant and refugee populations with the Northern Ecuadorian community. Talent4Development (Mathare Kenya) Three-year project which aims to find a sustainable solution to integrate and develop opportunities for children in slums through table tennis coaching and school education. National Youth Table Tennis Association (Milwaukee USA) Three-year project which aims to promote table tennis in the Milwaukee Public Schools where there exists a high percentage of socially disadvantaged ethnic minority students. The ITTF Foundation would like to thank once more all applicants for sharing their TT Dream Building Fund projects. Now the new adventure begins with the six selected projects getting under way before the next call takes place in 2020.
