EuroMinichamp August 26th to 28th 2016 Like the « Petits As » tournament in tennis the French Table Tennis Association offers an individual European event on the last weekend of August for the very young players (boys and girls born in 2004 and 2005 for the twelfth edition in 2016). The choice of Schiltigheim and the Strasbourg Euro Metropole is symbolic and interesting because of its geographic location for a lot of countries and its assets relative to the access facilities and the welcome’s possibilities. The event takes place in the Gymnasiums of Malteries and Leclerc in SCHILTIGHEIM on 60 tables. The accommodation of the participants is exclusively in the hotels of the Euro Metropole (players leaders officials coaches and accompanying persons). “The Federation 16 years ago has launched an important detection program towards the very young children in order to train top level players. The current results of our young elite seem to show that we are on the right way. The Euro Mini Champ’s fully play their role in this renewal since the best current European players under 15 which include numerous French have already participated successfully and won one edition in this event ” explained Thierry WICK Coordinator of the Euro Mini Champ’s communication. Under the auspices of the French Table Tennis Association the European countries are “invited” to participate according to the methods fixed by specific regulations. More than 30 European nations are regularly waited and the French Table Tennis Association is able to have “surprise” guests like it was the case for the Chinese delegations or for the ITTF in the past years. Extra individual registrations are also possible but they are only reserved to the French players. Almost 400 participants who are accompanied by trainers and often by their parents will come to Alsace. An original option allows each participant to play numerous games and to be associated all along these three days at this big sport celebration.
ETTU Development Program 2017: National Associations Development Support
The first CALL for 2017 applications The European Table Tennis Union is inviting all ETTU member Associations to submit their proposals for development program assistance and support for 2017. The areas to be supported by ETTU include: Organising national training camps for cadets and mini cadets Organising national educational seminars for coaches Organising national educational seminars for referees and umpires Support for the participation of the most talented players of a member Association to attend Eurotalents pre selection camps Support for the participation of the member Association’s coaches to ETTU educational seminars and to the annual ETTU Coaching Conference A specific need in development for a member Association with all necessary details explained and reasoned Further details and information may be obtained from Ivo-Goran Munivrana ETTU Deputy President responsible for development igmunivrana@gmail.com or Neven Cegnar ETTU Development Manager ncegnar@gmail.com. The closing date for applications to be returned to Ivo-Goran Munivrana igmunivrana@gmail.com and Neven Cegnar ncegnar@gmail.com is Thursday 15th September 2016.
Balkan TT Championships moved to Niksic
The 42nd Balkan (14th U21) Table Tennis Championships will be held from 18 to 22 August in NIKSIC (Montenegro). Due to technical reason City of Aleksinac (SRB) canceled organization allocated at BTTU Extraordinary Congress in Tivat. To avoid the possibility of cancelations of the Championships TRPKOVSKI BTTU General Secretary in cooperation with Mr STEVANOVIC TTA Serbia President and DEDIC TTA Montenegro President reached the agreement that Organizer of the 42nd Balkan Senior (14th U21) Table Tennis Championships will be City of Niksic. “We are very sorry for any inconvenience that you may have due to change of place where the Championships will be held and this late announce ” said Borislav PEJAKOVIC head of BTTU Technical Committee. The deadlines: – preliminary entries 22nd July – final entries 29th July – travelling details 5th August
José Manuel RUIZ will be the standard bearer of the Spanish team
The Paralympic table tennis player Jose Manuel RUIZ table will be the standard bearer of the Spanish team that will participate in the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro 2016. The announcement was made last Tuesday at the presentation of the Spanish Paralympic Team that will compete in these Games. An act that took place at the headquarters of the Higher Sports Council (CSD) with President of the Spanish Paralympic Committee Miguel CARBALLEDA with the participation of CSD President Miguel CARDENAL and other athletes besides Jose Manuel Ruiz who was accompanied by the President of the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation Bureau and member of the Executive Committee of the Spanish Paralympic Committee Miguel Angel MACHADO. In the act José Manuel RUIZ stressed his “happiness” so it is “fulfilling a dream” inside his successful career. “Being standard bearer is something unique and unrepeatable are things that happen once in life so I feel privileged ” said the Paralympian. Jose Manuel Ruiz REYES was born in Granada on 16 July 1978. In his resume playing table tennis are four Paralympic medals: an individual silver plus a silver and two bronzes by equipment. During the 22 years he has been defending the colors of Spain it has also accumulated about 30 metals in European Championships and World several of them gold. Ruiz is facing its sixth consecutive Paralympic Games a fact that makes the athlete more active participation: Atlanta 1996 Sydney 2000 Athens 2004 Beijing 2008 and London 2012. In addition to José Manuel Ruiz will attend this event with Para Table Tennis completing the 9 places that has made Spain Alvaro VALERA Jordi MORALES Alberto SEOANE Jorge CARDONA Juan Bautista PEREZ Miguel RODRIGUEZ Eduardo CUESTA and Bilal the BAQQALI. The Table Tennis competition will be held from Thursday 8 September until Saturday 17 at Pavilion 3 of Riocentro where the Spaniards will try to keep adding medals to the last 3 achieved in London 2012.
Russia at the top of the table with 12 medals
Russia won six gold two silver and four bronze medals at the European Youth Championships in Zagreb.They topping the list with Romania and Italy on second and third position. The Championships in Zagreb is the one with the most participants – 571. During the Team Events 562 matches with 2093 individual duels were played. In sngles we saw 1.295 matches. In total 3.388 matches in 10 days. Most successful players are Kristina KAZANTSEVA (RUS) with 2 gold 2 silver Vladimir SIDORENKO (RUS) 2 gold 1 bronze Adina DIACONU (ROU) 1 gold 1 silver Lev KATSMAN (RUS) 1 gold 2 bronze Truls MOREGARDH (SWE) 3 silver Tomas POLANSKY (CZE) 2 silver 1 bronze ZHANG Xuan Xu (ESP) 3 bronze. Youngest player was Conrad PULI of Malta born 28th January 2004 in girl’s category Elena Adriana ZAHARIA Romania born 4th November 2004. Prithika PAVADE of France (2th August 2004 11 year and 350 days) was the youngest playing EYC finalist when she played the Cadet Mixed final. She is the youngest playing finalist since 2006 when Bernadette SZOCS (Romania then 11 year and 137 days) set the all time record when playing in the Cadet Girls Team final. Most matches played: Vladislav URSU (MDA) 34 Kristina KAZANTSEVA (RUS) 31 (won 28) Truls MOREGARDH (SWE) 30 Roel BOGIE (NED) 29 Maciej KOLODZIECZYK (POL) 29 Tomas POLANSKY (CZE) 28 CHEN Xingtai (AZE) 28 YANG Xinyu (AZE) 28 Jana BERNARD (BEL) 28 Lev KATSMAN (RUS) 28. Gold Silver Bronze 1 Russia 5.5 2 4 2 Romania 2.5 1 3 3 Italy 1 1 1 3 France 1 1 1 5 Belgium 1 1 6 Belarus 1 6 Germany 1 8 Austria 0.5 1 2 9 Moldova 0.5 10 Sweden 3 11 Czech Republic 1.5 2.5 12 Azerbeidjan 1 3 13 Poland 1 13 Serbia 1 15 England 0.5 1 16 Spain 4 17 Slovenia 3.5 18 Croatia 1.5 19 Turkey 1 19 Hungary 1
Alexandre CASSIN at the top of the Europe
Junior Boys Singles Event Last year’s silver medalist Alexandre CASSIN of France went one step higher this year at the European Youth Championships in Zagreb. CASSIN beat Andreas LEVENKO of Austria in the final of the Junior Boys Singles Event. Winner needed only four games to seal the title. “We played before; I beat him at Top 10 so I knew what to do. I did not let him surprise me. I had to be calm and focused and maintain control constantly ” explained CASSIN. Previously Andreas LEVENKO overcame Europe’s no. one Darko JORGIC of Slovenia in surprisingly straight matches. “I was ready. My coach Jarek and I study his game very much; we watched videos and talked. I also played so many times before against him and our record is 3:3 so I know how to beat him. I was very focused and that was my main weapon. Tactically he is very strong so I was careful. I played more in the middle and on his forehand trying to avoid his backhand ” said LEVENKO. Alexandre CASSIN avenged his defeat in the Team’s Event. He overcame Tomas POLANSKY of Czech Republic. “He beat me here in very close match. It was 50/50 but at the end he won 3:2. We played so many times before and Tomas is very dangerous player. I do not like playing against him. His backhand is very strong so I had to be focused and to stay calm. All this things put pressure on me at the beginning so I started bad. I improved my game as the match progressed I did not panic ” explained CASSIN. Final Alexandre CASSIN (France) – Andreas LEVENKO (Austria) 4:0 (11:1 11:9 11:4 11:8) Semi final Alexandre CASSIN (France) – Tomas POLANSKY (Czech Republic) 4:1(11:13 11:3 11:7 11:9 13:11). Andreas LEVENKO (Austria) -Darko JORGIC (Slovenia) 4:0 (13:11 11:7 11:8 11:3 11:7 11:9 13:1)
Adina DICAONU sealed the Championships with gold
Junior Girls Singles Event For a second year in the row Adina DIACONU clinched the gold medal in the Junior Girls Singles Event. In the final she beat NING Jing of Azerbaijan in straight games. “NING beat Andrea DRAGOMAN in the opening rounds of the Singles event and I am so happy I got the opportunity to play against her and to beat her. I was at the top of the game from the very beginning; she could not surprise me ” said DIACONU. In the semi final NIN Jing overcame Tin Tin Ho of England in straight games whilst Adina DIACONU needed full seven games to overcame ZHANG Xuan Xu of Spain. “ After I made advantage 3:0 ZHANG had nothing to lose and she started to play a lot better. There were no fear in her game any more but at that point I started to panic. She was fearless; she put every ball on the table whatever I had try. At 3:3 I told myself now we are starting new game and I returned to the right tracs” said DIACONU. ”Before decisive game I tried to regain focus. I saw that she is also under pressure. It was important to start the seventh game on top and then it was easier. Final Adina DIACONU (Romania) – NING Jing (Azerbaijan) 4:0 (11:8 11:7 12:10 11:8) Semi final Tin Tin HO (England) – NING Jing (Azerbaijan) 0:4 (5:11 7:11 8:11 2:11) Adina DIACONU (Romania) – ZHANG Xuan Xu (Spain) 4:3 (11:6 12:10 11:6 9:11 5:11 6:11 11:3)
Maria TAILAKOVA defended her crown
Cadet Girls Singles Event Reigning champion in Cadet Girls Singles Event Maria TAILAKOVA defended her crown at the European Youth Championships in Zagreb. In the final she beat Kristina KAZANTSEVA in all-Russian final. “We played against each other so many times before and every time it was close. Now I am very happy I won because I had so much problems during the preparations and I was unable to come here fully ready ” said TAILAKOVA. Kristina KAZANTSEVA beat Zdena BLASKOVA of Czech Republic in the penultimate stage. She needed six games. “Last time when we played against each other I beat her. It was straight games victory in Poland. That gave me confidence before the match and stability in crucial moments. However it was not that easy as it was in Poland. BLASKOVA played very good here and she never gave up. Even when I made little advantage she was always after me; few times she recovered to level but I never let her took the control ” said KAZANTSEVA. After seven games thriller against ZHOU Chuyi of Azerbaijan Maria TAILAKOVA succeeded to the ultimate stage. “In first three games I had problems with the pimples. I lost five points in the row in second game. My coach gave me the new tactics and I knew that I have to put all balls on table. It was receipt and I successfully played in closing stage ” said TAILAKOVA. Final Kristina KAZANTSEVA (Russia) – Maria TAILAKOVA (Russia) 1:4 (9:11 11:7 10:12 12:14 9:11) Semi Final Zdena BLASKOVA (Czech Republic)- Kristina KAZANTSEVA (Russia) 2:4 (13:11 9:11 5:11 11:8 7:11 9:11) ZHOU Chuyi (Azerbaijan) – Maria TAILAKOVA (Russia) 3:4 (9:11 11:9 4:11 11:9 11:8 8:11 9:11)
SIDORENKO clinched the title in explosive final
Cadet Boys Singles Event New champion in Cadet Boys Singles Event is Vladimir SIDORENKO of Russia. In the final of the European Youth Championships he beat Truls MOREGARDH of Sweden to clinch the title. “It was a fantastic match. I struggled but I like to play when I am in reverse. I was down 2-0 in quarterfinals and 3-1 today but in crucial moments I regained the power and I expolded. Today at 8-8 in seventh game I had two good serves and with my first topspin I moved into winning position. My coach advised me to stay calm and I luckily made it ” said SIDORENKO. In the semi final SIDORENKO overcame Carlo ROSSI of Italy in straight games. “I controlled the match from the very first point until the end. I was very focused especially at the beginning. After yesterday’s mistakes I improved that segment. My topspin was at high level “explained SIDORENKO. Truls MOREGARDH of Sweden beat SIDORENKO’s compatriot Lev KATSMAN. “He beat me in the Team’s Event at this championships. I study that match carefully and I saw where I was wrong. Now I was well prepared. I improve my service game and I did not let him put pressure on me ” said MOREGARDH Final Vladimir SIDORENKO (Russia) – Truls MOREGARDH (Sweden) 4:3 (7:11 10:12 11:8 5:11 11:5 11:5 11:9) Semi final Vladimir SIDORENKO (Russia) – Carlo ROSSI (Italy) 4:0 (11:4 11:8 11:5 11:7) Lev KATSMAN (Russia) – Truls MOREGARDH (Sweden) 1:4 (8:11 11:9 8:11 5:11 8:11)
Lisa LUNG and Eline LOYEN won title in dramatic style
Junior Girls Doubles Event In the final of the Junior Girls Doubles Event Lisa LUNG and Eline LOYEN of Belgium recovered from 2:0 in reverse to beat Adina DIACONU and Andreea DRAGOMAN of Romania. “It was amazing. We were two games down but we played very well. We had a feeling we can beat them. It was the same like in quarterfinal when we were 2:1 down and we prevailed against Belaus pairings ” said LOYEN. Adina DIACONU and Andreea DRAGOMAN beat Marie MIGOT and Oceane GUISNEL of France on their way to the final. “For me it was important to me to start the day in a good way because I have to play singles little bit latter. The first set was crucial; we lead 8-2 but then they recovered to level 8-8. We kept our spirit high despite that and won. We were more motivated aggressive ” said DIACONU. Top European player added: “We suffered defeat against them in previous occasion in straight games. Today it was different story. We do not play together for a long time maybe a year. But in this year we practiced a lot and played European tournaments together.” Last year’s quarterfinalists Lisa LUNG and Eline LOYEN of Belgium are together for a three years. In semis they beat ZHANG Xuan Xu and Ana GARCIA of Spain. “We faced few difficulties because they are very smart players. We won our battle thanks to good service. We did not let them play long rallies ” said LOYEN. Final Lisa LUNG Eline LOYEN (Belgium) – Adina DIACONU Andreea DRAGOMAN (Romania) 3:2 (8:11 9:11 11:5 11:9 11:8) Semi Final Marie MIGOT Oceane GUISNEL (France) – Adina DIACONU Andreea DRAGOMAN (Romania) 0:3 (10:12 6:11 10:12) Lisa LUNG Eline LOYEN (Belgium) – ZHANG Xuan Xu Ana GARCIA (Spain) 3:1 (11:4 11:9 4:11 11:7)
