Men’s ETTU Cup semi final In France Stella Sport La Romagne easily prevailed in the first leg of the Men’s ETTU Cup against Russia’s UMMC. Tianyuan CHEN and Shiaho WEI beat Andrej GACINA and Alexander SHIBAEV by straight games whilst Adrian CRISAN was streched to full distance against Grigory VLASOV before hosts recorded victory. “The presence of two Chinese players in the French team and CRISAN as the number three makes this team not just strong but very strong capable of defeating any rivals. By that I include all the best teams in ETTU Cup and the TTCLM teams. Secondly the unintelligible game of SHIBAEV and GACHINA affected the outcome of the match ” explained coach Tatiana KUTERGINA. At least Russia’s club will have the home advantage now. “Now in order to reach the final we can only lose one game … The task is extremely difficult but twice we came out of such situations before. Players understand the difficulty of the situation. We will fight!” promised KUTERGINA. Currently in the national championships the club is fighting for the top. “In the Russian Club Championship we are on the 2nd place. There is another round ahead and the Super Final. As of now all players are fit and getting ready for the 2 leg match in Verkhnaya Pyshma.”
Linz faces two crucial games in four days
Austrian champion plays Superleague final on Tuesday and the returning semi-final leg of ECLW on Friday Austrian champion Linz AG Froschberg is fully prepared for a busy week in which they will play Superliga`s final and European Champions League Women semi-final. Both will be held away as Linz`s president Günther RENNER explains: “The preparation will be good but we have to go to Szekszard AC Tuesday and play the Superlliga finale in the evening. We will be back in LINZ Wednesday morning and have to go to Berlin the next day. The schedule could have been made wiser I have to say because we play now the two most important matches of the whole season within 4 days. Anyway we will try our best in Berlin too. We will use every chance to reach the final also in Champions League. “ Austrian side lost the first ECLW semi-final leg at home soil 3:2 playing against reigning champion TTC Berlin Eastside. Returning game will be held on April 7th in Germany (18:30 CET). RENNER stressed two weeks ago that “the score 2:3 or 3:2 does not play a determining role”: “We are expecting a hard fight in do-or-die match in Berlin. Nothing has been decided yet. Memories of the last year are still fresh when we lost home game against Metz 2:3 but managed to progress thanks to a single point”.
Bursa seaks their revenge against Lyssois Lille Metropole
Women’s ETTU Cup In the opening leg of the Women’s ETTU Cup Bursa Büyükşehir Belediyespor beat CP Lyssois Lille Metropole. In France hey succeded by narow margin 3:2. European Champion HU Melek was a back bone of the success with two wins over Agnès LE LANNIC and Yue WU. Next week Bursa Büyükşehir Belediyespor she hopes to seal the match victoriously. “I want that final. I feel good my performance is at the top level and I trust my team mates very much. As you know I had many successes with Turkish national team and clubs now I am aiming for the title in European Cup. However firstly I want to bring the final to Bursa ” said HU Melek. In the opening leg Alexandra PRIVALO lost her encounter against Yue WU but beat Agnes LELANNIC in the fourth match to conclude the duel. “We’re expecting one stronger player to play against us this time BERNADETTE. She didn’t play in the first match as she was injured however now she’s fine and she will attend to second event. So the match won’t be that easy for us to get the victory agan but we are sure that we will do our best to reach the final. This time we will play in Bursa so we trust in our fans they will provide the support we need ” said PRIVALOVA. Simay she’s the only Turkey-born lady of ETTU and she is one of the youngest players in the Cup. She is first year senior. “To play on this level of competition is the important chance for me. I am the only young Turkish player who has this chance on the Continental level so I am very ambitious. This match means a lot to me this match is most important one in my career so far. I will play at my best and I hope this will bring the victory to us.” Coach Mehmet ASLAN remainded that club Management stays firmly behind the club. “Our club’s Managers have been making a serious investment in our team in recent years. We are working hard to bring sucess to Bursa In order to accomplish this we’ve set a really impressive team soul we are working hard and we are aiming the top. We lost the Cup just on the last match last year against Lille. This year we are facing Lille on the semi-final; we have learnt many things from last year. It’s time to use this experience and reach the final. We are ambitious we are excited and we are ready.” Bursa has won Turkish Cup just two days ago.
Without European players in the last two days in Bangkok
2017 ITTF Challenge Thailand Open (March 29th – April 2nd) There will be no European players in the last two days of the 2017 ITTF Challenge Thailand Open in Bangkok. All four representatives of Old Continent were eliminated in the Round of 32 of the singles events. In the women`s competition Chinese Taipei`s WANG Yi-Ju beat Portugal`s SHAO Jieni (Portugal) 4:2 (11:5 9:11 7:11 11:9 12:10 11:6) while Korean player KIM Seoyeon prevailed against Netherlands` Britt EERLAND 4:0 (11:6 11:5 11:1 11:3). Two top seeds reached semi-final stage Hong Kong`s DOO Hoi Kem and Japan`s Hitomi SATO. Top seeded player of the Men`s Singles GAO Ning from Singapore defeated Switzerland`s Daniel MEMMI in straight games as well as Gavin RUMGAY from Scotland who suffered by the hands of Japanese Yuma TSUBOI. PARK Jeongwoo overcame second seeded Kenji MATSUDAIRA from Japan in six games of the quarter-final while GAO managed to reach semis in spite of being extended to full distance by Chinese Taipei`s LIN Yun-Ju. RUMGAY and MEMMI played together in the Men`s Doubles Event but lost in the Round of 16 from Malaysia`s pair Javen CHOONG and Muhamad Ashraf HAIQAL 3:0 (11:9 11:9 11:7).
HIRICI: Both teams will be under pressure
Tigem SC Ankara in Women’s ETTU Cup semis Tigem SC Ankara beat Russia’s TTC Kazan in Turkey Earlier in March in the opening leg of the Women’s ETTU Cup. Now they will have harder task to justify their success in Russia. In the opening leg Cristina Alina HIRICI won both her matches against Anna BLAZHKO and Antonina SAVELYEVA. “I expect the forthcoming match will be very close and both teams will be under severe pressure. It is going to be very hard to play it. However we have the huge advantage The opening leg victory burst our self confidence and it will help us there. We will give everything to reach the final” said HIRICI. Zoia NOVIKOVA overcame Antonina SAVELYEVA in previous match. “The match in Russia will be difficult but I hope it will be interesting. It will not be easy to play in the new hall. When you play at home in the conditions you are used to with many supporters it is a big thing at such level of play ” explained NOVIKOVA. Manager Salih İNCE was cautious. “We have won first match at home 3-1. The score line looks nice but we are sure that we can not be relaxed. On this level of event we must stay focused on each ball. We have seen so many times that even one point could be vital. The match will be very tough. Kazan will perform much better on home soil and we will be prepared for that.”
Wales concluded victoriously first part of qualifications
European Teams Championships Qualifications Postponed match between Wales and Kosovo was the last one in F Group of the Women’s Championships Division in European Teams Championships Qualifications. Host nation remained at position no. two in the Group after victory over Kosovo. In previous Rounds Wales was defeated twice in both occasions Austria prevailed but in both duels against Kosovo they succeeded. The team was not the same as it was the case in November but the result was the same 3:0. In Cardiff Charlotte CAREY Beth ROBERTS and Anna HURSEY easily prevailed. Kosovo failed to produce victory nor to won the match in previous rounds. Wales – Kosovo 3:0 Charlotte CAREY – Era JANIEVA 3:0 (11:4 11:3 11:8) Beth ROBERTS – Vlona MALKOU 3:0 (11:1 11:5 11:8) Anna HURSEY – Nehare SANIEVA 3:0 (11:9 12:10 11:9)
Two legends united again: Timo BOLL and MA Long
Doubles partners from Suzhou will play together once again at the LIEBHERR 2017 World Championships in Dusseldorf (May 29th – June 5th) Two table tennis legends Germany`s Timo BOLL and China`s MA Long will be once again doubles partners at the LIEBHERR 2017 World Championships in Dusseldorf (May 29th – June 5th). Their partnership commenced successfully four years ago as they won 2013 ITTF World Tour in the Chinese city of Chengdu whilst their debut at the world championships was below their expectations. In the 2015 World Championships in Suzhou they were eliminated in the second round by the eventual champions XU Xin and ZHANG Jike from China. “I am looking forward to our second partnership at a World Championships” stated Timo BOLL. “On one hand I have a good contact with MA Long also away from the table while on the other hand our performances at the both China Open 2013 and 2015 in Suzhou brought memorable moments for both of us in spite of reaching different results. This is our third attempt as well as one more career highlight for me to play with MA Long at home soil in Dusseldorf.” MA is actual World No. 1 and both World and Olympic champion. Six times individual European champion BOLL currently occupies World No. 12. German Table Tennis Association (DTTB) also announced that Petrissa SOLJA will play in the Mixed Doubles alongside Chinese FANG Bo. Sport director of DTTB Richard PRAUSE stressed that these two partnerships are result of good relations with Chinese federation while DTTB president Michael GEIGER added: “This is a special gesture from China with respect to the German Table Tennis Association and German sport which Timo BOLL has been representing in a good light in China in the last fifteen years. It will be a good thing for the table tennis fans.” Petrissa SOLJA is delighted by the fact that she plays alongside World`s No. 10: “It will be very special for me to play beside such good player from the strongest world table tennis nation. XU Xin and YANG Haeun showed how successful this can work when they became world champions two years ago in Suzhou.”
Vaillante Sports Angers prepares for the second leg
Men’s ETTU Cup In the opening leg of the Men’s ETTU Cup Vaillante Sports Angers TT beat SPG Walter Wels in Austria 3:1. Emmanuel LEBESSON Jon PERSSON and Jens LUNDQUIST prevailed against WANG Jianjun Mihai BOBOCICA and Zsolt PETÖ in the match that produced few upsets. “The first match was very important. It was the key to our success. Jon PERSSON beat the no. one player in the Wels’ club WANG Jianjun. We know him very well because he played for Pontoise for many seasons and beat many players of my club during that time. Then we thought that we could win second match and LEBESSON was on the good track after 2:0 advantage. However BOBOCICA moved to another level he improved his game and in the closing stages he had a little bit of luck too. At 1:1 the match was open but even not fully fit LUNDQUIST won 3:0. His knee was not completely recovered but he performed well ” said Gérard SARAZIN Président of the Vaillante Angers. Emmanuel LEBESSON also moved to another gear to beat WANG Jianjun in the fourth match. “We have a good set average but the game is not closed. I think that Jianjun will play beter in Angers.” Currently Vaillante Sports Angers occupies position no. 7 in the French Pro A. “For sure we are not satisfied with our position because with this team we expected to finish in the top 4. However LEBESSON’S season is very strange; after his European title he was so tired and had so many interviews for French TV newspapers radio and then he was injured for nearly 3 months…Now everything is all right but we need to take more points to be safe. The competition in Pro A is so fierce this season and it is not an easy task at all ” concluded Gérard SARAZIN.
Olomouc will host two big International events
European Universities Table Tennis Championships Olomouc will host two big international events in table tennis this summer. Except the traditional ITTF World Tour – Czech Open there will be the 8th European Universities Table Tennis Championship in June. Its venue will be the Olomouc Palacký university sport hall from the 20th till 25th June. Academic table tennis is becoming more popular among young table tennis players around the world. The winners of world universiades are becoming successful also at important international competitions of adult players. Even the table tennis players belonging to elite top 100 of world ranking are the winners of EUC. The most famous among them is Kirill SKACHKOV. A Novokuzneck man playing for Orenburg State University gained six medals including four gold. For the second time Czech republic welcomes European Universities Table Tennis Championship. The first championship took place in Ostrava in 2007. This June students will fight for academic titles in Olomouc. The organisers expect record breaking number of participants from all European regions. Among the numerous participants the Czech university students will not be missing. „In Czech Republic the interest in academic table tennis is increasing in last years. Regarding the academic European championship right at the first championship in Ostrava Dana CECHOVA-HADACOVA excelled and gained silver medal in singles. The last EUC in Geneva in 2015 was even better for us. Michal BENES gained gold in singles and together with Ondrej BAJGER won gold in doubles“ reminded us abou the biggest success of Czech university students at EUC Vit RATAJSKY the chairman of Czech University Sports Association Table Tennis Committee. Academic table tennis championships have their own friendly atmosphere. The first Czech medallist Dana CECHOVA-HADACOVA knows a lot about it. „Students events are are different from the top ones. People talk more communicate it is more relaxed and there is not such a rivalry and competition. But it doesn´t mean the students competitions has less quality. For example in Ostrava in 2007 very good Russian women took part. I remember that in the singles semifinal I defeated Anna TICHOMIROVA who later became a main player of Russian national team and participated even at the Olympic Games in London“ said Dana CECHOVA-HADACOVA Czech national team player at the first European Universities Championship in Ostrava. The Europen University Sports Association assigned the organisation of the 8th European Universities Table Tennis Championship in 2017 to Czech republic specifically to Olomouc the seat of Palacký University. The venue of the June championship will be Olomouc university sport hall where traditionally every August Czech Open – the ITTF World Tour tournament takes place. „I trust the academic European championship even helps increase the interest in academic table tennis in our country“ continues Vit RATAJSKY and adds: „It will be one of the most significant events of this year. Preparations are culminating. I trust the tournament will be managed on top level.“ European Universities Championship is a specific event to which not national federations but individual universities or colleges sent their athletes. There will be six events at the 8th EUC in Olomouc – men´s and women´s teams men´s and women´s singles men´s and women´s doubles. In singles the title of champion went to Michal BENES from the Technical University of Ostrava (CZE) and to Anna BLAZHKO representing the Institute of Economics Management & Law Kazan (RUS). Who wins this June in Olomouc? Find more about the 8th European Universities Table Tennis Championship in Olomouc at http://tabletennis2017.eusa.eu Text and photos: František ZÁLEWSKÝ
Silver for Swedish Mini-Cadet Boy in Paraguay
Tom HOLMQVIST finished second at the 2017 Paraguay Junior & Cadet Open ITTF Junior Circuit in Asuncion Tom HOLMQVIST from Sweden won silver medal at the 2017 Paraguay Junior & Cadet Open ITTF Junior Circuit in Asuncion as he lost to second seeded Brazilian Joon SHIM in straight games of the final match – 3:0 (11:7 11:4 11:5). In the semi-final game HOLMQVIST defeated his compatriot Love IWARSSON 3:1 (11:6 11:9 6:11 11:8) while SHIM overcame Argentinean Facundo DE LEON 3:0 (11:7 11:4 11:7). Swedish national team composed by nine boys has represented Europe at the 2017 Paraguay Junior & Cadet Open. Mini-Cadet players were most successful part of the squad having three quarter-finalists.
