At he Slovak Junior open in Senec, Czech Republic clinched the title in Junior Boys Team’s Event. In Juniors Girls Event India secured top place at the medal rostrum. David REITSPIES, Jakub SEIBERT and Tibor PAVLIK overcame team of India in the final 3:1., At he Slovak Junior open in Senec, Czech Republic clinched the title in Junior Boys Team’s Event. In Juniors Girls Event India secured top place at the medal rostrum. David REITSPIES, Jakub SEIBERT and Tibor PAVLIK overcame team of India in the final 3:1. Previously, in semi final Czech Republic overcame Filip ZELJKO, Tomislav PUCAR and Vedran BAKAC of Croatia in full distance match. India succeeded against Brazil by same margin. In the final of the Junior Girls Team’s Event India overcame Serbia. Manika BATRA, Sutirtha MUKHERJEE and Reeth TENNISON overcame Ana FENJVESI, Viktoria TRUZINSKI and Aneta MAKSUTI in five matches. In semis Serbia overcame Italy’s Francesca TROTTI, Giorgia PICCOLIN and Bianca BRACCO. India beat Turkey’s Simay KULAKCEKEN, Gokce Nur GUNGOR and Ipek KARAHAN.
MAZUNOV & co. playing for gold
Martin OLEJNIK from Czech Republic and Russian Dmitrij MAZUNOV have expectedly entered the men’s 40 semi finals of the 2013 European Veterans Championships in Bremen. OLEJNIK, 2012 runner-up of the World Championships, will face Mukhamed KUSHKHOV from Rus, Martin OLEJNIK from Czech Republic and Russian Dmitrij MAZUNOV have expectedly entered the men’s 40 semi finals of the 2013 European Veterans Championships in Bremen. OLEJNIK, 2012 runner-up of the World Championships, will face Mukhamed KUSHKHOV from Russia. Former bronze medal winner at World Championships, MAZUNOV, plays Thierry MILLER from the Switzerland. “All good things come in threes”, did not apply to Steffen FETZNER. The 1989 World Doubles Champion saved 4 match balls in the round of 128 (Mulid KUSHOV from Russia) and was already down 0-2 games down 1 round later against Frank KASISKE from Berlin. Facing Michael O’DRISCOLL from England in the round of the last 32 he lost his powers. “In the 3rd five-games match in a row I was missing my concentration at the end,” FETZNER stated. Beyond that Michael players some very good balls”. Germany versus the top favorites – that’s the headline in the Men’s 50. Former World and European Champion Mikael APPELGREN as well as four-time Olympian DING Yi from Austria are still in the race as the top-seeds. In the semi-finals they play to Germans: former six-times national champion Georg BÖHM and multiple national veterans champion Manfred NIESWAND. Both won their quarter-finals in 5 games. In the semis on Saturday APPELGREN duels BÖHM, DING Yi plays NIESWAND.
Jing TIAN-ZÖRNER had little time to relax
Jing TIAN-ZÖRNER probably had little time to relax in this season – just look at the following amazing results: Now 50 years of age, she played for Bayer Uerdingen (near Düsseldorf) in the “Oberliga West“ and won all her 50 singles, not losing a sin, Jing TIAN-ZÖRNER probably had little time to relax in this season – just look at the following amazing results: Now 50 years of age, she played for Bayer Uerdingen (near Düsseldorf) in the “Oberliga West“ and won all her 50 singles, not losing a single game. The closest game was 11: 7 in favour of the defensiv artist who became well known in China and Germany. Last year she had an overwhelming record when she represented Holzbüttgen, a small town also near Düsseldorf – in the second Bundesligue at position 1. Jing Tian grew up in the Chinese province Sichuan and was selected to play for China very early. 1990 she came to Germany – her first club was Bayer Uerdingen. After her wedding 1996 she is named TIAN-ZÖRNER. One of the best years in her career was 1999 when she reached the quarterfinals at the World Championships in Eindhoven and occupied position 4 in the World Ranking List. During the EVC in Bremen JIng mainly enjoyes „to meet old friends and make new friends“. Germany is her second home. “I feel very well here“ says the defensiv giant. As coach in the area around Düsseldorf, she she teaches children and youth players with her immense know-how and the experiences she gained over many years. However, she she is still activ in sports herself, besides table tennis in jogging and dancing.
NEMES leads German women to semis
With the reigning national veterans champion Bettina MARTIN, former national team player and Europe Top-12 winner Olga NEMES and Elena LAMONOS,. three German women have entered the semi-finals of the women’s 40. In women’s 50 2-times German national, With the reigning national veterans champion Bettina MARTIN, former national team player and Europe Top-12 winner Olga NEMES and Elena LAMONOS,. three German women have entered the semi-finals of the women’s 40. In women’s 50 2-times German national Champion and quarter-finalist in singles of the 1999 World Championships in Eindhoven, JING Tian-Zörner, still has not lost a single game so far. The defensive ace will play Maria GAFTEA from Romania in the semis, TIAN-ZÖRNER’S doubles partner, Vera BAZZI from Switzerland, faces Ulrike KRETSCHMER from Germany. All semi-finals and finals of the singles events take place on Saturday. Friday is reserved for the doubles in all 8 age groups each for men and women. The only exception: the women’s 85. Because there are 5 ladies only, they play a round robin system and complete their group matches on Friday. On Saturday, there is the doubles final between Ursula BIHL/INGE-Brigitte HERRMANN (91 and 92 years old) from Germany and Laimdota JORDANE/Eliska KREJCOVA (LAT/CZE).
TT moves up a group in new IOC IF Funding Distribution
Previously listed in the fourth group for the distribution of Olympic revenues to international federations, table tennis has received a major boost by being promoted to the third group. The announcement was made in the Russian city of St Petersburg on We, Previously listed in the fourth group for the distribution of Olympic revenues to international federations, table tennis has received a major boost by being promoted to the third group. The announcement was made in the Russian city of St Petersburg on Wednesday 29th May 2013 by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at the SportAccord Convention; an occasion where a joint meeting comprising the IOC Executive Board and the Association of Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) was staged. A higher rating underlines the secure status of table tennis within the Olympic movement, as it is a sport with global popularity with 218 member associations, promotes the ideals of the Olympic Spirit, and was a huge success at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Since table tennis’s inclusion in the Olympic program in Seoul 1988, it has grown in stature, which was portrayed in London, where 99.3% of tickets were sold and over 460,000 hours of table tennis was watched on TV globally. “Our goal now is to move in the top five as explained at the AGM in Paris; “P” for promotion as the main priority of our P5 plan, powered by the new DBI system of operations will definitely lead us in the right direction of the top sports in the World”, stressed Adham SHARARA. “I am delighted that this excellent news sets the stage to reach our goal and provides all of us, volunteers and professionals, the motivation to keep on working for our sport.” Sports were judged according to six criteria, each being given a weighting factor. Television: the television audiences that each sport attracted during the games – Factor 40 Internet: the number of internet page views and social media mentions – Factor 20 General public: favourite sports, according to a survey – Factor 15 Spectators: ticket requests in the host territory – Factor 10 Press: number of favourable press articles – Factor 10 Universality: number of national federations – Factor 5 The ranking of Olympic Sports are as follows: Group A: aquatics, athletics, gymnastics Group B: basketball, cycling, football (soccer), tennis, volleyball Group C: archery, badminton, boxing, judo, rowing, shooting, table tennis, weightlifting Group D: canoe/kayak, equestrian, fencing, handball, (field) hockey, sailing, taekwondo, triathlon, wrestling Group E: modern pentathlon, golf, rugby sevens
Time has stopped for FETZNER and BÖHM
Two former German top players enrich the European Veterans Championships in Bremen: Steffen FETZNER and Georg BÖHM. Signing autographs and having pictures taken with fans equally belongs to their everyday life like playing topspins. “Speedy” F, Two former German top players enrich the European Veterans Championships in Bremen: Steffen FETZNER and Georg BÖHM. Signing autographs and having pictures taken with fans equally belongs to their everyday life like playing topspins. “Speedy” FETZNER enjoys the attention: “It’s nice to see how people get excited.” Their cheers to him were welcome. The 1989 World Doubles Champion almost lost in the 1st round of the main draw. Against Mulid KUSHOV from Russia (2nd Bundes League player) he was 1-2 and 6-10 down, but still fought off the match points and won in five games. “I was already 90 per cent out. That really was a heavy chunk for the first round. I have already lost to him in the past. It’s not easy if you practice little,” says the lucky winner. In the 2nd round, too, FETZNER did not have an easy task, beat German Frank KASISKE in another 5 games, a former German National Champion in Men’s 40 from Berlin. But his journey concluded in Round of 32 Michael O`DRISCOLL from England proved too strong today for the great champion. FETZNER was known as a top players for more than 20 years. His most important success was the victory in the doubles with Jörg ROSSKOPF at the 1989 World Championships in Dortmund as he explains. Next to that it was the Olympic silver medal in doubles in Barcelona 1992. The transition from competitive sports to an almost every-day athlete was relatively easy for him, says FETZNER: “I’ve made the transition step by step, so that the whole thing was very smooth”. He is still in touch regularly with his national team mates and players from abroad regularly. With his doubles partner in Bremen, Heiko WIRKNER, he plays in the 4th German league for TV Mosbach in the next season. Fun is important there, too. FETZNER and Georg BOHM have earned national and international merits in their careers. One is now working as a product manager of table tennis manufacturer DONIC, the other one is a network administrator. At the European Veterans Championships in Bremen they come together again. Computer expert BOHM started to play table tennis at the age of 7. Born in Romania, he won 25 national titles. In 1980, he settled near Frankfurt/Main and later competed for Germany. There, he became one of the strongest players, a.o. six times national champions in singles. He participated in 8 European Championships for Germany and in 6 World Championships. Recently the 51-year-old relegated to the Bundesliga with his latest club TTC Hagen. In Bremen he competes in doubles with Andreas FEJER-KONNERT, Zoltan FEJER-KONNERTH’S uncle, they get along very well and are both of Romanian origin. “The tournament is nothing to hang out. The longer the event takes, the more this becomes true”, says BÖHM, who was one of the favourites in the singles and doubles events, even though he competes in doubles in the Men’s 40 as FEJER-KONNERT is younger.
Albanian team joined EUROKIDS in Cetinje
After hosting a very successful Regional Eurokids last year, Montenegro is doing it again with a traditional Eurokids camp. Cetinje, the former royal capital of Montenegro, has provided very good conditions for the camp even though the promised warm weath, After hosting a very successful Regional Eurokids last year, Montenegro is doing it again with a traditional Eurokids camp. Cetinje, the former royal capital of Montenegro, has provided very good conditions for the camp even though the promised warm weather is late getting here. However, as the first message to the kids is that a positive attitude is one of the key ingredients to success, they were up at 7h for the morning run and in the hall on time for the first practice. Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Finland, Luxembourg, Montenegro and Serbia have been joined for the first time by a team of 2 boys and 2 girls from Albania together with coach Xhorxhi SKUFI. Coach SKUFI was very happy: “We are so happy to be here with teams from other countries. It is an invaluable experience for our kids. Thank you to our federation and to the ETTU for making it possible. Of course, now we have to find a way to come back every time and to keep collaborating with the ETTU and other countries in the region”. ETTU Development manager Lila de SOYSA, will visit the city of Skodra in Albania on Saturday and make a presentation to the officials there. The Head coach in the hall is Branka BATINIC (Croatia) together with coaches Aliaksandra SIPACH from Belarus, Samuli SOINE (Finland), Dragos OLTENAU (Luxembourg), Nada BANJAC (Serbia), Jesus GONZALEZ (Belgium), Kremena HRISTOVA (Bulgaria), Cedomir DAMJANOVIC, Vesko LIPOVINA, Andrijana RAKOCEVIC and Goran PREMOVIC (Montenegro) and Zoran DJOKIC from Serbia. On the way to Cetinje, the ETTU Youth and Development Manager together with Head Coach Branka BATINIC visited the city of Mostar in Herzegovina where they visited the club of Mostar and met with the Sports Director and the General Secretary, Vedran SIMUNOVIC. Mostar club has the only permanent table tennis hall in Bosnia & Herzegovina, the only sports hall to be built after the war. Mostar is also where Dragutin SURBEK Junior plays in the first division. They have over 130 young players as well as one full-time coach. They have many recreational players and also have a programme for players with disabilities. Mostar is very interested in following in the footsteps of Cetinje and organising a regional Eurokids in the near future. Radio Montenegro and the local newspapers visited the camp, and the ETTU Manager, Head Coach and coach Cedomir DAMJANOVIC from Cetinje were given 10 minutes live on the Montenegro national TV at 17pm yesterday, from the studio in Podgorica. Prof. Zoran DJOKIC from Serbia gave a special talk on nutrition to the children which was very entertaining and informative.
Two more gold medals for Luxembourg
The table tennis competition at the 15th Games of the Small States of Europe continued today with the both Men’s and Women’s Doubles Events and same as in team’s event, host nation dominated. In men’s Doubles Event Gilles MICHELY and Mike BAST clinched go, The table tennis competition at the 15th Games of the Small States of Europe continued today with the both Men’s and Women’s Doubles Events and same as in team’s event, host nation dominated. In men’s Doubles Event Gilles MICHELY and Mike BAST clinched gold by recording all four victories. Anthony PERETTI and David SAMSON of Monaco are second, whilst Irfan CEKIC and Viktor ROGIC of Montenegro are third. NI Xia Lian and Sarah De NUTTE followed the steps of their compatriots. Luxembourg’s pairings recorded all four victories. Viktoria LUCENKOVA and LU Pengfei of Malta are second whilst Ulrika QUIST and Lauren RILEY of Monaco won bronze.
Small States: double title for Luxembourg
Luxembourg clinched both gold in table tennis Team’s events at the 15th Games of the Small States of Europe. In men’s Team’s Event Gilles MICHELY, Traian CIOCIU and Mike BAST recorded three 3:0 victories. They beat Malta, Montenegro and San Marino in stra, Luxembourg clinched both gold in table tennis Team’s events at the 15th Games of the Small States of Europe. In men’s Team’s Event Gilles MICHELY, Traian CIOCIU and Mike BAST recorded three 3:0 victories. They beat Malta, Montenegro and San Marino in straight matches. Only Monaco managed to put them under pressure. They were forced to go full distance against Anthony PERETTI, David SAMSON and Martin TISO. Monaco clinched silver and Malta is third. NI Xia Lian, Tessy GONDERINGER and Sarah De NUTTE succeeded against Malta, Monaco, San Marino and Iceland. Malta is second and Monaco is third. All matches title winners won by 3:0 margin.
UMMC is the new Russian champion
UMMC is new Russian champion, defeating the winner of last two seasons Fakel Gazproma Orenburg 4:2 in third final match at Moscow. Powerfull Chinese MA Lin, the hero of first two matches, missed today`s encounter, but even without him Verkhnaya Pyshma`s s, UMMC is new Russian champion, defeating the winner of last two seasons Fakel Gazproma Orenburg 4:2 in third final match at Moscow. Powerfull Chinese MA Lin, the hero of first two matches, missed today`s encounter, but even without him Verkhnaya Pyshma`s side managed to beat actual Men`s ECL champion. The key-match was between two domestic players as Alexander SHIBAEV overcame Alexey SMIRNOV in four sets. This is the second crown for UMMC while Orenburg has five. Third final game of Russian League: Fakel Gazproma Orenburg – UMMC 2:4 (1st leg 3:4, 2nd 4:3) Alexey SMIRNOV – TAN Ruiwu 1:3 (7:11, 3:11, 11:9, 5:11) Dmitrij OVTCHAROV – HOU Yingchao 1:3 (12:14, 8:11, 11:2, 8:11) Vladimir SAMSONOV – Alexander SHIBAEV 3:1 (7:11, 11:4, 11:3, 11:7) SAMSONOV/SMIRNOV – TAN/SHIBAEV 1:3 (7:11, 11:9, 10:12, 5:11) Dmitrij OVTCHAROV – TAN Ruiwu 3:0 (11:8, 15:13, 11:6) Alexey SMIRNOV – Alexander SHIBAEV 1:3 (5:11, 11:6, 8:11, 7:11)
