ETTU | 27 Apr 2022

ETTU Board of Appeal decision

The ETTU Executive Board has received the decision of the Board of Appeal (BoA) on the appeal of the Table Tennis Federation of Russia, Fakel Gazprom Orenburg and TTSC UMMC.

The ETTU welcomes the BoA’s ruling to uphold the decision that Russian and Belarusian national teams are banned from ETTU competitions until further notice and that no Russian or Belarusian national symbols, flags or anthems will be displayed at ETTU events until further notice.

The ETTU notes with disappointment that the BoA has ruled against its decision to suspend Fakel Gazprom Orenburg and TTSC UMMC from last season’s semi-final and final of the Champions League. 

While the ETTU has no wish to punish athletes for the decisions of their governments, the decision to suspend the Russian clubs was taken to protect athlete safety and ensure the integrity of its competitions, in line with the recommendations of the IOC and ITTF. 

The ETTU Executive Board will meet to discuss the next steps following the BoA’s decision.