Injured Zhang Jike Withdraws from ITTF World Tour Grand Finals

Chinese superstar ZHANG Jike has withdrawn from the Seamaster Qatar 2016 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals with an ankle injury.

The injury is the same one that forced the world number four to pull out from the recent Austrian and Swedish ITTF World Tour events last month.

The news has left the London 2012 Olympic Champion's 7.6 million weibo fans devastated, as they were looking forward to seeing their hero in action for the first time since September's China Open.

The reports coming out of China state that the injury occurredwhen the double World Champion was filming for a reality show where he was eventually chased after by his fans who couldn't contain their excitement upon seeing him. This caused ZHANG to sprain his ankle and was not able to recoverin time for the ITTF World Tour Grand Finals.

The injury means that the Rio 2016 Olympic Games silver medalist will have to wait another 12 months for the chance to win the ITTF World Tour Grand Finals title, the one major table tennis title eluding him in his decorated career.

Japan's Koki NIWA is the the lucky player who now takes ZHANG Jike's place at the Seamaster Qatar 2016 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals which will take place 8-11 December in Doha, Qatar.

Olufunke OSHONAIKE (NGR) has become the Women's African champion an amazing 24 years after she first won the title.

The 41-year-old Nigerian veteran first won the African title in 1992 and her last triumph came in 2002 before her triumph on Sunday 30 October 2016 at the ITTF-Africa Championships in Agadir, Morocco.

OSHONAIKE faced younger opponent Dina MESHREF (EGY) who has dominated African table tennis in the previous years in the Women's Singles final. It was OSHONAIKE who made the better start, moving ahead 2-0, before MESHREF responded to bring the score level to 2-2. However, age proved to be just a number as OSHONAIKE won game five and six to clinch the title 11-7, 13-11, 5-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-7.

After winning the emotional title, OSHONAIKE stated: "This victory means a lot to me that I can still become African champion despite my age. It shows that nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it. I feel great and I am so excited that I can still do it and this is also an inspiration for girls that no matter your age, you can achieve whatever you want to in life."

In the Men's Singles, Omar ASSAR (EGY) won the African title for the second time in a row.

The Men's Singles finals matchup between Omar ASSAR (EGY) and Quadri ARUNA (NGR) was also one that many were looking forward to due to ARUNA's historic run to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games quarterfinal.

The match did not disappoint, with the African superstars producing a seven games epic thriller, where ASSAR was able to hold his nerve to win 10-12, 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 12-10, 6-11, 11-9.

After claiming his second consecutive title, ASSAR stated: "It was really a crazy match because against Quadri, it is always very exciting. I gave my 100 percent concentration and I was listening more to my coach, AshrafHELMY. I think ARUNA played very well because he was always changing service and he was more aggressive on his forehand. I am so happy retaining the title and I hope I can play better than this in future tournaments."

ARUNA did not go home empty-handed, teaming up with Nigerian teammate Segun TORIOLA (NGR) to defeat the Egyptian pair Lashin EL-SAYED and Ahmed ALI SALEH (EGY) to clinch the Men's Doubles title.

Egypt dominated the Women's Doubles and Mixed Doubles events with Dina MESHREF partnering her cousin Yousra HELMY to win the Women's Doubles title, and also winning the Mixed Doubles event with Omar ASSAR.

Egypt completed a memorable African Championships by claiming both the Men's & Women's Team titles to add to their success in the individual events.

All attention now turned to the 2016 ITTF World Tour Hybiome Austrian Open, to be held on 9-13 November 2016 in Linz, Austria.

Revised TTFI calendar for 2016 from September to January 2017

Award Ceremony of Asian Championships, Bangkok

Six cities that have won the right to host a 2017 ITTF World Tour Platinum events along with regular ITTF World Tour events

ITTF Announces 12 Host Cities for New & Improved 2017 World Tour

The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) is excited to announce the 12 cities that will host the new and improved 2017 ITTF World Tour events.

The revamped ITTF World Tour will have a new logo, new branding and a new structure to better promote table tennis globally.

On the announcement, ITTF Marketing Director Steve DAINTON stated: "In 2016, we have worked hard to look at ways to push the World Tour product forward, with new partners and new conditions, the desire to host events has dramatically increased and we are so pleased to see conditions such as prize money increasing as well. We will now push forward to ensure events can grow both in terms of popularity and commercially so that over time we can showcase international table tennis more regularly throughout the year."

The 2017 World Tour will be split into two tiers, six ITTF World Tour Platinum events, which is the new top tier of the World Tour, and six regular ITTF World Tour events.

There was an unprecedented amount of bids to be a part of the new ITTF World Tour, with the result being a higher prize money pool for all players.

The six ITTF World Tour Platinum events will have higher prize money, and be of a higher level organisation, which will ensure the attendance of the world's best players, resulting in more international exposure for the hosts.

The six cities that have won the right to host a 2017 ITTF World Tour Platinum event are:

• Doha, Qatar: 23-26 February 2017
• Tokyo, Japan: 16-18 June 2017
• Chengdu, China: 22-25 June 2017
• Gold Coast, Australia: 29 June - 2 July 2017
• Linz, Austria: 1- 3 September 2017
• Magdeburg, Germany 10-12 November 2017

The regular ITTF World Tour events are:

• Budapest, Hungary: 19-22 January 2017
• New Delhi, India: 16-19 February 2017
• Incheon, Korea: 20-23 April 2017
• Olomouc, Czech Republic: 24-27 August 2017
• Panagyurishte, Bulgaria: 7-10 September 2017
• Stockholm, Sweden: 16-19 November 2017

Australia & Austria move up to the top World Tour tier for the first time, after successfully hosting regular lower-tiered World Tour events. India joins the ITTF World Tour for the first time, with New Delhi hosting the breakthrough event in February next year.

The 12 events all offer World Tour Standings points, which will be used to determine the top 16 players that qualify for the World Tour Grand Finals, to be held from 14-17 December 2017 in a location to be determined.

Bidding for the 2018 ITTF World Tour will open in November.

Women's Team Semifinal Places Determined at Rio 2016

Semifinals places for the Rio 2016 Olympic Table Tennis Women's Team has been finalized today, 13 August 2016 at Riocentro Pavilion 3, with all going according to the team seeding.

Singapore overcame Korea Republic 3-2 in an enthralling Quarterfinals encounter to move on and face off the defending Olympic Champions, China in the Women's Team Semifinals.

Coming back from 1-2 matches down, 22-year-old ZHOU Yihan saved the day for the Singaporean team, upsetting world number eighteen SUH, pushing the encounter into the fifth match where word number four FENG took on 2015 World Mixed Doubles Champion YANG Haeun.

YANG continued her strong form in the doubles match, which she won with world number eleven JEON Jihee, to challenge FENG into a 5 games duel, but It was the more experienced FENG who stood up to the test and seal the victory in front of a cheering Singaporean contingent led by the Republic's President.

Winning two points for the team, FENG shared "It was an intense and tough match. I played the first and last match, so both are very crucial. It's good that we didn't come into the match with too much pressure, and all three of us fought hard for every point."

Singapore will now meet top seeded China in the Semifinals, and will be looking to repeat their heroics at the 2010 World Team Championships, where they upset China to claim the first World Championships Gold for Singapore.

In a repeat of the 2015 World Team Cup Final, China defeated DPR Korea in three straight matches.

Women's Singles Finalists LI Xiaoxia (CHN) and DING Ning (CHN) teamed with world number one LIU Shiwen in hope of claiming a third consecutive Team Gold since the team event was incorporated into the Olympic Games in 2008.

All attention was on KIM Song I (PRK), who was the surprise Bronze medalist in the Women's Single event after shocking several top ranked players including world number six Kasumi ISHIKAWA and world number eight Ai FUKUHARA to claim the first ever Olympic Table Tennis medal for DPR Korea.

Meeting KIM for the first time, LIU stated "KIM Song I is very smart with her strategy, kept varying her playing style to create more challenges for me. I'm happy that I came through to win against her."

Japan, who won silver at the London 2012 Women's Team event, face the tough challenge of the Austrian women's team, who were looking to repeat the success of their mens team earlier in the day. The Japanese women, having their eyes set on the Olympic team medal after missing out on an Olympic Singles medal, gave the Austrians no chance of recovery, winning 3-0 to make their third consecutive Semifinals appearance.

Japan will play Germany in the second Semifinal match. Fourth seeded in the Team event, the German trio of HAN Ying, Petrissa SOLJA and SHAN Xiaona had knocked out a spirited Hong Kong team 3-1 to make it to their first Olympic Team Semifinals.

In addition to the Women's Quarterfinal matches, the second half of the men's Round of 16 matches were played today.

The blockbuster tie was between Austria and Portugal, who are respectively the 2015 and 2014 European Team champions. Every match was extremely close, but it was Austria who prevailed 3-1 to book their ticket in the Quarterfinals.

Austria will face the London 2012 silver medalists Germany, who survived a scare to beat Chinese Taipei 3-1. Both of Germany's top players Timo BOLL and Dimitrij OVTCHAROV had a point to prove after their earlier than expected exits from the Singles event. They both bounced back brilliantly to win their singles matches and secure the win for the number two seeds, despite losing the doubles tie.

Japan were expected to beat Portugal easily to move to the next round, but they were pushed much more than expected. It was up to the singles bronze medalist Jun MIZUTANI to save Japan by winning both his singles matches to help Japan win 3-2 a place in the Quarterfinals against Hong Kong China, who defeated Australia 3-0.

These four teams join China, Great Britain, Korea Republic and Sweden in tomorrow's Quarterfinal.

MA Long Completes Golden Grand Slam with Rio 2016 Gold

Reigning World Champion and Men's World Cup Champion MA Long (CHN) has become the Rio 2016 Olympic Games champion after beating defending Champion ZHANG Jike (CHN) and achieve his first Golden Grand Slam title.

In a highly anticipated final that the world was waiting for, MA was clearly showed his dominance throughout the match to sweep the second seed 4-0 (14-12, 11-5, 11-4, 11-4) to deny ZHANG of his second career Grand Slam.

The newly crowned Olympic Champion shared "I played well throughout the match, the title is only possible with that high level of play."

MA added that "We both know each other very well, so it's not a competition of skills, but more of mentality and psychology. For me, I'm not defending any title here, so I have less pressure on court. After winning, I'm still feeling calm. This moment, I think I have improved."

Currently ranked first in the world, MA was in unbeatable form in 2015, claiming all major men's singles world titles - World Championships, Men's World Cup, ITTF World Tour Grand Finals.

Failing to defend his title against MA, ZHANG reflected "The crucial part of the game lies in the first game, I was still slow in my reacting and weaker in rallies with my backhand. If I had won the first game, the whole match might have turned a different way."

"MA Long's skills are better than mine, no matter is it in his first three strokes, or changing between attacking and blocking. Congratulations to him!" added the two-time World Champion.

Jun MIZUTANI (JPN) took home the Bronze medal with a 4-1 victory over Vladimir SAMSONOV (BLR).

The 8-time Japanese National Champion started by dominating the first game 11-4, and winning the second 11-9. Despite SAMSONOV recovering to take the third game, MIZUTANI was determined not to follow the footsteps of compatriot Ai FUKUHARA (JPN) who crumpled 4-1 to KIM Song I (PRK) yesterday in the battle for Women's Singles Bronze.

MIZUTANI returned to the table strong after losing the third game, and ended matters 4-1 (11-4, 11-9, 6-11, 14-12, 11-8) to win a first Olympic table tennis singles medal for Japan.

"I feel very happy! This is the best feeling ever!" stated the world number six after his historic victory.

"SAMSONOV was not an easy opponent to play as we know each other very well. Although he came back and won a game, and was close to winning the fourth, I did not give up until the end."

Competing in his sixth Olympic Games, SAMSONOV was disappointed for missing an Olympic medal again this time in Rio, stating "It is definitely not a very good feeling to lose the bronze medal match. This is probably my last chance to get an Olympic medal, as I don't know if I will be at Tokyo."

The 40-year-old table tennis legend suffered a rib injury after sustaining a fall during his quarterfinals match against London 2012 Bronze medalist, Dimitrij OVTCHAROV.

"After my match with OVTCHAROV, I was injured and probably did not really get into the game in this match. I also didn't want to push my injury too hard. Although I missed the chance to win the fourth game, the adrenaline made me just move on and forget.

The Rio 2016 Olympic table tennis event continues tomorrow, 12 August 2016 with the commencement of the Men's and Women's Team events in Riocentro Pavilion 3.

In a rematch of the London 2012 Olympic Games Women's Singles Final, reigning World Champion DING Ning avenged her London 2012 loss to take the Gold medal from the defending Champion LI Xiaoxia (CHN) to become the Olympic Champion.

An emotional Ding Ning is the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Champion.

In a rematch of the London 2012 Olympic Games Women's Singles Final, reigning World Champion DING Ning avenged her London 2012 loss to take the Gold medal from the defending Champion LI Xiaoxia (CHN) to become the Olympic Champion. The duo met four years ago at the London 2012 Olympic Games Women's Singles Final, with LI taking down DING 4-1 to win the Olympic Gold. Today at Riocentro Pavilion 3, where all the Olympic table tennis actions went on, both players pushed each other to the full limit in the final showdown, but this time the result was reversed. With the support of her fans who flew all the way from China, DING was not going to let history repeat itself, fighting back from two to three games down to take her revenge 4-3 (11-9, 5-11, 14-12, 9-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7) against LI. "This is unbelievable! I can't believe that I am Olympic champion. I have waited so long for this, it is a dream come true!" shared the top seed who broke down into tears after her victory, and ran to hug her coach seated in the spectator zone. DING added "I think it was difficult for both my Coach, CHEN Bin. I have so many titles, but I have never hugged him after my victories. Tonight, it's all beyond words. At that last moment, it was a contest of determination." "London made me more experienced. I was able to forget the sad memory of the defeat and focus on the match. Going into the Final, I told myself just to fight for my dream." With the Olympic Singles Gold in bag, the world number two is only the fifth female athlete to achieve the table tennis Grand Slam. Already crowned the Grand Slam Champion in 2013 when she won the World Table Tennis Championships, LI remained calm and shared that Rio will be her last Olympic Games: "I can't keep up this high level training. My body is not getting any younger. I tried to retire at the start of the year but they asked me back because they needed me. I will come back again if they need me but the current team is very strong so I think they will be ok." "This was a great opportunity for me to return to the Olympic Games. I had a lot of injuries at the start of the year physically and internally. In 2015 I was hospitalized for ammonia. I had a lot of thigh troubles. For me right now, the training is too much to handle. I did fulfill my task and defended against the international player and made the final." LI also commented on their rematch, "Four years ago, I had no burden and no expectations going into the Games. Now I have more burden as there are more requirements of me from the leader. I regret that I didn't have more time to practice as the result might have been different. I did not have enough practice so I could not control the pace of the game. Congratulations to Ding Ning." Determined not to go home empty handed on her birthday, KIM was all pumped against Ai FUKUHARA in the Bronze medal match to take home DPR Korea's first ever Olympic table tennis medal. The Olympic debutant raced to a 3-0 lead in just 23 minutes into the match. Despite FUKUHARA's efforts to turn the tides in her favor by taking the fourth game 14-12, the four time Olympian failed to break past the defensive blocks of KIM. KIM eventually prevailed 4-1 (11-7, 11-7, 11-5, 12-14, 11-5). "Although I only got the Bronze medal, I am still very happy," stated the 21-year-old. "I want to present this medal to our great supreme leader." More table tennis action continues tomorrow, 11 August 2016 at Riocentro Pavilion 3, with the Men's Singles Semifinals taking place from 10:00 am local time, as well as the Bronze and Gold medal matches from 20:30pm onwards.

Records smashed on Day 3 at Rio 2016

Bojan Tokic and Dimitrij Ovtcharov hits stunning 33-31 world record in their opening game! Third day of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games table tennis event concluded with several record breaking matches that rocked the arena in Riocentro Pavilion 3. 2014 ITTF Male Table Tennis Star Quadri ARUNA was in unbeatable form against former world number one, and six-times European Champion Timo BOLL (GER) in the battle for a quarterfinal spot, prevailing 12-10, 12-10, 11-5, 3-11, 5-11, 11-9 to become the first African table tennis player to make it through to the quarterfinals where he will play World Champion MA Long (CHN) for a place in the semifinals. After a tough 4-3 opening match against LI Ping (QAT) earlier today, third seeded Dimitrij OTCHAROV was put through another challenge in the Round of 16 against Slovenia’s Bojan TOKIC, especially in the first game! The first game finished 33-31 to TOKIC, which is a world record score. This insane game went for a whopping 26 minutes, which is longer than a lot of the full matches here at Rio 2016. On the game that will go down in table tennis folk law, OVTCHAROV stated: “It was very cool to be a part of this world record game, but it is a shame that I didn't get to win it.” The European champion may not have won the world record game, but he was able to win the next four to clinch the match 4-1 (31-33, 12-10, 11-5, 11-4, 11-7) to progress to the quarterfinals where he will meet his club team mate Vladimir SAMSONOV (BLR). The capacity Brazilian crowd went home disappointed, after a spirited Hugo CALDERANO (BRA), who played the tournament of his life lost against the number four seeded Jun MIZUTANI (JPN). MIZUTANI’s win sets up an intriguing clash with Marcos FREITAS (POR). 2010 Youth Olympic Games champion Koki NIWA recovered from 1-3 down to upset against world number eight WONG Chun Ting (HKG) 4-3 (6-11, 11-6, 8-11, 5-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-8). NIWA, whom some people questioned about his selection in the Japanese team now plays defending champion ZHANG Jike (CHN) in the quarterfinals. Similarly, for NIWA’s teammate Ai FUKUHARA, who have lost several high profile matches in the last year, the table tennis community have raised much doubt with her being selected for the Women’s Singles over 15-year-old Mima ITO. Competing in her fourth Olympic Games, FUKUHARA was set on proving her critics wrong, the sixth seed was on fire to defeat DPR Korea’s top defender RI Myong Sun with a convincing 4-0 (11-5, 12-10, 11-1, 11-7) victory. “Olympic is very special, not same as other international events. It’s really not easy. I trained very hard in these months just for the Olympic game here in Rio. I'm now sure my practicing is paying off,” shared the Japanese star. “It was a big turning point when I was 10-10 score in the 2nd game. It was a big advantage for me when I got 12-10 score at that game finally.” FUKUHARA will continue her quest for an Olympic medal against the London 2012 bronze medalist FENG Tianwei (SIN) tomorrow. KIM Song I (PRK) continued shocking her opponents with her defensive style, defeatingCHEN Szu-Yu (TPE) 4-2 and will now play YU Mengyu (SIN). The final two women’s quarterfinal matches will be contested between the number one seed DING Ning (CHN) and HAN Ying (GER) and between the reigning Olympic champion LI Xiaoxia (CHN) and CHENG I-Ching (TPE).

Ishikawa & Chuang Crash out of Rio 2016 Singles Event

A devastated Ishikawa after being crashed out of the Rio 2016 Women's Singles event. The top 16 men and women seeds of the Rio 2016 Olympic table tennis event officially started their quest for the Olympic medals today, 07 August 2016, facing the challenge of the 16 players qualified from the initial rounds and it did not all go to plan. Korea DPR’s KIM Song I caused one of the biggest upsets at the Rio 2016 table tennis event by eliminating fourth seeded Kasumi ISHIKAWA (JPN) to make her way through to the top 16 of the Women’s Singles event. Facing one of the best female table tennis players in the world, the 21-year-old was fearless and stood firm on the court to challenge the world number four. Despite losing the first two games, KIM was quick to get back on her feet to gain control of the match, prevailing 4-3 (7-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9). The seven games thriller that excited the local crowd in Riocentro Pavilion 3 did not went smoothly, with ISHIKAWA attempting to call for an injury time-out for a cramp which was denied as it is not considered an injury. “It was just a cramp but I never had a cramp in any matches ever, so I’m very upset. I played very well in beginning but I got so exhausted because there was too much moving around. It’s a shame thatmy physical strength couldn’t keep up,” shared the London 2012 team silver medalist who couldn’t contain her disappointment. “Today is my mom's birthday and I had wanted to celebrate her with my win today.” 2014 Male Table Tennis Star Quadri ARUNA (NGR) put the crowd into further shock as he played the match of his life to knock out world number seven CHUANG Chih-Yuan (TPE) out of the Men’s Singles event, dominating 4-0 (11-6, 12-10, 11-6, 11-7). “Last time I played Chuang Chih-Yuan was earlier this year on the ITTF World Tour in Germany, where I lost in four straight games, my goal today was to improve on that performance and fight to win one game!” stated a pleased ARUNA. “After I won the first game I became more confident. This is the best moment of my life and my career.”” Local hero Hugo CALDERANO kept the host nation’s hopes for an Olympic medal high, by defeating world number 15 TANG Peng (HKG) in front of possibly the loudest crowd that a table tennis event has ever witnessed. CALDERANO, who made history at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games to win the first Olympic table tennis medal for Latin America, overcame TANG Peng 4-2 (8-11, 14-12, 11-7, 4-11, 12-10, 11-7) in front of a sellout crowd of over 6,000 passionate fans. Whilst seeds crumbled around them, top seeds MA Long (CHN) and DING Ning (CHN) dominated the court, beating Jonathan GROTH (DEN) and Elizabeta SAMARA (ROU) 4-0 respectively. The battle for the remaining places in the Men’s and Women’s singles round of 16 continues tomorrow, 8 August at Riocentro Pavilion 3.

2016 Olympic Draws:Table Tennis

Seeding Confirmed for Rio 2016 Olympic Table Tennis Event

The seeding for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Table Tennis event has been determined after the announcement of the ITTF August 2016 World Rankings, with reigning World Champions MA Long (CHN) and DING Ning (CHN) leading the seeding in the Men’s and Women’s Singles event respectively.

World number one MA, who has swept all major Men’s Singles titles in 2015, has his eyes set on Gold on his Olympic Singles debut in Rio, to become the fifth male table tennis Grand Slam Champion in history.

The road to Gold will not be a smooth one for MA, as he will have to fend off tough challengers, including teammate, Current Olympic Champion ZHANG Jike who will be the second seed in Rio. The world number four will be aiming for a consecutive Olympic Gold to complete his second table tennis Grand Slam.

Hot contenders for the Olympic medals, Germany’s Dimitrij OVTCHAROV, Japan’s Jun MIZUTANI and Chinese Taipei’s CHUANG Chih-Yuan filled up the remaining spots in the top five seeding, and will be looking to topple the Chinese’s dominance in Rio.

In the Women’s Singles, World number two DING will look to avenge her loss in the Women’s Singles Final at the London 2012 Olympic Games against compatriot LI Xiaoxia, to earn her first Grand Slam title.

2010 World Team Champion and world number four FENG Tianwei (SIN) takes the one place ahead of the third seeded reigning Olympic Champion LI Xiaoxia (CHN).

Japan’s Kasumi ISHIKAWA and Ai FUKUHARA occupies the fourth and sixth seeding places respectively, while Germany’s HAN Ying taking the fifth seed on her first quest for an Olympic medal.

All 70 Men’s and 70 Women’s Olympians will be drawn at the Draw Ceremony set to take place on 3 August, 12:00 local time at Riocentro Pavilion 4.

A press conference will be held immediately after the draw at 14:00, with the following players attending:

• DING Ning (CHN)-2011, 2015 World Champion, 2012 Olympic Women’s Singles Silver
• ZHANG Jike (CHN) -2011, 2013 World Champion, 2011, 2014 Men’s World Cup Champion, Reigning Olympic Champion
• Ai FUKUHARA (JPN) -2012 Olympic Women’s Singles Quarterfinalist, Team Silver
• Vladimir SAMSONOV (BLR) -2000 Olympic Men’s Singles Quarterfinalist, 1997 World Championships Silver
• Hugo CALDERANO (BRA) -2014 Youth Olympic Games Bronze medallist, 2015 Pan American Champion, 2016 Latin American Champion & Latin American Cup Champion

The Rio 2016 Olympic Table Tennis event will be held from 06 – 17 August 2016 at the Riocentro Pavilion 3.

Highlights and Upcoming events of 2016

Russian Table Tennis Players Cleared to Play at 2016 Olympic Games

After careful review of the criteria set up by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on 24 July 2016 following the release of the McLaren report, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has determined that the three Russian athletes qualified for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will be allowed to compete.

ITTF’s investigation of the matter included individual test analysis of these players outside the Russian anti-doping system, and confirmation by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) that none of the concerned players were implicated in the McLaren findings released on 18 July 2016.  

ITTF believes that the provided evidence meets the requirements of the IOC and confirms the eligibility of the three qualified Russian players Polina MIKHAILOVA, Maria DOLGIKH and Alexander SHIBAEV to play at Rio 2016.

If ITTF’s ongoing testing program and/or further findings from Prof. McLaren’s extended mandate reveals any potential anti-doping rule violation or wrongdoing, the ITTF will take immediate action to investigate and take sanction within the framework of the World Anti-Doping Code and the ITTF’s applicable regulations.

The ITTF will continue to take doping issues very seriously and do everything in its power to ensure that table tennis stays clean, not just at the Olympic Games, but in all levels of table tennis.

The Olympic table tennis event runs between 6-17 August at Riocentro Pavilion 3.

The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) through it's marketing partner TMS International have extended it's deal with table tennis equipment manufacture for four more years.

The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) through it's marketing partner TMS International have extended it's deal with table tennis equipment manufacture for four more years.

The deal, which now runs until 2020 continues Double Fish's tradition of being the official table supplier at the prestigious World Tour Grand Finals, which will be held this year in Doha, Qatar on 8-11 December.

TMS International's Managing Director Anders THUNSTROM stated:"TMS International is very happy to extend the agreement with Double Fish for the World Tour Grand Finals until 2020 (2017-2020). Double Fish has now been the Official Table supplier for the World Tour Grand Finals since 2004, and it was a priority for us to extend with with Double Fish for another four years. I also take it as confidence and satisfaction from Double Fish towards TMS and the World Tour Grand Finals to make the commitment for another Olympic cycle."

ITTF's President Thomas WEIKERT was equally pleased with the resigning of ITTF's long term partner: "Double Fish has always been a very solid and reliable partner for the ITTF, so I am very happy they will continue as the table sponsor at the World Tour Grand Finals. For the World Tour Grand Finals, they have provided us with some veryaestheticallypleasing tables, and we look forward to some more amazing designs over the next four years."

General Manager of Guangzhou Double Fish Sports Goods Group Corporation Limited YE Yiqiang added: "I would like to express our sincere thanks to ITTF and TMS for their trust and support in our company. We are really happy to extend our cooperation with ITTF and TMS. For the coming four years we will continue to provide high-quality equipment for the World Tour Grand Final."

ITTF to Announce Table Tennis Revolution in Rio

Toriola And Oshonaike Will Look For Glory At 2016 Nigeria Open

The 2016 Nigeria Open will come to end on Sunday. In the men's event Segun Toriola is the only Nigerian player in competition. He will have to fight against Finland's Benedek Olah in semifinals. Nigeria also has a representative in the women's singles. Olufunke Oshonaike also booked a place in the penultimate stage.
Semifinalists of the 2016 Nigeria Open were decided. In men's singles Segun Toriola reached semifinals after beating Slovakia's Thomas Keinath by 8-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-9, 6-11 and 14-12 in quaterfinals. In semifinals Toriola will meet Finland's Benedek Olah who beat Nigeria's Bode Abiodun by 12-10, 9-11, 8-11, 5-1, 11-5, 11-9 and 11-5.

In the second semifinals Zhao Tianming[[ of Portugal will face [[Khalid Assar of Egypt. To book a place in semifinals Zhao overcame Mexico's Salvador Uribe by 8-11, 2-11, 11-7, 16-14, 13-11 and 11-3. Assar stood victorious over his compatriot El-Sayed Lashin by 11-6, 11-2, 11-6 and 11-5 in quarterfinals.

In women's singles Olufunke Oshonaike is the only Nigerian player in competition. She defeated Russia's Anna Rossikjina by 11-8, 11-5, 11-9 and 11-7.  Oshonaike will face Szandra Pergel of Hungary in semifinals. The Hungarian player emerged successfully over Cameroon's Sarah Hanffou in quarterfinals.

In the second semifinals Irina Ciobanu of Romania will play against Portugal's Shao Jieni. In quarterfinals Ciobanu overcame Russia's Olga Kulikova by 10-12, 11-6, 11-3, 8-11, 13-11, 6-11 and 11-6. To reach semifinals, Shao Jieni defeated Nigeria's Offiong Edem by 9-11, 11-9, 11-2, 11-7 and 11-9.  

Liu Shiwen Denied With The Olympic Singles Qualification

The Chinese Team always have that happy trouble in selecting players for any big competition. Now, for the Olympic Games, the Chinese Team is yet to finalise the roles of their players, building some anticipation from their fans. Luckily, the ITTF was able to give a clearer picture on the lineup of the strongest team in the world. 
Sina Sports. Liu Shiwen is the highest ranking player in the women’s division but unfortunately, she was denied with the Olympic Singles qualification. 

The Chinese Team recently released their lineup for the Olympic Games. In their announcement, they indicated Fan Zhendong and Zhu Yuling to be the P-Card holders. This means that the Chinese Team has denied the qualification of the 19-year old Fan Zhendong for the Olympic Singles. 

It was reported that the ITTF has already sent the invitation to Fan Zhendong and Liu Shiwen to play in the Olympic Singles, basing from the latest world rankings. Both of the players are the highest ranking players aside from the already qualified Ma Long and Li Xiaoxia. 

Interestingly, because of a recent post of the ITTF in their Weibo account, a clearer picture of the women’s lineup in the Olympic Singles was drawn. 

“Liu Shiwen’s qualification for the (Olympic) Singles is denied by the Chinese Team. According to the lineup that was recently announced by the Chinese Team, not surprisingly, Li Xiaoxia will work together with Ding Ning in the Singles.” 

Liu Shiwen is the highest ranking player in the women’s division and naturally, she got the invitation to play in Olympic Singles. Unfortunately, the Chinese Team denied the invitation, which could mean that Liu Shiwen will be their third person, who would be playing in the Team competition.  

The Chinese Team is expected to report their Olympic Singles lineup before May 30.

Berlin Eastside Is The 2015-16 Bundesliga's Champion

Berlin Eastside defended the Bundesliga's title. The team led by Shan Xiaona remained unbeaten during the whole season and was crowned champion of the season 2015-16. SV DJK Kolbermoor got the second place with only two defeats. Berlin Eastside closed another successful 2015-16 season a Bundesliga's champion. The team led by Shan Xiaona remained unbeaten during the whole season and claimed the third national title.   

The team made up of Shan Xiaona, Petrissa Solja, Georgina Pota, Ui Hamamoto and Miyu Kato stood victorious over LTTV Leutzscher Füchse 1990. TuS Bad Driburg, TTG Bingen/Münster-Sarmsh, SV DJK Kolbermoor, TSV Schwabhausen, TV Busenbach, TTV Hoveholf, SV Böblingen and TUSEM Essen.   The second place went to SV DJK Kolbermoor, made up of Sabine Winter, Kristin Silbereisen, Wenling Tan-Monfardini and Bernadett Balint. Kolbermoor only faced defeat against the champion Berlin Eastside.  

 Tus Bad Driburg got the third place in the league. Nina Mittelham, Shi Qi, Sarah de Nutte, Katharina Mikailova and Elena Waggermayer posted six defeats and a tie.

Zhang Jike has achieved a lot of impressive achievements in his career and it is because of an opportunity that was given by Wang Hao

All players have their weak moments in their respective careers and for Wang Hao, it was in 2010 when he gave up his seat in the finals against Germany in the World Championships. This opportunity was given to Zhang Jike and the latter didn’t waste such important opportunity. Because of that, Zhang Jike made his way into the top and has achieved new height in his career.  Sina Sports. Zhang Jike has achieved a lot of impressive achievements in his career and it is because of an opportunity that was given by Wang Hao.   

Zhang Jike is considered to be one of the most successful players in the men’s table tennis, after all, he has won the Olympic Games, the World Championships, and the World Cup. However, before all these success, Zhang Jike struggled to have even just one opportunity. Thanks to Wang Hao.   In 2010, Zhang Jike was just starting to make his presence felt in the men’s table tennis after he was sanctioned several times by the coaching staff. Also at this year, Wang Hao was experiencing problems in his career.  

 In the World Championships, Wang Hao gave up his seat in the lineup of the Chinese Team for the finals against Germany. At the last minute, the opportunity to play was given to Zhang Jike and fortunately for him, he did not waste it.

Zhang Jike offered a point to the Chinese Team after winning over Christian Suss in the third match. This victory eventually gave way to more opportunities and the rest is history. 

Now, Zhang Jike is the fastest player to complete the Grand Slam and is now one competition away to achieve a second round of Grand Slam. Opportunities are everywhere, it just depends on Zhang Jike how he will seize those opportunities to his advantage. 

Fan Zhendong Needs To Wait Until 2020

Looking at the competitions in recent years, Fan Zhendong has definitely showed himself in the forefront of the men’s division. Despite his young age, he proved that he can compete with the much experienced players in the arena. Therefore, he rose in the world ranking and is now qualified to play in the biggest competition, the Olympic Games.  Sina Sports. The 19-year old Fan Zhendong has been performing very steadily making him a good contender for the Olympic Games. But it seems that he will have to wait until 2020.    

Basing from the latest world rankings, Fan Zhendong ranks second, putting himself in a solid position within the Chinese Team. Aside from that, the young player also placed his one foot in the Olympic Games.   Just recently, it was reported that Fan Zhendong has already received an invitation from the ITTF to participate in the Rio Olympics. This has been the dream of the 19-year old player. Aside from that, Timo Boll has also expressed that Fan Zhendong should be the second player of the Chinese Team in the Olympic Singles.  

 With hard work, determination and focus, Fan Zhendong has earned all the trust from the coaches and also earned his position in the world rankings. In the Asian Olympic Qualifier, he reached the finals and fought against Ma Long. He is also very stable recently.   

 This was acknowledged by the head coach Liu Guoliang however, when it comes to the Olympic Games, the head coach has some reservations.   “Through exposures and experiences, Fan Zhendong now possesses a strong impact. In 2020, he should be even more matured,” Liu Guoliang said.   Such line somehow says that Fan Zhendong might just have to wait for 2020. That will be his year, his time to shine. 

China Threatened By New Players From Europe

The Chinese Team of course wants to retain their pride in the Olympic Games and with that, they study their opponents. As expected, the reigning champions still considers Germany as their main rivals. However, aside from them, Liu Guoliang admitted that they also need to be very careful with the new players from European countries as they can also be threatening.  Tencent Sports. As the defending champions, the Chinese Team has assessed their possible opponents and Liu Guoliang admits threat from new players of the European countries.  

 For several years now, the main opponent of the Chinese 
Team is still the German Team who has Timo Boll and Dimitrij Ovtcharov in their squad. These two players are considered to be the top enemies of the Chinese players. They have the unique features, strength and the capacity to challenge the Chinese Team.   

However, players from Japan, South Korea and Chinese Taipei definitely can’t be taken for granted. Focusing on Japan, this team has already been preparing their players for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics so the investment is really big.   

Aside from those common opponents, the Chinese Team cited a new set of threats and these are coming from European Teams like France, Russia, England, Portugal and others. The threat is primarily because they are not yet very familiar with them.  

 “When facing rookies, one must be especially careful to avoid any upsets in the first two rounds. In the last Olympic Games, Timo Boll wasn’t able to face the Chinese players because he was eliminated early in the competition. Therefore, I warn my players never to look high. They must watch out who is in front of the table because whoever that is, he is their main opponent.” Liu Guoliang said. 

Zhang Jike And Xu Xin In The 2016 Asian Cup's Finals

China vs China will be the final of the 2016 Asian Cup. Zhang Jike and Xu Xin booked a place in the final which will be held tomorrow. The Olympic champion emerged successfully over Wong Chun Ting of Hong Kong, while Xu Xin defeated Gao Ning.  China already secured the first place at the 2016 Asian Cup held in Dubai, UAE. Zhang Jike and Xu Xin booked their place in the final match which will be held tomorrow. On his way to the final, Xu Xin, top seed, defeated Lee Sangsu of South Korea by 11-7, 17-15, 9-11, 11-9 and 11-1 in quarerfinals and Gao Ning by 8-11, 11-7, 11-2, 11-4 and 11-1 in semifinals.   To reach the final, the Olympic champion overcame Chinese Taipei's Chiang Hung-Chieh by 11-5, 11-5, 5-11, 12-10 and 11-2 in quarterfinals and Hong Kong's Wong Chun Ting by 11-7, 8-11, 11-5, 7-11, 11-5 and 11-8 in semifinals.   The final match will be played tomorrow Saturday at 16:30 (local time) 

Liu Shiwen And Li Xiaoxia Wil Fight For The 2016 Asian Cup's Title

The women's final at the 2016 Asian Cup will be a Chinese duel too. Liu Shiwen and Li Xiaoxia put their names in the final match and will fight for the title. The world runner-up defeated Hong Kong's Tie Yana in semifinals, while Li Xiaoxia stood victorious over Singapore's Feng Tianwei.  China will recover the women's crown at the Asian Cup. Liu Shiwen and Li Xiaoxia in the final match of the 2016 Asian Cup held in Dubai, UAE.  
Liu Shwen, who lost to Feng Tianwei in last year's final, goes for revenge. To book a place in the final match, she overcame Japan's Mima Ito by 11-5, 11-5, 12-10, 9-11 and 11-4 in quarterfinals. In semifinals the world runner-up beat Hong Kong's Tie Yana by 11-1, 11-5, 11-7 and 11-4.   Li Xiaoxia reached the final as she emerged successfully over Hong Kong's Jiang Huajun by 8-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-3, 6-11 and 11-5. In semifinals the world champion overcame defending champion Feng Tainwei by 11-7, 11-4, 4-11, 11-5, 9-11 and 11-6.   The final match will be played tomorrow Saturday at 15:30 (local time). 

Zhang Jike Hopes To Prove Himself In The Asian Cup

Zhang Jike participates in this week’s Asian Cup and he is off to a good start in the competition after he nailed thee sweep victories in the group stage. In his interview, he said that his attendance in the Asian Cup is for him to show how much he has already recovered. Of course, it is to assess his capacity for the bigger game in August, the Rio Olympics.  
Sohu Sports. The Asian Cup had its first day of competition yesterday and the Grand Slam champion Zhang Jike posted a very convincing performance.   
Zhang Jike had a good start in the competition. In the group stage, he nailed three sweep victories against Wong Chun Ting, Lee Sangsu, and Sharath Kamal Achanta respectively.   According to Zhang Jike, he hopes that he would be able to prove and show to the coaching staff, specifically to Liu Guoliang how much he has recovered, and that he can be trusted with the heavy responsibility for the Olympics.   
“I had some conversations with coach Liu Guoliang. Because there are not much competitions before the Olympics, and I didn’t play in a lot of matches in 2015, and I also lost in a lot of them, so I have to participate in the Asian Cup to check how much my condition has recovered.” Zhang Jike said.   As for the Olympic Games, Zhang Jike feels that the Rio Olympics could be different with that of the London Olympics.   
“I have participated in the London Olympics before but this time, the rhythm of the preparation might not be completely the same with the last one. Whether looking at my age or energy, I was better than now. With my increasing age, how to achieve the most reasonable match is the most important.” Zhang Jike said.   Zhang Jike won his quarterfinal match today against Chiang Hung Chieh in 11-5, 11-5, 5-11, 12-10, 11-2.

Kong Linghui: The Defeat Came Very Timely

Surprises can happen anytime and the Chinese Team were surprised during the recently concluded Asian Olympic Qualifier. It was not a very good surprise for them after problems surfaced in the performance of Ding Ning and Liu Shiwen. Fortunately for the Chinese Team, these surprises came with a good timing where they still have time to prepare.  Sina Sports. The Chinese Team exposed some problems in the Asian Olympic Qualifier and for the team such defeats had a very good timing.  
 “Liu Shiwen lost the match because of problems in her mentality. It caused chaos in her rhythm. Ding Ning exposed some problems in her technical adjustments. Although she was leading, she was not able to win it. There were also some changes in her mental state.” Kong Linghui said.   In the recently concluded Asian Olympic Qualifier, both Liu Shiwen and Ding Ning failed to meet the expectations after they lost to foreign players, Doo Hoi Kem and Mima Ito respectively.  
 “In this time, losing is really worthy of a summary. It is very timely. It is much better than those problems appearing in the Olympics.” Kong Linghui added.   Liu Shiwen will have her opportunity to redeem herself as she is scheduled to participate and defend the Chinese Team in the Asian Cup. 

Zhang Jike upbeat about Asian Cup Dubai and local support

Dubai will be hosting another international competition which will gather some of the best table tennis players in Asia. This competition is the 2016 Asian Cup and one of the representatives of the Chinese Team will be Zhang Jike. In an interview, the Grand Slam champion is excited to compete in Dubai knowing that they have a lot of supporters. Sohu Sports. The Asian Cup is several days from now and the Grand Slam champion Zhang Jike is already feeling excited about the competition.   
“The table tennis fans of Dubai and their enthusiasm are very inspiring.” Zhang Jike said.   Zhang Jike will be one of the representatives of the Chinese National Team for the upcoming Asian Cup to be held in Dubai. According to the Grand Slam champion, this competition feels like competing in his own country.  
 “There are 200,000 Chinese people living in Dubai and they always cheer for the Chinese Team. I almost feel like I am playing in my own court.” Zhang Jike said.   
Dubai has been a major sponsor of table tennis and the Chinese National Team. The city has initiated the Ping Pong Dubai which enhances the interest of people to play the sport.  
  “Ping Pong Dubai in the local area is very exciting. Everyone can enjoy table tennis, regardless the age, level or physical fitness. Place a pingpong table in the park and it will reflect a certain kind of spirit.” Zhang Jike concluded.   The Asian Cup will be held in Dubai on April 28 to 30. 

Asian Olympic Qualification hands reality check to Chinese team as Liu Shiwen was defeated by Doo Hoi Kem, Ding Ning was blocked by Mima Ito, and Xu Xin was eliminated by Chuang Chih Yuan.

Xu Xin, Liu Shiwen, and Ding Ning failed the golden rule of the Chinese Team in the recently concluded Asian Olympic Qualifier after they were defeated by foreign players. According to Liu Guoliang such performance showed big risk but it was not entirely a bad thing. Aside from that, the head coach also said that the lack of systematic training was one of the factors of their defeat.  Sina Sports. Some Chinese players posted defeat in the Asian Olympic Qualifier and this made Liu Guoliang see a big risk.  
 The Chinese Team was not spared from the challenge in the Asian Olympic Qualifier after three of their members lost to foreign players. Liu Shiwen was defeated by Doo Hoi Kem, Ding Ning was blocked by Mima Ito, and Xu Xin was eliminated by Chuang Chih Yuan.   
“The players are used to have systematic training before every competition. This time, it has some effects on the competition. In addition, foreign players are desperate to add some points, which is not the same with us.” Liu Guoliang said.   
 As for the Chinese Team, not losing to any foreign players has always been their standard in any competition. However for the two coaches, the results of the qualifier will not change their plans for the Olympic preparation.   “Defeat was good. A bad situation can be changed to a good one. It was able to sound the alarm for the team. Looking at victory is certainly not easy. Especially that during the time when there is inadequate preparation, risk is relatively big.” Liu Guoliang concluded.