2/9/2010      

Soumyadeep Roy and Madhurika Patkar brought matters to an end in the table tennis events at the South Asia Games in the Bangladesh capital city of Dhaka on Tuesday 9th February 2010.

They captured the respective Men’s and Women’s Singles titles in all Indian finals.

Madhurikha Patkar, 22 years old, beat colleague Shamini Kumaresan in six games to clinch the Women’s Singles crown; whilst by a similar margin, 25 year old Soumyajit Roy defeated Amalraj Anthony.

 2/8/2010      

The International Tournament in memory of Janos Molnar over, it was time to relax for three members of the 2009 ITTF World Hopes Team in the Hungary city of Budapest.

It was a welcome break for the trio of Salma Khaled, Christos Christonof, Tamolwan Khetkuen and Team Manager, Zita Pidl but one member of the group was not happy.

Dejan Papic, the Head Coach for the ITTF World Hopes, had his eyes set on a practice session but Zita Pidl, a native of Budapest, had waved her magic wand and thwarted the tyrant’s efforts.

 2/8/2010      

A native of Brazil, Marles Martins was very much the man who guided such players as Gustavo Tsuboi to international success and over the years he has been a regular expert, leading courses for the International Table Tennis Federation.

He has conducted ITTF Level One courses in many parts of the world but never in his own country.

However, that came to and end recently when from Tuesday 26th to Thursday 28th January 2010, he conducted such a course at the Fran Table Tennis Training Center.

 2/8/2010      

Staged from Saturday 6th to Monday 8th February 2010, a total of 38 players from five countries attended the ITTF Elite Training Camp in Egypt’s capital city of Cairo where Aleksey Yefremov of Belarus was the Head Coach.

Players from New Zealand, Djibouti, Egypt, Ghana and Congo Democratic were present throughout, with Singapore attending the last two days and Moldova, the final day.

Several of the players had travelled from the ITTF Global Junior Circuit event in Bahrain to be present in Cairo.

 2/8/2010       World Team Table Tennis Championships

The International Table Tennis Federation is pleased to offer three scholarships for young journalists to attend the World Team Table Tennis Championships in Moscow from Sunday 23rd to Sunday 30th May 2010.

It is a splendid opportunity for young journalists enabling them to increase their knowledge about table tennis and the work of the International Table Tennis Federation.

The closing date for applications is Monday 15th March 2010.

 2/8/2010       Egypt Junior & Cadet Open - ITTF Premium Junior Circuit

Poland occupies the top Boys’ and Girls’ Singles seeded places at Egypt Junior Open, the second ITTF Junior Circuit tournament of the year, which commences in the country’s capital city of Cairo on Tuesday 9th February 2010.

Both 17 years old, Robert Floras and Magdalena Szczerkowska lead the field.

The two Polish teenagers are no strangers to life on the ITTF Junior Circuit and in ITTF Global Junior Programme events; both are comparatively seasoned campaigners.

 2/8/2010      

One day to go but one fact is confirmed in the table tennis events at the South Asia Games currently being staged in the Bangladesh capital city of Dhaka; when play concludes on Tuesday 9th February 2010, it will be a clean sweep of titles for India.

On Monday 8th February, they secured gold in the Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles events; whilst in the Men’s and Women’s Singles competitions their players emerged successful at the semi-final stage.

 2/7/2010      

Slovakia’s 18 year old David Karas brought matters to an end at the International Tournament in memory of Janos Molnar in the Hungarian capital city of Budapest on Sunday 7th February 2010.

He won the Boys’ Singles crown defeating Hungary’s 17 year old Gergely Perei in the final.

The bronze medals went to 16 year old Do Phoung Nam, also from Hungary and to 17 year old Vladimir Radonjic of Serbia.

Meanwhile for members of the 2009 ITTF World Hopes Team it was a tough time in the junior age group.

 2/7/2010       YOG International Qualificaton Event 1 (Asia event)

Belgium’s Emilien Vanrossomme and Britt Eerland of the Netherlands, both 15 years old and both players who celebrate their 16th birthday later this month, won the Boys’ and Girls’ Singles titles at Youth Olympic Games Qualification tournament in Manama, Bahrain’s principal city, on Sunday 7th February 2010.

The victories mean that they now reserve places in the Youth Olympic Games table tennis events to be staged in Singapore in August 2010.

Both occupied the no.1 seeded position in the draw and both confirmed that exalted status by finishing on the top step of the medal podium.

 2/7/2010      

Germany’s Timo Boll retained his Men’s Singles title at the Liebherr Europe Top 12 tournament on home soil in Düsseldorf on Sunday 7th January 2010, beating Vladimir Samonsov of Belarus at the final hurdle.

In front of 3,200 spectators in the Burg-Wächter Castello Hall, the 28 year old German clinched the title for a fifth time.

He is now one step closer to challenging the record of Sweden’s Jan-Ove Waldner who won the title no less than seven times.