Funded by ITTF Development Programme and Umpires and Referees Committee (URC), an Advanced Umpires Training Seminar, led by Tony Chatwin of England, was held prior to the ITTF World Cadet Challenge and World Junior Circuit Finals hosted by the South African Table Tennis Board in Cape Town.
International Participation It was encouraging to note the participation level from the candidates and their enthusiasm.
19 International Umpires participated in the seminar, including 14 from South Africa, two from India and one each from Iran, Italy and Russia.
There were also a number of National Umpires from the South African Table Tennis Board attending as observers.
Following the seminar, 18 candidates took the examination, a requirement of the Blue Badge qualification programme. The Blue Badge is the highest level of ITTF URC umpire certification.
The participants must now obtain four "meets expectations" evaluations plus an oral english language interview to obtain their Blue Badge.
