23 Jan 2021

The establishment of World Table Tennis (WTT), the subsidiary created by ITTF in March 2019 to manage all its commercial and events business, was set up with good governance and financial compliance, and followed all the relevant codes, regulations and confidentiality requirements.

This clear and unequivocal endorsement is the positive conclusion of a report by independent consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) following a thorough review process commissioned by the ITTF Executive Committee in response to concerns that were raised by the Deutscher Tischtennis-Bund (German Table Tennis Association – DTTB) and supported by a small number of other member associations.

Operating under licence to the ITTF, WTT is now developing new tournaments, attracting additional investment and enhancing both player and fan experiences in order to elevate table tennis to the upper echelon of world sport, in line with the ITTF’s 2018-2024 Strategic Plan.

Welcoming the report, Mr. Nestor Tenca, ITTF Executive Vice-President said:

“This thorough and independent review of the establishment of World Table Tennis has shown that all proper procedures and regulations were followed, and the Selection Panel acted with integrity. Our sport has always prided itself on an open, friendly and constructive dialogue between ITTF members, but unfounded claims have no place in our sport. We are therefore pleased to be able to clarify the true position. Table tennis is entering an exciting new era; one in which we hope our sport gets the level of global recognition it truly deserves.”

Steve Dainton, ITTF CEO also welcomed the report:

“I’m delighted that this independent review has endorsed the huge and important work of the team in establishing World Table Tennis. WTT is an innovative, dynamic and modern events platform in the table tennis family created to focus on turbo charging the commercial value of our sport. WTT is creating new events, increasing the total prize money, putting athletes first and at the same time working with new investors and strategic partners to enhance the overall fan experience via a dedicated, fully digitalized production team. Despite the ongoing global pandemic, I’m extremely proud of what WTT has already put in place and as this is only the beginning, I therefore remain very excited about the future of Table Tennis.”

General News World Table Tennis