Ma Long and Liu Shiwen - Last World Singles Champions

NoFootwork · Apr 12, 2020

The WTTC World Singles Championships are going to be eliminated by ITTF. Instead, they will follow the tennis model of having 4 Grand Smash events per year (similar to Tennis grand slams.)

Which 4 will be designated as a Grand Smash - China Open. Germany Open, Australia Open (because of recent prize money?), Qatar Open (always strong fields but empty stands.)

https://www.ittf.com/2020/04/12/message-from-our-ceo/

SFF_lib · Apr 12, 2020

It doesn't seem to be a legitimate article.

NoFootwork said:
The WTTC World Singles Championships are going to be eliminated by ITTF. Instead, they will follow the tennis model of having 4 Grand Smash events per year (similar to Tennis grand slams.)

Which 4 will be designated as a Grand Smash - China Open. Germany Open, Australia Open (because of recent prize money?), Qatar Open (always strong fields but empty stands.)

https://mailchi.mp/eade80c28d3a/a-message-from-our-ceo?e=f56d6721a1

NoFootwork · Apr 12, 2020

SFF_lib said:
It doesn't seem to be a legitimate article.

It's on the ITTF website home page.

Metaxa · Apr 12, 2020

They are thinking of inserting this. Nothing final yet.

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Kuba Hajto · Apr 12, 2020

Metaxa said:
They are thinking of inserting this. Nothing final yet.

Makes sense though, moar event more money XD

zeio · Apr 12, 2020

The era of mass-produced millionaire World Champions. With the field so weak, it's a sensible option.

MaLin2.0 · Apr 13, 2020

NoFootwork said:
The WTTC World Singles Championships are going to be eliminated by ITTF. Instead, they will follow the tennis model of having 4 Grand Smash events per year (similar to Tennis grand slams.)

Which 4 will be designated as a Grand Smash - China Open. Germany Open, Australia Open (because of recent prize money?), Qatar Open (always strong fields but empty stands.)

https://mailchi.mp/eade80c28d3a/a-message-from-our-ceo?e=f56d6721a1

ITTF doesn't need copy Tennis model, I enjoy existing setup with Platinum events, Asian Championships, World Championships, Team events.

I am able to enjoy the tour all year round, tennis you only tune in for those 4 events most the time.

Janard · Apr 13, 2020

CM: Fine, I'll settle for a Grand Smash. Winning four Opens a year is my thing anyways.

MaLin2.0 · Apr 13, 2020

Janard said:
CM: Fine, I'll settle for a Grand Smash. Winning four Opens a year is my thing anyways.

I wonder like in Tennis will Grand Slams for Table Tennis carry more prestige than a Gold Medal?

Maybe this might work, I still like the existing calender

balazs1234 · Apr 13, 2020

I wonder how a Grand Smash event held 4 times a year will be more prestigous than the singles/doubles WTTC every other year.

I also wonder what will happen with Mixed Doubles. It has recently become more important as an Olympic competition. However WTT structure seem to have separate men’s and women’s events, there’s no mention about XD.

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Dan · Apr 14, 2020

i read this news the other day... first I've heard of it. I really enjoy the individual World Champs, it's my favourite table tennis event after the Olympics so will be interesting to see how the 4 grand smashes go. World Table Tennis will make quite a lot of game changing moves I think. Lets see.

Dan · Apr 14, 2020

Jan Ove Waldner just featured in an article saying that he does not want the World Champs to stop: https://www.svt.se/sport/bordtennis...VG-ZcP3YEVD8p7QihRlKhsU2PYy7jQFS2CoadtXAnU5iY

Mytoman · Apr 14, 2020

Even the swedish federation has a statement. Jörgen Persson (ITTF-BoD) and Petra Sörling (ITTF-Vice president) calls the proposal "hasty", and not rooted in the national associations.

https://www.svenskbordtennis.com/Nyheter/Pingisnytt/forhastatenligtsvenskatoppnamnen/

NextLevel · Apr 14, 2020

As an American, I selfishly need the Houston event to occur. I am really annoyed by this. The World Champs has a special history. Throwing it away to copy tennis is very short sighted.

Mytoman · Apr 16, 2020

Weikert is now saying that this is not discussed in the EC, and not with the NA's, and that we should not worry about the world championships...

Well, that's it.

But nobody is discussing what it will mean to move the world tour, world cups and so on away from ITTF and the national associations, and to WTT? The WTT will have full control when it comes to the rules of the game, tournament regulations and participation. Are we ok with that?

Atas Newton · Apr 17, 2020

Mytoman said:
Even the swedish federation has a statement. Jörgen Persson (ITTF-BoD) and Petra Sörling (ITTF-Vice president) calls the proposal "hasty", and not rooted in the national associations.

https://www.svenskbordtennis.com/Nyheter/Pingisnytt/forhastatenligtsvenskatoppnamnen/

understandably, picking Qatar over Sweden as one of the Grand Slams is a joke. I get it, ITTF wants to go as global as possible and promote the sport in different parts of the world where it's not that popular, but there's gotta be better ways than holding a major for an audience of 100 people. At the very least Sweden could share the European Slam with Germany. Maybe one year Sweden gets the men's tournament and Germany the women's, next year they switch.

Hysteresis · Apr 17, 2020

Lol as much as I'd like a grand slam in my country, holding a grand in the middle of nowhere, where the Australian Open is currently held would be a joke. If this were to actually go ahead, they would need to move the open to at least a major city.

FZD is like: 'Goddamnit, I havn't won a WC yet, now you are taking the whole thing away?'

Simas · Apr 17, 2020

I had to double check if this article wasn't posted on April 1st. It's not

...

zzzuppp · Apr 18, 2020

Well, maybe I'm old-fashioned but I'm with Waldner.
I'm writing a book about the history of the WTTC - and in six years time it will be the centenary of the event. What's wrong with a great tradition?
You might as well change the name of the soccer World Cup to the 'Grand Penalty shootout' (which is what it's fast becoming).
The WTTC give players in every nation something to aim for: they're not necessarily going to make it to the Olympics, which in any case only come round every four years (ok, 5 with viruses), but every association is welcome at the Worlds.

And I think to say that you are 'world champion', or to have taken part in a world championships, is far more impressive than 'winner of the "grand smash" ' - meaningless to anyone outside TT.

More rank commercialisation.

Joepole · Apr 18, 2020

The Qatar open exemplifies everything that is wrong about monetised sporting events for tv. There is no audience till the finals when they wheel out a few sun glasses wearing stony faced royal dignitaries in thrones. The competition has no atmosphere and makes table tennis look like a desperate sport that has no live audience interest. The only reason it exists is because Qatar spends a lot of money buying sporting events to raise the countries profile. They had the World Cycling Road Race a couple of years ago. A 200km flat race in 40deg C with nobody on the roadside watching, a complete non event. I assume when they host the football world cup that visitors will fill the stadium. If the ITTF want to encourage tt in other parts of the world there are plenty of countries where the stadiums would be filled with an appreciative audience for example India

Ma Long and Liu Shiwen - Last World Singles Champions

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