Passion + Pride + Respect = Puerto Rico !

Before we get started ; Shame on you, Mr Director !!!… for failing to maintain and feed the Eleven Points blog with the proper content.

To run a blog is all about having a few minutes over, proper load of motivation and  solid intent.  It has been an intense year, plenty of changes in life and work and for the better or for the worse the blog has been quiet for a while.

Better change that , and what I good argument we have as well ; The 2011 ( played in 2012) ITTF Global Cadet Challenge and Junior Circuit Finals , successfully held  with  a huge portion of  organizational Pride and Passion in San Juan,  Puerto Rico..  Let me echo the excellent public announcer from the well dressed Convention Center. Viva Puerrrrto  ( with strong rolling on the R’s) Rico. To the President of the Puerto Rico National association; Mr Ivan SANTOS  and to all his foot- soldiers; You nailed this one. You made us all feel special and you showed great respect for the future of our sport, the young athletes and their coaches. Muchas Gracias Amigos  !

Now.. Without further delay. Here they come – the 2011 ITTF Global Cadet Challenge and Junior Circuit Finals awards;

The Best Ever Organized Cadet Challenge award goes to; Puerrrto Rico

Let’s start with a so called “No brainer”. Everything perfect. Great venue and hotel, good food and a strong group of  volunteers that each and every day ( and night)  went to work with their heads held high. It is called respect for our sport. Thank You Ivan Santos and all the helpers. You all touched my heart from day one.  And .. not to be forgotten . Both cadet teams and the juniors involved did not back down at all. They put up a good fight as they say. Very Well Done !

The No Army in the World can beat a Good Idea award goes to the; ITTF World Hopes Team concept.

The ITTF WHT composed of slightly younger, but still very skillful players really added value to the 2011 edition of the challenge.  This was ITTF Education and Development at its best  ;   athletes centered and youth oriented. The team showcased a nice blend of Universality, Excellence and Development. It also turned out to be a useful learning experience for the young athletes, who all got a good taste of what to come in the future , if they are able to qualify for respective continental team.  High marks to the team manager Zita PIDL  as well as  the two coaches ;  Jarek  KOLODZIEJCZYK and  Dejan PAPIC,  who all worked hard to maintain team unity.

The Best Player in the Challenge Award goes to; LIU Gaoyang from China

Perhaps a tossup between the two Chinese players coming to Puerto Rico?  But the left-handed LIU Gaoyang secured three gold medals for Team Asia and solved all the problems she was facing with good grace and skillful touch.

The most promising European player in many years award goes to; Marie Migot from France.

There is a lot to like about this little warrior from the deep forests of France. Marie Migot is born 1998 with two more years to go in the cadet age category.  She’s got game – she’s got grit and she has the technical skills all in order to outplay anything coming her way in Europe for the next few years. The “Cool Cat in Black” can be THE ONE in European Female Table Tennis – just like that.

The fire and ice award goes to Nicole TROSMAN  from Israel and Team Europe 

Fast paced style. Plenty of passion and the good emotions working for her..Most of the time.  Some ice in the veins at times could however do wonders for an interesting Israeli athlete that clearly takes her table tennis seriously. Finished on the podium in her first challenge, always a great achievement

The “Rewarded for hard work on the 2011 Junior Circuit” award goes to HUNG Tzu-Hsiang from Chinese Taipei

Technically skilled penholder that has a tendency to back off from the table too easy when facing pressure. This must be corrected in order to take the next step into the ultra competitive senior ranks. HUNG won a fairly mediocre Junior Circuit Finals by defeating the Korean defender CHOI in the final. It’s always good to see a strong effort getting the desired result. Chinese Taipei invested in the junior circuit in 2012 and it paid off.

The most focused player award goes to Lily ZHANG from the USA and Team North America

It’s hard to believe that Lily ZHANG only made her second appearance in the challenge. She played in Sweden 2008 last time.  This time Lily practiced great and was sharp in her preparation the whole week. Clearly arriving in Puerto Rico on a mission – to compete for the win.   The North American nr one returned back home with one silver (team event) and two bronze medals in singles and doubles.   I think that just a smidgen of positive emotions in the heat of the moment   could have made a difference for the better .Sometimes it’s important to have fun when you are working kind of thing.

The “Best ever Cadet Challenge Rookie Performance goes to ;  Kanak JHA from the USA and the World Hopes.

From nowhere to everywhere. Nicknamed by his team mates as “Duracell”, the eleven year old wonder boy from Milpitas took everybody with storm. Kanak, if not playing, watched   all good matches applying his special sponge mentality sucking up strokes, shots and good performances before peeling over to the practice hall where he was playing, experimenting and simply having fun. When it was all said and done Kanak finished nr twelve in the Boys singles. An amazing performance by one of the most spectacular talents we have seen in the junior programme since the days of Jun MIZUTANI.

The “Best Athlete”  award goes to Hugo CALDERANO  from  Brazil and Team ULTM

Believe me, there is a certain shimmer of pure class and athletic power around this player, surely one of the most promising Brazilians ever.  Future success is around the corner. The level however will eventually be decided not by a backhand here and forehand there, but more relate to carefully applied management strategies and the ability to apply world class knowledge   .  If Hugo can remain healthy and injury free we are looking at top 40 – top 20 position only in three or four years with more to come after that.  However no trees will reach the sky in Table Tennis without the ability to adjust and apply the good tactical sense.  This time Hugo let two missed game points in the opening game of his semifinal against the Korean KIM Min Hyeok spoil what could have been a great Sunday. But Hey and  Ho !  – Rio 2016 here we come. I picture a strong twenty year old athlete that easily can be the talk of the town by then.

The “Best Coaching Performance”   award goes to ;   Wayne GEAR  from New Zealand ,  Team Oceania and   Karima TELLAA from Algeria and Team AFRICA.

Coaches and managers are extremely important for the overall success of the challenge. Day out and Day in they have to keep the young players honest, focused and hard working.  To coach some of the better, more self driven athletes, is all about detailed preparation, tactics and technique.  To work with the middle to low-end players require a lot more patience, passion and discipline.. Great to see former player Wayne GEAR take time of from special police duties down in Kiwi-land and make his fourth appearance at the Challenge. He worked hard all the way through and got in the end rewarded by Roger Rao who advanced to the top sixteen segment in the cadet boys singles. Karima TELLAA  from Algeria is one of the best female coaches in Africa and I simply like the intensity in her work .  This time she also had to  jump  over the fence, several times,  to try to sort out some disciplinary unrest in the African boy’s team.

The “Today I Decided to”  … award goes to Adriana DIAZ  from Puerto Rico.

Of course the future looks bright  for the eleven year old star from Utuadu, Puerto Rico; Adriana  DIAZ . There is a lot to like about this player. She has all the tools in the world, nice technique , good overall game and the  deep down love for attention often reserved only for top  athletes . Played well, fought hard in the team event for her country.  However when the day of the group matches in the singles came , she decided to shut it all down in the opening match. Expectations and pressure got to young Diaz this time, who that very day displayed a very special style of disinterest and lack of motivation. But Hey and Ho – This young girl will grow up with her Table Tennis and she will be the finest, most successful player in the Americas one day.

The “Best Playing Dress” award goes to Team North America;

Team North America looked extremely good in the nice, soft colors and well matched printing. There is something special with JOOLA and the Cadet Challenge. For many years they have taken care of Team Asia in a classy way. Good to see them onboard also with other teams.

The “Must Be Better Next Year” award nr 1 goes to; Aly GHALLAB from Egypt /Team Africa

Team Africa’s boys team clearly underperformed this year and never reached any standard worth writing about. The left-handed egyptian  has got some tools in his game that may help him in the future.. However young GHALLAB  really needs to secure first base by Eating well – working on his physical conditioning and perhaps most important of all to show good energy in the court. Too much head  down – complete lack of energy kind of performance this time. Dropped like a stone in the singles competition  and finished well below his standard at position  25.

The “Must Be Better Next Year”  award nr 2 goes to; Fermin TENTI Argentina and Team ULTM;

Athletically gifted young player out of La Plata, Argentina. Talent wise also right up there as one of the best in class. Started well with a good training camp ,  but never found any kind of rhythm or confidence in the competition and struggled basically from day one.  I suspect poor preparation at home and lack of sparring partners as the main reasons for falling off the bike when the wheels started to turn. Let’s hope that Fermin and his family and the Argentinian Association  gets together as soon as possible to  come up with a strong plan for the next few years.. The potential is there, RIO 2016 within reach ,  but the race is on.  In fact, just as a reminder, it has already started.  

Final thoughts and Honorable mentioning’s;

Best Ever Competition Manger at the Challenge award goes to; Senor Raul Calin. In fact he is the only one we ever had – and trust me without him; Hey and Ho – how would it then turn out?!

The Best Ever Sport Official I have ever met award   goes to; Mr Henry Newman, Puerto Rico. Positive, upfront and well informed – a true dancer with grace. Multi-tasked from day one mixing TV work with official duties always showing positive energy   .

The Fighting spirit award goes to Brian AFANADOR, Puerto Rico.  Perhaps in need for some technical and tactical fine-tuning in order to remain competitive for his age. But a great kid that has come a long way in a short time.  If There is a Will – There is a Way!

Give us an ITTF Hot Spot Training Center in Utuado!  Our words and policies fit their world and needs – it’s called the perfect fit!

More Puerto Rico Bananas to the people of the world. Best in taste – simply world class all according to a certain banana eating  “back to blogging “director!

That’s all for now . Back to the daily dog walks in slush, freezing rain and snow up to the ankles. It will be a long winter.

Thanks for hanging in there and reading this post !

Mikael Andersson, ITTF 

The Land of the Champions

The Land of Champions

Time to brush off that keyboard. Time to start thinking – to start writing again..  I don’t know  really why things have been this quiet.. Some kind of blockage i guess.

Now,  I am in,  or rather on the land of the champions.. At least that’s what they call the grounds here at INSEP ( Institut National Du Sport) , located in the outskirts of Paris. An impressive arena it is.. Most Olympic Sports have their best athletes here on a daily basis.  Paid a visit to the Table Tennis hall yesterday to watch for an hour or so and to have a chat with the many promising youngsters calling INSEP their home.

Michel Blondel , the dynamic , forward thinking head coach of the French associations told me ; “No matter what , we have a good group of young players practicing really hard here at INSEP. They deserve a lot of credit for their effort and also for their performances the last few years. I don’t think any other country in Europe, as it seems are even close to what we are doing here..Thats scary though for European table tennis – it seems to me that the bar has been lowered in many countries and that the general level is going down”  Blondel said.

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From my point of view I found it impressive that the coaches  run a seven-day a week schedule for the juniors.. Parked in the hall was at the time of my visit a number of mountain bikes.. ” Well , we are going for a ride to a special place in Paris tomorrow Saturday Simon Gauzy told me ;  ”We don’t know Paris that much so it can be fun of course”. Benjamin Brosser , another one of the many accomplished French internationals explained the principles applying ;  We like it overall – but its hard physically and its hard mentally to stay here for practice”

I tell them of course ; :Learn to love the place – Love the coaches – Love the opportunity ..  In return – the kind of  smiles from the boys  that indicates  ; ” Well the old ITTF man doesn’t know very much !

Here is the link to INSEP website by the way ; http://www.insep.fr/EN/Pages/default.aspx

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But , the truth is that I consider myself “one of the champions of Insep”  , especially if we bend the INSEP  phrase to apply to the European Youth  scene and if we also consider coaches part of the occasion   . The memories are crystal clear. We have to reverse time to the summer of 1994 and the European Youth Championships , played here , in the same venue that I the last few days have been walking by. At the time , I was the Danish National coach in Table Tennis responsible for all aspects of high performance. We had , going into competition , I thought , some chances to make  signficant noise , especially in the Junior Boys Team category. We prepared well – practiced much harder than ever before that summer. The likes of Martin Monrad, Morten Knudsen and Mads Sörensen together with the “benchmarked” nr four ; Tomas Sörensen , were all at the top of their game , sharp and well conditioned.

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On top of being well prepared ,  we also applied a smart set of tactics upon arriving Paris. I was much tougher than i ever were during my time seven years in Denmark when it came to overall discipline and knowledge . We came to win – not to compete nor to only  participate. The agreement was also centered around the fact that any European Youth events starts two days before in the practice hall. Our ambition was to dominate that venue – have the competitors all look at us. So I took a  bag of balls on my back ,  occupied the center table and started to work my ball session routine from the get go.. I can promise you good reader that it worked pretty well at the time.  We had good momentum from the start of the competition and really never looked back. It was – quite simply a good time in my coaching life.. Perhaps the very best of times even.

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My supporting cast of coaches and advisors were the best in the business at the time. Mr Steen Kyst Hansen brought a wealth of managerial experience to the table was backing up. In a stroke of genius we also contracted the Sport Psychologist Mr Jørn Ravnholt to prepare the players mentally.  Still remember the days and the moments in Paris. The shots, the anxiety and more than anything young Mads Sorensen’s unbelievable transformation from an often underachieving, complaining loser to a big time winner.

We were all stunned when the left-hander suddenly from out of the blue roared through opponent after opponent at crucial times. We defeated a strong Russian team in the semi-final and in the final a slick Hungarian team coached by the legendary Zoltan Berczik, who in traditional Hungarian manners tried to deflect all the pressure and expectations away from his players.

“You know”, he said in the corridors before the match “We really have no chance at all in this match; your boys have played so well, congratulations to the win” Yeah sure.

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The conference-es on offer at INSEP this week is about ; The ambition to create an International Sport Coaching Framework. The easiest way to describe a fairly dry and complex subject is to talk about Sport Coaching as a recognized profession and different initiatives aiming at strengthening the position of coaches within associations and in the overall workplace. Not an easy subject , but at the same time not without a bit of momentum , as not fewer than eighteen international federations showed up this week.

Part two of my five days visit  is about International Training Centers .  The organizers are INSEP together with an organization called Associations of Sport Performance Centers  ASPC . Well suited subject with connections to the newest ITTF education idea to have a number ITTF Hot Spot centers recognized.

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Sunday was otherwise the transition day for me , and what to do other than an early riser and the TGV train to Strasbourg to follow one of my favorite events ; The Eurominichamps  in Schilitigheim. Standard wise  lets say B+ for the 1999 singles events and more like an A- for the 200o girls and a good B+ again for the 2000 boys. Overall the ITTF World Hopes Team selection did pretty good , especially the girls who captured several medals in tough competition. The total number of players were close to 360 and the organization , as always excellent. Just wonder how you as a European Association really can afford NOT to send players to this event each and every summer.. Scary fact that many didn’t . Lets hope it was all budget reasons – if not European Youth Table Tennis is in even deeper problems than I originally anticipated .

Just want to leave you with a pretty good picture of France ;

Dinner with Michel Gadal .. I can promise you that they all tasted very good ! Vive La France !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the Future in Mind 

Mikael

 

Dramatic Finish

WONG Ho Hin from Hong Kong showing his fighting face in the final of the ITTF Hopes Challenge 2011

What a treat it was to be , this Sunday 26 of June,  in the Werner Schlager Academy in Schwechat to witness the conclusion of  seven days of intense  ITTF World Hopes Week action. The knockout stage of the Hopes Challenge featuring in total 89 athletes ( 38 girls and 51 boys)  was played with high energy, plenty of emotions and showcased a very high level of Hopes Table Tennis.

The winners from Hong Kong

When the dust and drama finally settled  late afternoon the two winners were both from Hong Kong . The right-handed , top spin prone LEUNG Tsz Ching Vaness won the girls singles event. She  stumbled and almost fell  in the morning rounds, winning two close five game encounters to advance to the quarterfinal , but settled down and won both the semifinal and final quite comfortably.

High Drama in the Boys competition

In the boys competition,  drama seemed to be creeping along the flashy red carpet in the WSA event hall the whole day , always searching for a court to attack.

The Romanian Christi PLETEA however took the monster by his neck and twisted the fortune in his favour. In the quarters he beat out the promising , smooth playing Indian number one Ronit BHANJA in five games . In the semifinal he came back from 0-2 down and saved four match points in a highly dramatic match against the crowd-favorite Khanak JHA from Palo Alto, USA.

But it all ended there for the talented Romanian . WONG Ho Hin from Hong Kong controlled the final match from the first serve and won the first ever ITTF Hopes Challenge.

 

 

 

 

No Hesitation

Camille Linke - the Young Swiss Hope in action this morning

FUN and REWARD are the key words in play for the first ever ITTF World Hopes Week in Schwechat, Austria. 

After watching four days of training camp , followed by only a half day of ITTF Hopes Challenge competition – the two words can easily be, not only edged in the minds of coaches and supporters , but also plastered on the walls of the impressive Werner Schlager Academy.

High Level Of Energy

We can also add a seemingly never ending energy that seems to drive the young hopes to find a racket, a ball and a table whenever possibilities arise. Which of course happens all the time in a table tennis venue like the WSA . Rest is exchanged into practice and play . Fun is happening in each court and in every corner as players gather around exciting matches ,  to follow friends or to simply ride the wave of anticipation. Even doing the draw was , with the youngsters participating , a fun happening ,  as they eagerly followed each move from ball picking to screen action looking for whom they would end up playing.

Impressive set up

Coaches are impressed ; The Field of Dreams said experienced WSA Head coach Dirk Wagner relating to the training camp. Fantastic experience and opportunity are other commonly used words in the corridors and from the stands.

The Future of the Hopes Programme

Now, as always the first impression will tell quite simply ; The idea of having a world gathering at this age do work..Especially if the formula is EDUCATION , FUN and REWARD for all the involved parties.  The next steps for the ITTF Hopes Programme are to fine tune details,  build a solid financial platform,  and perhaps most importantly involve the national associations in areas  like registration , evaluation and implementation.

 

 

High Drama Awaits

A future rock-star of Table Tennis ; Adriana Diaz from Puerto Rico.

The ITTF World Hopes Week in Vienna , and day three of the five-day training camp. Head coach Dejan Papic brought out  the test tournament sheet and run a two-hour session on , I would say critical points under pressure.  With the score set at 8-8  the players were thrown into two progressive knock out draws .

The Young Hopes, more than seventy of them was not slow to respond to the challenge.  If the fire, the good rallies and the energy during the upcoming tournament weekend will be anything close to what we saw in today’s session, observers as well as participating coaches are in for a real treat come Saturday and Sunday.

Now.. Who won the tests , you may ask ?  

In the girls test,  the Puerto Rico phenom , ten-year old Adriana Diaz came out on top. She also did it in convincing style , showcasing an improved forehand top spin and  an aggressive attacking mode that overpowered her all her opponents in the first draw.

The boys also played two test tournaments from 8-8 , best of five games. Much to the surprise of the attending coaches,  both “events” had the same winner ; Kunal Chodri from the USA.  The young eleven year old Californian  certainly impressed the gallery with a , for his age a nice blend of power and smartness.

Another two days of training camp now awaits the Hopes players before the official two-day  competition ; The ITTF World Hopes Challenge  opens on Saturday.

The Hope-s for a Good Future

Fermin Tenti from Argentina - member of the very first ITTF World Hopes Team 2009

Just like that the first ever ITTF World Hopes Challenge is upon us. In fact we made it a whole week of FUN and DEVELOPMENT, by adding what promises to be a very interesting five days training camp. Hosted by the newly opened Werner Schlager Academy, just outside Vienna, the World Hopes Week features some + 70 young athletes born on or after 1999 and another huge group of supporters, coaches and parents.

Unique Approach 

All in all – organizing a world type of event for such a young age category makes the ITTF fairly unique. In fact few International Federations are either not interested or able to draw on such a young clientel of athletes using a world vision.

But here WE are.. And I write the world WE in capital letters, defined as all staff working with the event, the organizers and all participating clients. The ITTF Hopes is at this point still just a unique idea of launching worldwide Talent Id project, targeting promise and youth for the benefit of national associations and eventually, many years later our sport as a whole.  Let us remember that first hand when assessing the roads to travel from here.

Adjustments to come

Mind you that we also still, after only a few years of experience, constantly are in need for changes and adjustments to be made. The ITTF Hopes Programme has emerged as an interesting blend of Talent Id, Education and Support and will need another few years to find its perfect form.. But then.. Look out for as I said a UNIQEU, CREATIVE and FUN world programme that for sure will benefit growth of our sport and strengthen the ever so important UNIVERSALITY factor rapidly gaining ground in the Olympic movement.

Successful selections

We started in 2009 with our fist selection of talents. Held a successful training camp and activity in China for a very interesting group of young players, some of them now only a few years later making their way through to international recognition, not only at junior level but also, recently  in major continental events.

The 2010 group gathered in Korea and competed in the Euro Mini champs in Schlitigheim, France.  Again promise, talent and hard work have put some of the 2010 Hopes in a good position to compete already this summer at the cadet level in major continental championships.

Hot Spots now open for business

So, we arrive in 2011, and I believe that now have found the form and shape of the ITTF Hopes Programme by adding the ITTF World Hopes Week as the main focus for this age group. We are also committed to staging this event each year and connecting it to the new ITTF Hot Spot Training center network featuring, at this point twenty-two training centers in seventeen countries. The WSA, in all its pride surely one of the flagship centers is getting the first kick of the can. Others may follow and we already have positively enough indication of interest from other countries for 2012.

Opening Thoughts

But first come first; the 2011 ITTF World Hopes Week in Schwechat, Austria and my wishes/ thoughts can, on the eve of the event be summarized as follows;

Let the TALENTS of Table Tennis roam free. Let us believe in GLOBAL REACH. Allow us to become STRONGER and BETTER . Send a prayer or two? To the GODS of TABLE TENNIS. Meet the CHAMPIONS in person. Promote the COACHING profession. CELEBRATE our Sport, CELEBRATE fun. REWARD Hopes.

That’s it for now. See you out there. Welcome to Austria.

Family Fun ?!

Eightyear old Linus Karlsson making his debut in the competative courts of table tennis..

Parents as we are ,  with kids involved in sports,  the question will come.. Shall I coach my child , get involved beyond just being a passive spectator..? Some will , Some won’t ! But, then  again some are left , usually those with a good heart, without any options.  Today was such a day for the former World Champion and now trusted ITTF Expert coach ; Peter Karlsson.

When the eight year old Linus Karlsson , for the first time in his young life stepped into the courts of competitive table tennis,  in the regional tournament Västkust-spelen  boys singles U 8  ,  he had the night before secured his father as the coach ; Dad , he said .. Can you coach me tomorrow ? …were his last words , before taking control over the nervous butterflies and falling a sleep late Saturday night ! Results you may ask ?  Lets settle for both wins and losses.. Really didn’t matter as young Linus together with all the eight participants in the U 8 singles quickly forgot winning and loosing this Sunday .. They all walked away from the Falkarena with a nice trophy.

Watching the games however father Karlsson ,  usually strong in situations requiring quick analyze and evaluations quietly concluded something like .. I guess I should have chat with my son about legal service and some behavioral issues in the court. ?!

Other than those priceless ”Karlsson moments” , the ITTF hopefuls ,staying for the camp in Falkenberg , finished the competition with reasonable energy and promise.

Adriana Diaz, Puerto Rico , 10 years old ,  continued her strong play and finished on top of every  girls category offered  - from Girls 13 to Girls 17.. Fantastico would be the Spanish word for that i guess !?  Bryan Afanador had a good run also on Sunday putting up good wins as well as some healthy losses against capable  players. Pablo Saragovi from Argentina was another player from the ITTF group that elevated his play. He finished second in the Boys 17 singles.

The Close To Karlsson Camp featuring ten players from eight countries will continue until Tuesday 22 February in preparation for the Safir International Table Tennis meet.

 

The Hope-s for the Future ?

It’s about time that the Elevenpoints Blog and Mr Andersson comes to term again and starts “speaking” to each other ..  OK, OK  I know that  the setting this weekend perfectly parked as i am in a hotel room in Falkenberg will help .  The  purpose for my visit to the wholly table tennis grounds on the west coast of  Sweden , a place steeped in tradition and success ,  you ask ?

Another Close To Karlsson training camp – this time for the very youngest category of ITTF supported athletes ; The ITTF Hopes.

Present in Falkenberg for a week of preparation prior to the big junior and youth showdown ; The Safir International Table Tennis meet are a number of interesting youngsters. In fact we have brought in ten athletes with  coaches from five continents to listen and learn from Peter Karlsson this week.    New recruits are the hard-hitting and match-savvy Jonathan Ou from Florida , USA – Roger Rao from New Zealand and the indian left-hander Abishek Yadav , whilst others have been around before ; Brian Afanador from Puerto Rico, Fermin Tenti from Argentina and the two youngest paddlers Filip Iljevski , Canada and Aaron Wilson , Trinidad and Tobago. Part of the group are also Pavlo Saragovi from Argentina, Christof Christonov Cyprus  and Angelica Diaz from Puerto Rico .

Fresh from only a few start-up sessions  on Friday,  the International  Hopefuls were presented an  excellent warm up opportunity as the local tournament  ”Vastkustspelen” is organized  in the brand new Falkarena over the weekend.

The ITTF selection fared as expected well  in the first day of competition , picking up several  wins in different age categories.  Most impressive ?! Very possible  Jonathan Ou who showed plenty of energy combined and  a seldom seen stroke efficiency in his bid to win the boys 14 single. Jonathan played a strong game in the semifinal ousting  Bryan Afanador in a seven gamer , but fell just short in the final against  Christos Christonov from Cyprus .

Angelic Diaz , only ten years old,  played with authority the whole day and picked up two wins in the Girls 12 and the Girls 13 singles.

The Karlsson training camp will continue until Tuesday 22 Februari ,  another nine days of hard grinding work  before the ITTF selection moves north to Örebro and the Swedish Junior Open. Dejan Papic experienced Hopes and ITTF coach is assisting Peter Karlsson in the training camp and will guide the coaches during competition.

 

 

Only in America

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. My guess, is that you do not think about Table Tennis right away? Instead you may let your mind drift away to flashy hotels, cabarets, entertainment and casinos. Let me tell you , a classic re-think might be more than suitable , at least for the one week of the year , usually mid December,  when the US Nationals in Table Tennis takes hold of the Las Vegas Convention Center and the nearby Hilton Hotel.

Table Tennis in the United States of America!? Welcome to a different world, far away from the comfort of organized sport European style. Estimated number of hobby players = twenty million! The number of USATT members and competitive players = 9800.  USATT budget = some 1.3 million dollars trying to cover everything and everybody. Room for improvement? = BIG.   Interesting market for the ITTF?  = You Bet!

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I am sure that the Convention center once was a state of the art facility. Could have been, judging from the outside look some forty years ago however.  Inside it is well… Fairly large to put it mildly.  With Vegas taking the one week of the year off, facilities for the championships are at no cost to the USATT, which is a good thing. On the other hand, promotion and connection to a local organizer is missing. Another Olympic Sport is by the way holding its National Championships in the same building;  Wrestling.

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It is my first visit to the US National Championships in Table Tennis. To be quite frankly, I have never been to the US Open, the other traditional meet for the fun and table tennis loving membership either. Got to say though, right away, that this was one of the more refreshing experiences in a long time. Hard to describe the feelings really, but heroes and passion are two attributes that comes to mind. Seven hundred and forty-three participants. Sixty nine events. Ninety tables and a four day competition. Organized chaos might be the best word to describe the whole event.

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Clearly it is like Dennis Davis, valuable member of the ITTF Junior commission, and the organizer of the World Junior Table Tennis championships in Palo Alto, 2007 said; “Get one of the more experienced ITTF Competition Managers in here and you will witness a complete mental breakdown”. On the other hand Dennis pointed out; “They got one thing right – the matches normally start on time”

Dennis is by the way one of my all time ITTF Global Junior heroes. I met Dennis for the first time in Santiago, Chile back in 2003. He was there as the coach for the US Junior Girls team and I as the Global Junior Program manager setting up the first ever ITTF World Juniors.  We can do this event in Palo Alto Dennis said, knowing very little about the serves coming his way. Four years later Dennis, with the backing of Anne Cribbs and the BASOC organization pulled of a small miracle by staging the 2007 ITTF WJTTC at Stanford University.

For those who doubted. For those who felt the pain of not having everything served on a plate back in 2007  ; We are  already seeing  the results of all the efforts and one of the best presented ITTF Word  Juniors ;  Growth and Recognition for our sport ; Table Tennis in the Bay Area is booming ! .  Dennis is still by the way active – coaching as hard as ever at this Palo Alto TT  club ;http://www.tabletennisgold.com/.

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Two tables out of the ninety are in a center court setting. When play finally narrows down the presentation somehow excels ,  but again an improved presentation and a better separation of the various events would help I am sure. It is hard, even for a trained table tennis observer, to figure this one out. Especially when the younger clientele is allowed to cross enter in some of the many rating events offered.

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Ever heard about the”hardbat” movement in the USA? Summary; table tennis without sponge.   Craziness the American way for sure. On the other hand it would be pretty exciting to see Jan Ove Waldner handle the hardbat – would it not? Got to love the 100,000 ESPN US Hardbat classic played last year and coming back in February 2011 .  Separated qualification brackets – Bar champions to Pros, all coming together in a handicap format in the end.  Check out the Video  - It’s show time – the American way !

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=iles/090924

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Held my fort by the way and completely stayed away from the poker tables and the flashy machines during my stay in “The Sin City “. Even better, I beat the Hilton sport book for 150 bucks on some NHL Ishockey. Well needed considering that a cup of coffee and a toasted bagel for breakfast will rip your wallet wide open in the morning. EIGHT dollars.. Thank You.

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New ITTF Racket Control rules clashing with reality. US board member and well known TT profile Christian Lillieroos was disqualified in the quarterfinals of one of the “master” events. “The racket controllers ruled my racket illegal due to flatness Christian said. I have played with the same racket for twelve years and had no spare racket – so that was it “

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One thing that you quickly realize when paying a visit to the US Nationals. The number of quality coaches operating in the country. USATT is estimating that not fewer than 40-50 coaches are working full time coaching players of various shapes, ages and form. The quality is steadily improving with a number of prominent Europeans breaking the Chinese domination. I chatted in length with Stefan Feth from Germany, the well travelled Italian mastermind Massimo Constantini and of course my old friend  ,  fellow Swede , Stellan Bengtsson that since some  years back is calling San Diego, California his home.

“I work the whole year around.  The local association is operating a club that stays open six days a week.  . The venue  is very nice and I can use it also for my private lessons. Most of our business is during the summer when we stage summer camps Stellan told me.   “You are what you are over here – a freelance coach. Your clients can be anything from a fifty year old dentist to some young and upcoming players , I just wish that some of the younger players could make up their mind and push harder to become better he said.

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The number of young players calling Table Tennis their sport is growing by the minute. Many club owners that I talked with are opting for expansion and more tables in order to accommodate new members. Northern California and the Palo Alto area is a hub with several clubs in full operation.  Best known by now, very much thanks to great results, in combination with good promotional and smart marketing skills, is the ICC club in Milpitas.  Head Master is Rajul Seth – a self driven table tennis enthusiast with great passion and vision.  In Las Vegas the ICC club collected titles and medals like nobody else. The total count; twenty three medals!

The web site ; http://www.indiacc.org/tabletennis and Facebook ; http://www.facebook.com/pages/North-America-ICC-Table-Tennis/130162363696647?v=wall

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Here are a few other interesting clubs looking for recognition  ;  Top Spin in San Jose, CA – The home of quality coaching , check out the excellent facilities  http://www.thetopspin.com/.   In Southern California close to  Los Angeles you will find the Gracelin Table Tennis club; http://www.paddleattack.com/ .  Had a look at some of their many youngsters competing in Vegas . Almost all of them looked good. Encouraging indeed.

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Another good story developing, another promising project; The Lily Yip Table Tennis center in New Jersey. They will open soon, offering   not fewer than twenty five tables in a newly renovated facility. The complete Yip family was by the way playing in Vegas. Good to see Adam Hugh back in the courts following a period off from table tennis due to school and injuries. London 2012 on his mind for sure . http://www.lilyyip.com/

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In many ways it is hard to describe the professional pride connected to the fact that many of the ideas we had back in 2003 , when the ITTF Global Junior Programme was introduced , actually is bearing fruit already seven years later. Here is what I think.  Both the ITTF Cadet Challenge and the ITTF World Junior Championships carries a continental component that guarantees exposure to young players from North America.  Ariel Hsing is a prime example. Lily Zhang is on the move. Erica Wu is an excellent young player. Success feeds success, that is a known fact very much driving youth development in the USA for the moment.  Held an interesting, well attended meet and greet with a number of parents to national team players juniors and cadets.   The main challenge is now to steer some of the ambition and energy towards international success.

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The winner of the 2010 US National Cadet title , thirteen year old Charles Deng from Houston , Texas was one the  first selections  for the ITTF Hopes Programme and 2009  ITTF World Hopes Team. The energetic lefthander has, since his first appearance on the international scene, played at least five to six high quality international events and trained with some of the best coaches in the world. Only this year we are talking some 50-60 days of international table tennis.  Well done and also hard work to juggle tough training hours and travel with a demanding school schedule.

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Eight year old Amy Wang battled her way to a spot on the 2011 US Cadet Girls Team. Imagine having seven years!!!  left in that category.  Anyway.. Be aware of this small dynamo that fired off backhand smashes down the line like I have never seen before.

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Another good battler, a crowd-pleaser, born to be a star, is the ten years old; Jha Kanak  from Palo Alto and a product of several club environments in the area. I can only see upsides with this” bounce ball”  of a table tennis player. Nice, clean technique and good overall touch makes him very, very interesting.  Try Google to find out more about him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpkkym_iPW0

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Always interesting to witness youth beating age in Table Tennis. According to the coaching education guru in US Table Tennis ;Mr  Richard Mcafee,  both final pairings in the Men’s and the Women’s singles featured the youngest players in the history of US Nationals. The Men’s champion Timothy Wang (what an improvement!)  is nineteen years old, his opponent in the final Peter Li, only seventeen.  In the women’s singles fifteen year old Ariel Hsing defeated the one year younger Lily Zhang in a thrilling final. Did I say that the future looks bright?

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I guess that I owe you the complete results ? Here they are http://www.usatt.org/tournaments/results.php?tournament=1

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Still with me ?! Well, then let me throw at least one good idea your way . It belongs to the THINK BIG category . Why not make a strategic decision to take a slimmed , and trimmed down version of  the Individual World Championships to the United States sometime soon  - lets say 2015 ?!. If mighty FIFA could do it with the World Cup in Soccer back in 1986 , not opening bids,  but allocating  by executive decision,   we can do it as well.

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The Times is Now !

With the Bright Future of US Table Tennis in Mind !

Mikael Andersson, ITTF Executive Director Education and Training

ITTF World Juniors 2010 – Where the Future Begins

The fighting face of Omar Bedair from Egypt. Has he made the transition from Participant to Competitor ?

It’s early December in the year of  2o10. Christmas time for the fans of World Junior Table Tennis as we are about to roll out eight days of competition here in Bratislava – the home of the 2010 WJTTC.  We are already in day two , in the middle of the  team events, when your blogging director found peace in mind enough to start posting a few close up observations and for that matter hopefully some more sustainable thoughts about the future of our sport as the week goes along .

As always I would like to put up the “Take it or Leave it sign” for the readers of this Blog . Been a bit of thorn in then side for the traditionalists in this sport , already since iposted my first piece in the Danish Association Yearbook back in 1989. In fact my writing started there – in the hands of the acting  ITTF Media Committee Chair  at the time the chair of Danish Table Tennis Arne Madsen , who frankly told me to write a yearly column for his popular publication. He knew very little what was to come  the following years,  as i often used  the  window given to me,  small but noticeable, to try to push for more quality decisions for the development of  our sport. In those days, many moons ago , it was about the Danish Table Tennis reality ; the need for a change in direction – higher goals – improved ambition  at levels. I  guess that I was looking for excellence more than anything else  . I fought hard, worked hard  during my Seven years as the General and the Front-soldier in Danish Table Tennis  to fulfill the GOALS and TARGETS presented to us ; The Danish National Team , by the Governing body of Elite Sport in Denmark  ;  Team Denmark.

They (Team Denmark)  talked about medals at international championships  and Olympic Success . That was then my goals – my life. I lived coaching , pushed the envelope and was perhaps not always the nicest person to be around – especially when we were climbing up hill if you understand what i mean.

Now .. Looking at the first initial proceedings here in Bratislava. My eight world junior championships ( yes , i have seen them all..) the first thing that comes to my mind is very much connected to the values  i once fought to establish in Danish Table Tennis ,  the ability to COMPETE  instead of to PARTICIPATE.  It does take a lot of courage for young players , many of them still naturally unsecure by age and abilities to let it at all loose . To leave everything out there in courts of battle.  Of course it relates to the ever so important factor of SELF CONFIDENCE – to believe in yourself and your abilities.

The creation of the ITTF Global Junior Programme with its top event the ITTF WJTTC opened up a whole bag of opportunities for national associations and their young players. The ITTF support structure that came along , and we are still using basically the same parameters, also removed some of the financial obstacles - clearly a limiting factor in many countries. Over the years the ITTF has invested close to 800,000 US in the  With the Future in Mind project alone , allowing young and promising athletes mostly from developing countries to access individual scholarships. On top of that , funding has been plowed into the ITTF Global Junior Circuit and early key events like the ITTF Cadet Challenge and the ITTFWJTTC. The latest addition to a growing number of projects is the Talent Id designed  ITTF Hopes programme .

OK – I say . Where are the results of all the efforts , the thinking( ambition if you like)  and the support  ? Do we stand up beautiful and best looking ourselves  in the mirror ?  Is a new direction needed and is the ITTF as an international federation doing the right things to develop our sport ? Have we made some participants to competitors and are the effects spread around , transferred into  stronger and better national association programmes for young players. Because that was the idea was it not ? We need good attractive athletes carrying our sport forward. If some of those happen to  come from what i call untapped market we are in a better shape to capture Olympic attention , TV deals and sponsors , vital factors to be able to grow the sport of table tennis.

These are only some of the questions we need to debate and discuss in the ITTF circles of knowledge. Personally I find  that some  positives does stick out such as individual athletes advancing relatively quickly from platform to platform and also the ITTF Cadet Challenge as a yearly , now established go to event for a crucial age. The ITTF work with the Youth Olympic Games does also demand plenty of respect .

However problems remain to be solved are many , before we can  reach our goals to provide , from an athletes development point of a view – a level playing field providing quality training access to coaches and players from all over the globe. Even if  emerging countries like Egypt (both Girls and Boys ) and India stick out as on their way –  Elite Level of Coaching, Performance related planning , Managment of Young Talented  are factors that urgently needs to be adressed.  Not necessarily by the ITTF – but more on a national level for our support to make sense.

The new era – the next cycle of support must adress those issues in order for ITTF actions  to be sustainable  .   A clear cut ITTF Athletes Development Model  would be a start.