Latest news with #tableTennis
The Guardian
05-07-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Brazilian table tennis star denied entry to US due to having competed in Cuba
Brazilian Hugo Calderano, who won the gold medal in the 2025 table tennis World Cup, said he will miss the WTT US smash event in Las Vegas this month following delays in getting a visa to the United States. Calderano, a 2025 world championships silver medallist who also holds a Portuguese passport, said he had been informed by US authorities that he was no longer eligible for visa waiver for European Union countries, due to a trip to Cuba in 2023 to compete in international competitions and qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympics. The 29-year-old said he then tried to get an emergency visa but ran out of time with the event already under way on Thursday. 'I followed the same protocol as all my previous trips to the United States using my Portuguese passport,' Calderano said in a statement on his website late on Thursday. 'When I was informed of the situation, I mobilized my entire team to obtain an emergency visa, but unfortunately, there was not enough time.' 'It is frustrating to be left out of one of the most important competitions of the season for reasons beyond my control, especially coming off such positive results,' he added. The US Smash event is one of the highlights of the year for the WTT, a body created by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), to stage commercial competitions to broaden the appeal of the sport, with higher prize money. The United States will also play host to the 2026 soccer World Cup while Los Angeles will stage the 2028 summer Olympics with athletes from more than 200 countries set to take part. Reuters has contacted the US state department for a comment. The ITTF could not immediately be reached for a comment.
The Sun
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
The 1% Club wipes out 15 players on tough sports question – but could you have got it right in 30 seconds?
A DIFFICULT sports question on The 1% Club eliminated 15 players - but could you get it right in 30 seconds? The ITV quiz regularly stumps contestants with its logic and common sense-based puzzles. 4 In one episode, a tough sports question ended 15 people's chances of winning up to £100,000. This was the 45% question -- approximately half way into the game. Host Lee Mack asked: "Miranda and Oliver are playing a game of table tennis. They change serve after every 2 points. "If Oliver served first, and the score is now 6-5, who will be serving the next point?" The players had just 30 seconds to try and work out what the correct answer was. Once time was up - and it was revealed 15 were out - Lee revealed the right answer was Miranda. The full solution was: "They played 11 points, so the next point will be the 12th point. "Oliver serves on points: 1, 2, 5, 6, 9 and 10 and Miranda serves on points 3, 4, 7, 8, 11 and 12." However, Lee simply joked: "Miranda - and there's the explanation." In another episode, a whopping 25 contestants were wiped out on an "easy" picture question. The 1% Club knocks out 25 players on 'easy' picture question - can you get it? Not only that, it was an 80% question - which are posed very early in the show. Lee asked the quiz hopefuls: "What two-word phrase does this code represent?" Contestants were then shown side-by-side photos of a clock and some flies. Once the 30 second time limit expired, it was shown 25 people had answered incorrectly. The 1% Club's Most Difficult Questions The 1% Club sees 100 contestants try and make it to the 1% question and be in with a chance to win a share of the jackpot. Here are just some of the show's most difficult teasers. Players had to compare and contrast three images of butterflies then explain which of the butterflies were exactly the same on both sides. Find the image and answer here. Players were shown groups of six symbols then asked which were in the same order whether you read them from left to right or right to left. Find the image and answer here. Players were asked how many different combinations were there of displaying four digits on one hand. Find the answer here. Peter had recently found his old diary that he'd written in secret code but he couldn't remember how to decipher what he wrote. Players were asked to crack the code and find out what the bold word was. WH89 I GR1W UP I WA92 21 B8 A 5L1RI72. Find the image and answer here. Players were tasked with working out how many eyes they could see in an image, which was made up of letters, symbols and emojis. Find the image and the answer here. A 1% question was based on a grid of numbers going in ascending order from 1 to 49. Starting on 25, the middle square, SEEN took you to square 27. From there, NEW took you to 20. From there, which square would SEWN take you to? Find the image and the answer here. And finally, an easy one - What common food in bold has had its letters rearranged into alphabetical order? ABDER If you really don't know you can find the answer here. Lee remarked: "I was not expecting that", as he discovered the outcome. The right answer was revealed as the common phrase "time flies". Speaking to eliminated contestants afterwards, Lee discovered at least two had answered "clock flies". 4 4
Al Bawaba
20-06-2025
- Sport
- Al Bawaba
Dubai Open Table Tennis Academies Championship brims with success
The curtains came down on the inaugural Dubai Open Table Tennis Academies Championship (DOTTA) with UAE player Mayed Nawaf Al Kaabi walking away with the crown at the ISD courts in Dubai Sports by the Dubai Sports Council in cooperation with the UAE Table Tennis Federation and tournament operating partner ISD Dubai, the championship witnessed a full house at the ISD Table Tennis courts at Dubai Sports among the finds of the competition, Emirati Mayed Nawaf Al Kaabi walked away with the Under-12 category after defeating Henroy Day, while Azan Abdullah had to stay content with third the Under-15 category, Abdulrahman Ganio clinched the top spot, followed by Chloe Isabel Silva in second place and Joaquim Yenigou Adriano in third brand-new addition to the Dubai sporting scene aims at enhancing the Dubai Sports Council's efforts of attracting and developing emerging sports talent in keeping with its policy launched in line with the Dubai Government's directives to attract and develop talent across all sporting championship served as a platform to highlight emerging talent in table tennis, and witnessed strong competition and impressive skill displays across both age Salem Al Mahri, Director of the Sports Talent Management Department at the Dubai Sports Council, emphasised the importance of competitions such as the Dubai Open Table Tennis Championships in strengthening sports talent development programmes across all Council has organised similar Dubai Open Championships in football, basketball, volleyball, handball, swimming, karate, gymnastics and tennis, with great success so far. He noted that the wide participation in these championships reflects their great success and is a positive indicator for their future Mahri also praised the outstanding technical level witnessed in the table tennis championship, emphasising that it was an ideal platform for discovering promising talents who will form a fundamental pillar of future national Neves de Almeida, General Manager of ISD Dubai Sports City, emphasised that the tournament goes beyond the competitive aspect. 'The Dubai Open Table Tennis Academies (DOTTA) Championship was not just a competition; it was an opportunity to inspire young athletes and instill a love of table tennis in them. Seeing the children give it their all and support each other is truly a source of pride. The competitions were characterised by a high level of sportsmanship among the players, in addition to promoting finer values of respect, discipline and a passion for challenge, which left a positive impact on the participants, parents and coaches,' Al Mahri tournament concluded with an awards ceremony, where the top winners in the Under 12 and Under 15 categories were honoured for their outstanding performances, exceptional skills and fighting spirit while ending on the 12: 1. Mayed Nawaf Al Kaabi; 2. Henroy Day; 3. Azan Abdullah Under 15: 1. Abdulrahman Ganiu; 2. Chloe Isabel Silva; 3. Joaquim Ynigo Adriano.
Reuters
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Chinese fans bid emotional farewell to retiring 'Uncle Boll'
June 17 (Reuters) - Chinese table tennis fans bid an emotional farewell to their 'Uncle Boll', German former world number one Timo Boll who challenged China's long-time dominance of the sport. The 44-year-old, who retired from international competition last year with four Olympic medals (two silver and two bronze), played his final professional match in Frankfurt on Sunday. "Thank you to the Chinese fans for your deep affection that crossed national borders," Boll posted on Weibo after his team lost the Bundesliga final. "From Ma Lin to Fan Zhendong, every clash with a great opponent has been one of my most cherished honours," Boll said, referring to two Chinese Olympic champions. The post received millions of views in China, where table tennis is widely regarded as the country's national sport.
Telegraph
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
‘My brother is called Ping and my dad wanted to call me Pong'
The 26-year-old Londoner has won the English National Championship a record-equalling seven times but remains relatively anonymous in the wider sporting consciousness, even after the Nike advert. Phase two of her career is about to launch though, starting with the World Table Tennis Star Contender event in Slovenia this week. Phase one was a chaotic juggling act which involved studying for a degree in medicine at the University of Nottingham while at the same time playing club table tennis in Germany and competing around the world for Britain. It came to a hectic climax in early April when she sat the last of her exams and then hot-footed it to the nationals to take the title again. Exams passed, she intends to become a psychiatrist. That, however, is for another day. 'My plan now will be to play full time for a few years and then hopefully go back to medicine afterwards,' says Ho. Free at last to devote herself to her art rather than her science, she has drawn a big red circle around the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, having already competed in the Tokyo Games. Her sporting world view has traditionally been a narrow one, but she has felt it widening a little of late. 'I was quite inspired by Emma Raducanu at the US Open and I've been trying to follow the women's side of tennis since,' she says. Ho is happy not to exist in the same goldfish bowl as Raducanu, but adds: 'I would also like to be good enough that everyone does know who I am. I would like to see how good I can be and where that can take me. I believe that I have a lot of potential so I hope it can be a long way.'
