Paddlers set for acid test

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Sports Minister Suryabanshi Suraj expressed pride and optimism ahead of the 28th ITTF-ATTU Asian Table Tennis Team Championships 2025, starting Saturday. “We are simultaneously organising a national and an international event.

The 40th Junior Nationals is already underway at Kalinga Stadium and will conclude on the 14th of this month. At the same time, for the first time, Odisha is hosting the prestigious Asian Table Tennis Team Championships,” the minister said.

The 40th National Junior Athletics Championships are also being hosted by Odisha, at the same venue in Bhubaneswar, with the joint support of the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), Odisha Athletics Association, and the Sports and Youth Services Department, Government of Odisha. Suraj added that organising two major tournaments simultaneously demonstrates Odisha’s increasing competence in sports management, saying, “It’s a matter of pride that we can conduct two big events within the same period. This will enhance our experience in hosting multiple sporting events simultaneously. We are strengthening our team’s capacity — physically, mentally, and administratively — to manage and deliver large-scale events efficiently.” The minister further expressed hope that with this experience, Odisha will continue to attract more major national and international sporting events in the future. The Asian Table Tennis Team Championships will be staged here at the renowned Kalinga Stadium from October 11 to 15. The event will also serve as a qualifier for the 2026 ITTF World Team Championships, with the top 13 teams from each category securing spots.

Odisha is hosting its first Asian-level table tennis event, although the state previously hosted the 2019 Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships. Bhubaneswar, which has hosted several major sporting events recently, is also known as India’s sports capital.

Nearly 500 participants, including players and support staff from 22 countries — India, China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau, Bangladesh, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Oman, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Uzbekistan — are taking part in the championship. Both men and women teams will compete for top honours. The top-performing teams from this championship will qualify for the ITTF World Table Tennis Team Championships 2026 to be held in London, informed Suraj during the press conference.

He further stated that several top-ranked international players will be showcasing their talent in this championship. From India, Sreeja Akula, Manika Batra, Diya Chitale, Yashaswini Ghorpade, Swastika Ghosh (women’s category) and Ankur Bhattacharya, Payas Jain, Manush Shah, Snehit Suravajjula, Manav Thakkar (men’s category) will represent the country. Athletes from various nations have already arrived in Bhubaneswar and started their practice sessions. The lights are ready, the tables gleam, and the paddles will soon sing—as India braces for its most defining continental test yet.

 

 

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