Another follow-up meeting will be held on April 15 to further evaluate the situation.
DOHA (Qatar): The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Executive Committee on Sunday has decided to suspend all of its events and activities until June 30 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The decisions also overwrite those made during the previous ITTF Executive Committee meeting on 16 March 2020, the international body said in a statement.
“The meeting was set up in order to follow up on the ever-changing situation globally,” it said.
The ITTF has intensified communications with the athletes through the support of the ITTF Athletes Commission and will continue to provide further updates on all upcoming decisions in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.
There will be a survey going to all athletes for their input to ensure that all decisions fully reflect their opinions.
Another follow-up meeting will be held on April 15 to further evaluate the situation.
The following decisions were taken on Sunday.
- Suspension of all currently planned ITTF events and activities that involve international travel until 30 June 2020.
- Proposal of new dates for the Hana Bank 2020 World Team Table Tennis Championships, to be announced in the coming week.
- Freezing of ITTF Ranking lists as of March 2020 and further evaluation of all implications related to the postponement of events, travel restrictions and other complications, with scope for further decisions on potentially necessary adjustments.
- Adjustments to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games qualification pathways will be worked on after the dates of the Games have been decided.
- The ITTF has also been working hard to manage the 2020 finances with the Executive Committee agreeing to reduce their expenses and senior staff offering to take a salary reduction, as the ITTF looks into other areas to save overall costs.
