BY MAGRETH RUZVIDZO The Zimbabwe Table Tennis Union (ZTTU) is set to host its open tournament this weekend at Divaris Makaharis Group of Schools in Harare this weekend, with a number of different age groups set to compete.
Categories include the Under-10 boys and girls singles, Under-15 boys and girls singles, Under-21 men and women singles as well as open for both men and women singles and doubles.
ZTTU secretary-general Tinashe Duri said preparations for the tourney were already rolling.
“The preparations are going on well. Our technical director had a visit to the venue last week and as we speak most of the needed resources are in place for the big event,” Duri said.
“We have received notifications from various athletes and corporates showing interest in taking part. Zambia has also hinted that they might come and they promised to give feedback this Wednesday (tomorrow). We are happy that the uniformed forces are joining us this time, ZRP [Zimbabwe Republic Police] teams and clubs are preparing to take part in the games which is a good thing for the nation.”
In order to motivate and aid competition among the participants, cash prizes have been lined up.
“We have introduced a cash prize to the event, which will make it more attractive than before. The prize is still closed, but there is a cash prize for winners. We will also have projectors to show athletes live draws.”
The organisation is hoping to establish a national league.
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“We are looking forward to the national league launch next month and it will run up to December. It is the opportunity for us to engage stakeholders on a face-to-face basis to get to hear their views in making the league favourable for everyone taking into consideration challenges around the table tennis family.”
Duri also stressed that there is need to work on the teams’ participation in the Table Tennis World Championships to be hosted in South Africa next year.
“South Africa is hosting Table Tennis World Championships 2023, our team failed to make it at the recently-held regional games. We are working on having a wild card for our teams to be considered for participation. We will learn a number of things if we get a chance to have our teams either participating or being present for the games,” he said.
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