Indore: Over 350 champions from 24 states will battle it out for greater glory as the 11SPORTS Inter-School Table Tennis National Championships 2018 gets under way here on Thursday.
Jointly organized by 11SPORTS and the Madhya Pradesh Table Tennis Association, under the aegis of TTFI, it will see young boys and girls, including as many as several nationally-ranked players, competing for titles in different age groups.
The competition will be the culmination of multiple championships successfully held across the country, resulting in champion teams emerging in Six divisions. A ‘National School Champion’ will emerge at the end of the four-day fiesta in two categories: Sub Junior Boys & Girls (till Standard 7) , Junior Boys& Girls (Standard 8 to 10) & Senior Boys & Girls (Standard 11 & 12)
On the eve of the tournament, one of India’s most accomplished sportspersons and Arjuna Awardee Kamlesh Mehta of 11SPORTS expressed happiness at the size and magnitude of the exercise. “Our goal is to scout for talent and nurturing them at the grassroots level and our next target is 5,000 schools. We want to give youngsters a level playing field and a huge platform to showcase their talent,” Mehta said.
Shri Om Soni, Chairman of Madhya Pradesh Table Tennis Association, explained how Indore has become the new hub for table tennis, with state- of-the-art facilities.
Jayesh Acharya, General Secretary of MPTTA added that, Indore has a history of supporting table tennis. Now, with world class facilities at our disposal, most of the national camps are held at Abhay Prashal.
The matches will follow the Corbillion Cup of play, with a maximum of 5 matches in each tie, played on the Best-of-Five games format. Trophies will be awarded to the winning team in each category, while medals and merit certificates will be awarded to all the team members (max 4) and 1 coach/manager for the winners, runners-up and semifinalists. Participation certificates will be given to all the players, including coaches/managers. All expenses pertaining to boarding and lodging plus travelling will be taken care of by 11SPORTS Pvt. Ltd.
While 11SPORTS are fulfilling the dual role of sponsors and organizers, the event is fully powered by Smt. Vita Dani, Chairperson of 11SPORTS Pvt. Ltd and Director of Bajaj Group and Arjuna Awardee Shri Niraj Bajaj. STIGA is the equipment partner and will be supplying the tables, balls, flooring, umpire's tables and scoreboards.
Mr. Jayesh Acharya will be Tournament Director & R.C. Moriya Chief Referee. Opening Ceremony will be held at 12.00 am on 29 th November 2018 while the Team finals will be played at 2.30 pm on 30 th November, followed by the Singles Prize Distribution at 03.00 pm on 02 nd December 2018.
