2011 Latin American Championships ready to kick off in Mexico – Table Tennis news
This year the international Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Latin American Championships will feature more countries than ever. The annual continental championship is one of the major table tennis events in the country and is being held in the Mexican city
of Guadalajara with a total of 26 teams participating in different categories of the event. There are 19 women teams and 23 men's teams participating. There are 71 men and 51 women taking part in the singles category.
The South American Table tennis circuit cannot be compared to the level of play in Asian countries like China, Korea and Japan. European countries like Germany also have extensive histories in the sport and have superior game-play when compared to Latin
America. This is why a specific event show casing South American talent has been organized to help the profile of the game and also increase the competitiveness of the players.
The event is being sponsored by several major companies looking to make a push into the local market. The court mat is supplied by the Tinsue Company. The surrounding blue coloured tags show the sponsors for the forthcoming Pan American Games.The Stag company
has provided the table tennis tables for the event. The sponsors of the event and the officials are pretty happy to see the venue as it has the capacity of ten tables and enough space for spectators to witness the matches.
Also the organizers have invited the best umpires on the circuit, the most prominent of which is Rachel Ramos. She was on duty at the Spanish Open and on the ITTF Junior Circuit in Guam. Next week she will be going for an umpire course and will be checking
the complete details of the championship.
Rachel Ramos said, “We will be checking the surfaces of the rackets, testing for flatness and thickness of the rubber plus of course the voc levels in the glue. Players can have their racket tested voluntarily on two occasions during the whole tournament; the
referee will advise about compulsory testing.”
She will also be the in charge of the Racket Control at the ITTF-Latin American Championships. It seems that the Princess of the Philippines appears where ever table tennis is played.
In the World Championship a week earlier she was present on duty and she umpired the Men’s Singles quarter-final contest competed between Timo Boll and Chen Qi.
The officials will be looking forward to witness new faces to emerge on the table tennis circuit in the region. Earlier this year in March, ITTF-Latin American Cup was held at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event was a success story and this time even ITTF
officials are hoping to see the players excel in the sport and play in the international table tennis circuit.
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