INDIA: The first World Table Tennis (WTT) series event to ever be held in India will take place in Panaji, Goa. The Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium on the Goa University Campus in the Taleigao area to the south of the state capital will host the flagship WTT Star Contender 2023 event. It will take place from February 27 to March 5.
In the presence of Rohan Khaunte, Minister of Tourism and the government of Goa, a news conference was held at which the statement was issued. Stupa Analytics, a prominent sports analytics firm based in Goa, will serve as the event host with the full support of the state government.
Officials from WTT and Stupa Analytics attended the press conference
Dr. Geeta Nagvenkar, Executive Director of Sports Authority of Goa and Matt Pound, Managing Director of WTT, also joined the event. Megha Gambhir, Co-Founder and CEO of Stupa Analytics, and Deepak Malik, Co-Founder and Chief Sports Officer of Stupa Analytics, were also present at the event.
WTT
The International Table Tennis Federation’s commercial and events organisation, WTT, puts players and fans at the centre of its operations, helping to propel table tennis to the top of the international sports scene.
Table tennis will be elevated to the top echelons of international sport, making an impact on people’s lives all over the world by offering world-class sports entertainment events, interesting fan-centric content, and forging connections with table tennis fans, partners, and players.
Stupa Analytics
Stupa is a worldwide sports analytics firm that was founded in 2020 and is bringing a technology revolution to racket sports. In order to assist players, coaches, international federations, and broadcasters, Stupa has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) enabled ball and player tracking video analytics solution for low-end devices like mobile.
It has also developed an integrated platform to manage and organise events, live streaming, and data management. The racket sports business is being revolutionised by Stupa, the first and only firm in the world with cutting-edge ball tracking technology and software services.
WTT 2023 arriving in India
Rohan Khaunte, the Goa government’s minister of tourism, addressed the event. He added, “The largest tourist destination in the country is Goa, and I’m thrilled to welcome WTT to our beaches as they declare WTT Contenders Goa 2023 as the opening competition on the WTT Calendar.”
“We are pleased that Goa will play host to a WTT event for the first time ever in India. In order to make India a sporting nation, we have established ourselves as a premier sporting state by hosting a number of international sporting events, and we will keep doing so,” he continued further.
The four Grand Smashes are the ultimate prize in the WTT Series, which is the official professional table tennis series of competitions. The world’s top players compete against one another in various category tournaments throughout the year.
The top 30 world rankings are required to compete in four of the six Star Contender events, which include 48 men and women in their respective singles main draws.
Matt Pound, Managing Director of WTT, expressed his excitement to conduct the event. He added, “WTT is excited to visit Goa and conduct the country’s first WTT event. We anticipate that the WTT Star Contender in Goa will be the first of many WTT events in India, showcasing the new style of table tennis to the country’s population.”
“In order to make this tournament a huge success and jointly expand Table Tennis in India with TTFI, we look forward to cooperating closely with the Goa government and Stupa Analytics. The top table tennis players in the world will enjoy visiting Goa, and together we can make history,” he stated further.
In addition to the singles draw, Star Contender tournaments feature a doubles main draw with 16 teams and a mixed doubles main draw with 8 teams. Eight qualifying singles players and four qualifying doubles teams get to compete against the best, and the host nation receives a sufficient number of wild card entries in both singles and doubles.
Megha Gambhir, the host of the event and co-founder as well as the CEO of Stupa Analytics, added that she aims to put forth Goa as a highlight for the upcoming season.
She added, “We are excited and elated to announce that we will be hosting a WTT Event in 2023. We promise an amazing show, and we can’t wait to see some of the best players in the world (and India) compete in Goa. We will make every effort to ensure that WTT Star Contender Goa is a highlight of the next 2023 season.”
Deepak Malik, Co-Founder and Chief Sports officer of Stupa Analytics, addressed the event. He stated, “I am overjoyed that this event will be held in India. I myself have been a professional table tennis player for over 10 years and have also coached the Indian National team in the past.”
“I believe that our Indian table tennis players have a lot of potential and desire, but it’s also crucial for them to be exposed to international competitions and playing styles if they want to advance more quickly than ever,” he added further.
“Only a selected few players who can afford foreign travel receive exposure, hence it is imperative that such numerous international events of all levels be organised in India, allowing paddlers, their guardians, fans from around the world, and coaches to participate in this worldwide competition,” he concluded.
Millions of table tennis fans and upcoming players in the country are waiting with bated breath for the WTT Star Contender Goa 2023, which offers to deliver on the promise of showcasing the best in the world live in action, and the top Indian players taking them on.
The seven-day celebration will feature 200+ world-ranked athletes and 500+ elite coaches, in addition to worldwide WTT professionals, guaranteeing world-class, high-quality action and excitement.
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