Wang and Sun Dominate ITTF World Rankings as New Year Approaches
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Beijing (China), Dec 31 (NationPress) The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has published its most recent world rankings this Tuesday, revealing that Chinese athletes Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha are leading the men's and women's singles events, respectively. The men's singles category is dominated by Wang Chuqin and Lin Shidong at the top two positions, followed by Tomokazu Harimoto from Japan, Felix Lebrun from France, Liang Jingkun from China, Hugo Calderano from Brazil, Truls Moregard from Sweden, Lin Gaoyuan from China, Qiu Dang from Germany, and Patrick Franziska from Germany rounding out the top 10.
In the women's rankings, Chinese players Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Wang Yidi, and Chen Xingtong occupy the top four positions. Following them are Hina Hayata and Miwa Harimoto from Japan in fifth and sixth place, respectively, while Cheng I-Ching from Chinese Taipei, Shin Yubin from South Korea, and Mima Ito from Japan complete the list, according to reports from Xinhua.
Post the announcement of the latest world rankings, the Chinese Table Tennis Association (CTTA) released a statement affirming that Ma Long, Fan Zhendong, and Chen Meng have officially stepped back from the rankings, with all necessary procedures for their withdrawal finalized.
"The association will continue to monitor the progress of these three athletes and will offer them comprehensive support, whether they decide to return to international competitions or concentrate on domestic events," stated the announcement. "The CTTA is actively collaborating with the ITTF and World Table Tennis (WTT) to push for reasonable modifications to competition regulations."
"Ma Long, Fan Zhendong, and Chen Meng have significantly contributed to the sport and brought immense pride to our nation. As the president of the CTTA, I am dedicated to defending our athletes' rights and interests," expressed Liu Guoliang.
"I recommend that WTT consider implementing 'participation exemptions' for seasoned and accomplished players while also creating a 'prize pool' to reward young competitors who actively participate in events," added Liu.
