HK hit hard by ban on table tennis players who switch countries
Hong Kong's table tennis ambitions were hit yesterday when the sport's ruling body introduced rules barring players over 21 who have switched countries from playing in top events and limiting participation in them by younger players who switch.
The move will particularly hit Chinese nationals who cannot make the national team and places such as Hong Kong that 'import' them.
At last year's women's World Cup in Chengdu , 13 of the 16 players competing were Chinese, representing the mainland, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Netherlands, Australia, Austria, the United States, the Dominican Republic and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. At the current World Championships in Guangzhou, 19 of the 48 teams featured mainland-born players.
The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) ruled that, from September 1, players over 21 would not be allowed to play for another country in the World Cup and World Championships. Players under 21 would be allowed to represent another country after being registered there for seven years. For those aged 18 to 21 it would be five years and for those players under 15, three years. Only Hong Kong and New Zealand voted against the moves.
Participation in events such as the Olympics and Asian Games would not be affected, since the ITTF does not run them.
'We agree there should be some control measures ... but a total ban ... is not acceptable,' said Tony Yue Kwok-leung, chairman of the Hong Kong Table Tennis Association. Hong Kong has long been known as China's second-string team. Li Ching and Ko Lai-chak, who won Olympic silver medals in men's doubles for the city at the 2004 Olympics, are typical examples.
ITTF president Adham Sharara said: 'The objective of this new eligibility rule is to ... push each association to develop its own players.'
