Continuing its concerted efforts to get competitions back on track, the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI), on Wednesday, rolled out a set of guidelines for players and officials for the National championships scheduled from early January.
Following a virtual meeting with representatives of all affiliates, the TTFI firmed up Sonepat and Indore as venues for the National championships — cadet & sub-junior, junior & youth and senior championships.
Dates to be decided
The championships dates are yet to be decided. As reported earlier, there will be no team championships or doubles events.
Affiliates have been given time until December 15 to complete State championships and send in names of selected players. Once the TTFI receives the names of participants, it will seek the necessary permission from the Sports Authority of India to go ahead with the Nationals.
Speaking to The Hindu, TTFI secretary-general M. P. Singh revealed, “Unlike in the past, when the host association met the expenses, this time the federation will foot the bills.
“These are challenging times and it is not fair to expect the hosting association to raise sponsorship funds. Therefore, the federation has come forward to bear the financial burden, including the expenses for over a thousand COVID tests.”
He said TTFI was committed to ensuring safety and health of the players, officials.
The cadet and sub-junior championships could be in February-March after the other two Nationals.
SOPs issued
To help affiliated units hold the State championships, the TTFI had issued detailed guidelines and standard operating procedures, based on norms laid down by the government, he said.
With a steady rise in the number of COVID cases in several parts of the country, the hosting district associations would be required to follow the latest set of guidelines from the States, if any, along with the TTFI guidelines.
