Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, July 19:

A nine-member table tennis team left for New Delhi to take part in the 11th SAF Junior Table Tennis Championship to be held from July 20-22 and the South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championship, slated for July 23-28, at Talkatora Indoor Stadium. Amar Lal Malla, Deep Saun, Ajay Suwal, Rita Maiya Prajapati, Swechhya Nembang and Pujan Shrestha are the players who will take part in all the nine events — boys’ and girls’ team events, singles, doubles, mixed doubles, Under-12 cadet boys’ and girls’ events — of both the championships. Other members in the team are international referee Shankar Gautam, team coach Sushil Poudel and member of Nepal Sports Journalists Forum Prajit Shakya. About 30 nations will take part in the Asian-level tournament while only six countries — except Afghanistan and Bangladesh — will play in the SAF-level tournament. Nepal won two bronze medals in team events in the last edition of the tournament. Swechhya Nembang and Rita Prajapati won third spot in girls’ section and Amar Malla and Deep Saun came third in boys’ section. Member secretary of National Sports Council Kishor Bahadur Singh bade farewell to the players and officials.

President of All Nepal Table Tennis Association Chaturananda Vaidya will leave for New Delhi on Thursday to take part in the meeting of Asian Table Tennis Union, and will present Nepal’s bid to host the next edition of the championships in Nepal. “We have a fair chance to win the bid. First, we have not organised the tournament earlier, and we have got all the physical infrastructures except the floor mat to hold the event in Kathmandu,” said Vaidya. “This edition was originally scheduled for Pakistan, but was later shifted to India as the Pakistani association was dissolved. And, I think they won’t be participating in the meeting this time,” he informed. “We have to go through India to present the bid and if they support us, we will be definitely get a chance to organise the tournament next year,” said Vaidya when asked about the chances to win the bid. Singh also backed Vaidya and said that the National Sports Council was ready to help ANTTA to organise the events in Kathmandu if the association succeeds to bring home the event. “We have been participating in international tournaments held abroad only. If we can organise such events in our own country, it would definitely help in developing the sport,” he added.