by Dora Jeler, High Performance & Development Operations Manager

Six girls and six boys along with their coaches participated in the week-long training camp, which featured two table tennis sessions per day, delivered in close cooperation with the CTTC’s coaches and players, including regular fitness and warm-up sessions led by Zhen Chaoying.

During this week of hard work on and off the table, two educational sessions were held: the first one, delivered by Zhen Chaoying, focused on the method of the regular training system at the CTTC and the training system in China in general, which was highly interesting to everyone involved. The second one was conducted by ITTF High Performance Manager Massimo Costantini, outlining and explaining the important factors needed to become a future champion.

During this session, participants were asked to work through some tasks set some days earlier, focusing on the topics of History of the Topspin, History of the Defensive Game, History of Female World Champions, History of the World’s Best Players. The players were divided into four groups, each having a spokesperson presenting their work. This group work held everyone’s attention and brought an element of fun to the educational session.

This inaugural Hopes Selection Camp gave an opportunity to last year’s World Hopes to train and cooperate again, building strong relationships and team spirit across continents. This year’s Hopes Team will be selected from training and competition performance at activities and events during the last year. The 2019 Hopes Team will be announced by the beginning of August.

“Firstly, many thanks to ITTF for their help in the development and performance of younger players. During the past week, we had an excellent opportunity to practice with great players and better coaches: Max Costantini and Zheng Chao Yin. We continue learning every day. Truly, we were very happy this week at the training camp in China.” – Francisco Javier Berzosa (Coach, ESP)

“What a wonderful learning experience for players and coaches at the China Table Tennis College in Shanghai. Led by Max Constantini, with input from the Chinese coaches, the players learned some very valuable tips  over the seven day camp at this custom built table tennis venue with 120 tables on three floors. Great to renew friendships with the coaches that were In Totorri in October.” – Conn Higgins (Coach, IRL)

“It was a mixed workload at the table, following the Chinese everyday, regular work while keeping in mind that we had a competition to prepare, because the camp was also functional for the upcoming ITTF China Cadet & Junior Open. We also dedicated some time to team matches (with the strengthening of team spirit as the target) as well as individual matches as an additional test for a better evaluation. Overall, this was a very good experience in terms of hard work at the table, off the table and developing their mental strength.” – Massimo Costantini (ITTF High Performance Manager, ITA)

“I would like to thank you for the opportunity to participate in this Hopes Selection Camp. All the structure available, gym, hotel, food were of an excellent level. It is also worth mentioning the great work done by Massimo Contantini, in addition to the training sessions, the feedback in relation to each athlete was very valuable. Congratulations on the Hopes Project and I hope to have the opportunity to participate more often in this type of training in the future.” – Jorge Franck (Coach, BRA)

Participants: