ITTF Presidential Race Narrows

(ATR) One of the three candidates for International Table Tennis Federation president is bowing out of the race.

ITTF deputy president Khalil Al-Mohannadi announced his withdrawal on Wednesday, saying he will instead run for the position of ITTF Executive Vice President at the federation’s elections on May 31 in Dusseldorf, Germany.

Al-Mohannadi also publicly endorsed current ITTF president Thomas Weikert over the other remaining candidate, Jean-Michel Saive of Belgium.

"Thomas has had two and a half years as President, where he has made positive changes to the sport, and I believe he deserves to be elected as President in his home country and have four more years to continue to work and implement his vision for our sport." Al-Mohannadi said in a statement.

"Jean-Michel Saive was a great player and ambassador for table tennis, which we all respect him for. Despite that, Jean-Michel has never held a high level international political table tennis position. So I don’t believe it is correct that his first position is that of ITTF President. But of course, if he wins I will be the first to congratulate him."

Weikert said in a statement he was "delighted to receive the backing of Mr. Al-Mohannadi."

"It is wonderful to have his direct support and I am honored he has chosen to endorse me," Weikert added.

"If I have the privilege of being elected ITTF President, I will continue to work in partnership with all leaders in our sport and harness the excellent expertise to ensure Table Tennis grows and thrives."

Written by Gerard Farek

For general comments or questions,click here.

25 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.