The German Table Tennis Association is aiming to change its statutes to include all genders. But what does this actually mean for sport?
The German Table Tennis Association decided to change the leagues at its annual Bundestag. The association announced this on Sunday (November 19, 2023). There will soon be an “open game” in which all genders can compete. A separate women’s area will continue to exist. The approach is modern – but it does not solve some open questions.
How is the current situation?
The basis for playing in German table tennis is provided by the DTTB competition regulations. There is currently a distinction between women and men. No other genders are mentioned. The division generally applies down to the last division. However, exceptions are already possible up to the association league – until then, women can register with the men. In practice, there is already an open operation in the lower leagues.
What should change?
The distinction between men and women should fundamentally change. “There will be an open game for everyone and a women’s game,” explained DTTB press spokeswoman Simone Hinz to the Sportschau. The previously existing men’s area will be “transformed” so to speak. According to the Bundestag’s decision, this will affect all leagues and official DTTB tournaments such as rankings or individual championships, including top-class sports.
Women then have to decide before a season or an individual event in which area they will compete. However, this still requires a complete reformulation of the DTTB’s betting regulations and these must be finally approved again. The DTTB currently assumes that such a fundamental change cannot come into force before the 25/26 season due to its complexity.
Can a female player then play in the Bundesliga with the men?
In terms of the newly applicable DTTB requirements: yes. “It would be possible from our side for Ying Han or Nina Mittelham, for example, to play in the TTBL,” said the association’s statement. However, the TTBL markets itself – similar to the DFL in football – and has more extensive statutes and guidelines that need to be reviewed and adjusted if necessary.
Another aspect is the physical difference. Table tennis involves many factors such as reaction, rotation, speed, mental fitness, technique and tactics. The world-class men’s game is still more athletic and fast-paced than the women’s. Differences in rotation can be proven: For example, the rotation per second (RpS) in the TTBL men is currently on average around 140-150. For women it is approx. 125 RpS.
However, the differences may be smaller than in other sports. The DTTB is also not sure about the performance of the genders: “Whether someone like Ying Han or Nina Mittelham would have the level to compete in an open Bundesliga remains to be seen.”
Can a player play for the women in the Bundesliga?
Participation in the other direction is definitely not possible. Men are still excluded from women’s games in order to protect them separately. According to the DTTB, it is still unclear how the regulation should be checked for men who see themselves as women. “That is a question that we have to answer. However, the new executive board will soon be meeting for the first time, we are at the very beginning,” explained the DTTB.
There are various examples of such regulations from other sports. “The cricket association has now taken completed puberty as a criterion,” Hinz referred to another association. In athletics, however, a maximum testosterone value is considered decisive – but it is controversial and has received particular attention due to the Caster Semenya case.
How does it look in the Amateur leagues out of?
No matter what the regulation looks like in the end in competitive sports, it probably cannot be implemented in the same way in the amateur classes. A club, organizer or opponent cannot or may not carry out such personal research into the player’s puberty, nor is it possible for testosterone tests to be carried out there.
In popular sports, the gender that appears on the identity card will continue to be decisive. “There is even an example of this. In the Bremen Association League, a biological man who identifies as a woman plays in the women’s division,” said Hinz.