Despite the worries about World Cup third-placed Timo Boll (Düsseldorf) and the loss of defending champion Petrissa Solja (Langstadt), the German table tennis aces are looking forward to the forthcoming European Championships in Munich (13th to 21st August) with great self-confidence.
“We hope to win a lot of medals and ultimately be among the title winners,” said sports director Richard Prause at the EM media day of the German Table Tennis Association (DTTB) on Wednesday in the German Table Tennis Center in Düsseldorf.
Prause did not set a specific target for the five competitions (men’s singles and doubles, women’s singles and doubles as well as mixed) after the German EM record result of four golds and three silvers in the previous title fights in Warsaw in 2021.
“As in 2018, we set and cleared standards. We can be proud of that, but a repeat will not be a sure-fire success, even if we are still the pioneers for what is now a high level in Europe,” said the 54-year-old.
“The European Championship is definitely a super tournament to collect match practice”
Nevertheless, men’s national coach Jörg Roßkopf made no secret of the four top 15 players in his five-man squad. “When it comes to the titles in Munich, the only way is through us,” said the ex-double world champion confidently.
His top player Dimitrij Ovtcharov (Neu-Ulm), however, despite being ninth in the world rankings, expressly did not want to set a medal as a personal goal. “I feel strong in training, but that doesn’t mean being successful in a competition,” said the former Russia legionnaire almost two months after his comeback after two ankle operations: “The European Championship is definitely a super tournament, um to collect match practice.”
The 33-year-old and the world ranking eighth Han Ying (Düsseldorf/Tarnobrzeg) are the hottest irons of the hosts in the European Championships.
There is a question mark behind the participation of defending champion Boll in the European Championship. The 41-year-old confirmed renewed problems on Wednesday because of a broken rib that he believed had already recovered. European champion Solja canceled her start at the European Championships a week ago due to back problems.