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World Cup 2008
The table tennis World Cup 2008 is for 16 of the world's top players only.
But who qualified for this prestigious table tennis event in 2008?
By Martin Hughes
Owner and Editor
by courtesy of the ITTF
The table tennis World Cup first took place in Hong Kong in August 1980 as an experimental event, but it proved so successful that it's been contested every year since.
2008 saw Liege, Belgium stage the tournament from 26 to 28 September.
This was the first tournament to take place after the ban on the use of speed glue.
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The World Cup
The table tennis World Cup is for 16 selected players only.
Not more than two players from any Association can participate unless a third is invited as a "wild card" selection.
So, with one representative from each of the six continents, plus the top six eligible players in the world rankings, a home association player, the current title holder and two wild card entries, the table tennis World Cup is indeed for a very select group of players.
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So who took part in 2008?...
Men's World Cup 2008
The following players were invited to take part in the 2008 Men's World Cup...
| PLAYER | CAPACITY |
|---|---|
| BOLL, Timo (Germany) | European representative |
| GAO, Ning (Singapore) | Asian representative |
| TORIOLA, Segun (Nigeria) | African representative |
| CARTER, Trent (Australia) | Oceania representative |
| PETER-PAUL, Pradeeban (Canada) | N. American representative |
| MAZE, Michael (Denmark) | Replacement for Monteiro |
| WANG, Hao (China) | World Cup holder |
| MA, Long (China) | World ranking |
| RYU, Seung Min (Korea) | World ranking |
| JOO, Se Hyuk (Korea) | World ranking |
| CHUAN, Chih-Yuan (Chinese Taipei) | World ranking |
| LI, Ching (Hong Kong) | World ranking |
| KREANGA, Kalinikos (Greece) | World ranking |
| SAIVE, Jean-Michel (Belgium) | Host Association |
| OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij (Germany) | Wild card |
| SCHLAGER, Werner (Austria) | Wild card |
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So what prize money was on offer? ...
The World Cup prize money
The prize money for the men's table tennis World Cup was US$ 135,000
This was divided up as follows:
| Winner | US$ 44,000 |
| Runner-up | US$ 22,000 |
| 3rd Place | US$ 15,000 |
| 4th Place | US$ 10,000 |
| Places 5-8 | US$ 6,000 |
| Places 9-12 | US$ 3,500 |
| Places 13-16 | US$ 1,500 |
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So what's the format for the tournament?...
The Group Stage
The 16 players in the men's table tennis World Cup are first seeded into four groups.
Each player competes against the other three players in his group and matches are the best of seven sets.
The winner and runner-up of each group then advance to the quarter finals whereupon the competition will be a straight knock-out, best of seven sets.
So the World Cup groups were...
Group A
- WANG, Hao (China)
- CHUAN, Chih-Yuan (Chinese Taipei)
- SCHLAGER, Werner (Austria)
- PETER-PAUL, Pradeeban (Canada)
Group B
- MA, Long (China)
- JOO, Se Hyuk (Korea)
- MAZE, Michael (Denmark)
- CARTER, Trent (Australia)
Group C
- BOLL, Timo (Germany)
- GAO, Ning (Singapore)
- KREANGA, Kalinikos (Greece)
- TORIOLA, Segun (Nigeria)
Group D
- RYU, Seung Min (Korea)
- LI, Ching (Hong Kong)
- OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij (Germany)
- SAIVE, Jean-Michel (Belgium)
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Results for World Cup 2008
Friday/Saturday
26/27 September 2008
Group A
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| WANG, Hao | 4-2 | SCHLAGER, Werner |
| CHUAN, Chih-Yuan | 4-2 | PETER-PAUL, Pradeeban |
| WANG, Hao | 4-0 | CHUAN, Chih-Yuan |
| SCHLAGER, Werner | 4-0 | PETER-PAUL, Pradeeban |
| WANG, Hao | 4-0 | PETER-PAUL, Pradeeban |
| SCHLAGER, Werner | 4-2 | CHUAN, Chih-Yuan |
- Group A winner = WANG, Hao
- Group A runner-up = SCHLAGER, Werner
Group B
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| MA, Long | 4-0 | MAZE, Michael |
| JOO, Se Hyuk | 4-0 | CARTER, Trent |
| MA, Long | 4-3 | JOO, Se Hyuk |
| MAZE, Michael | 4-0 | CARTER, Trent |
| MA, Long | 4-0 | CARTER, Trent |
| JOO, Se Hyuk | 4-0 | MAZE, Michael |
Group B winner = MA, Long
Group B runner-up = JOO, Se Hyuk
Group C
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| KREANGA, Kalinikos | 4-2 | BOLL, Timo |
| TORIOLA, Segun | 4-3 | GAO, Ning |
| BOLL, Timo | 4-1 | GAO, Ning |
| KREANGA, Kalinikos | 4-3 | TORIOLA, Segun |
| BOLL, Timo | 4-0 | TORIOLA, Segun |
| KREANGA, Kalinikos | 4-0 | GAO, Ning |
Group C winner = KREANGA, Kalinikos
Group C runner-up = BOLL, Timo
Group D
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| RYU, Seung Min | 4-0 | OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij |
| LI, Ching | 4-0 | SAIVE, Jean-Michel |
| RYU, Seung Min | 4-3 | LI, Ching |
| OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij | 4-3 | SAIVE, Jean-Michel |
| RYU, Seung Min | 4-0 | SAIVE, Jean-Michel |
| OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij | 4-3 | LI, Ching |
Group D winner = RYU, Seung Min
Group D runner-up = OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij
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Knock-out stage
Saturday 27 September 2008
Quarter Finals
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| WANG, Hao | 4-1 | OVTCHAROV, Dimitrij |
| KREANGA, Kalinikos | 4-2 | JOO, Se Hyuk |
| BOLL, Timo | 4-0 | RYU, Seung Min |
| MA, Long | 4-1 | SCHLAGER, Werner |
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Sunday 28 September 2008
Semi Finals
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| WANG, Hao | 4-2 | KREANGA, Kalinikos |
| BOLL, Timo | 4-3 | MA, Long |
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Sunday 28 September 2008
Bronze Medal match
| WINNER | Result | LOSER |
|---|---|---|
| MA, Long | 4-1 | KREANGA, Kalinikos |
| 7-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-6, 11-8 |
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Sunday 28 September 2008
Final
| GOLD MEDALLIST | Result | SILVER MEDALLIST |
|---|---|---|
| WANG, Hao | 4-1 | BOLL, Timo |
| 11-8, 11-3, 14-16, 11-7, 11-9 |
2008 Medal Winners
Timo Boll, Wang Hao, Ma Long
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