BNK Busan Bank Busan World Table Tennis Championships

Korea's First BNK Busan Bank Busan World Table Tennis Championships Opens Tomorrow

2,000 athletes from 47 countries compete at BEXCO

The 'BNK Busan Bank Busan World Table Tennis Championships 2024', the world's most prestigious table tennis competition, will be held at BEXCO in Haeundae from the 16th to the 25th.

According to Busan City on the 15th, about 2,000 players from 47 countries will participate in this tournament, hosted by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) and organized by the 2024 Busan World Table Tennis Championships Organizing Committee.

The World Table Tennis Championships were first held in London, England in 1926 and have been held a total of 65 times since then.

This is the first time that Korea, a table tennis powerhouse, has hosted the World Table Tennis Championships in Korea.

Busan City succeeded in hosting the 2020 World Table Tennis Championships, but the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The city was selected as the host site for the 2024 World Table Tennis Championships at the International Table Tennis Federation's regular general meeting held in Houston, USA in November 2021.

This competition will be held as a men's team event and a women's team event.

This tournament, with 16 tickets (8 each for men and women) for the 2024 Paris Olympics, is called the prelude to the Olympics.

40 countries for men and women will be divided into 8 groups of 5 each, and after a group preliminary league, the top 3 from each group will compete in a round of 24 tournament.

The opening ceremony of the competition will be held at BEXCO Stadium 1 at 4pm on the 17th under the theme, ‘To Busan with your dreams.’

Mayor Park Hyeong-jun, co-chairman of the tournament organizing committee, Yoo Seung-min, president of the Korea Table Tennis Association, ITTF President Petra Soering, and Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Yoo In-chon are scheduled to attend.

The opening ceremony will feature a variety of media performances and fusion traditional Korean music performances that will maximize Korea's unique characteristics and value of table tennis.

After the opening ceremony, the Republic of Korea match will be held.

Mayor Park said, “As this competition, the first to be held in Korea, is being held in Busan, we will do our best until the end together with the host and related organizations to successfully host this competition.”

He added, “Through this competition, Busan will become a truly ‘global sports venue.

“We will promote it globally as a ‘city’ and even as a ‘global hub city,’” he said.

As an event linked to this competition, the ITTF SUMMIT and the International Table Tennis Federation President's Cup Youth and Lifestyle Sports Competition will also be held simultaneously.

Organizers expected an average of more than 10,000 people to visit the stadium per day.

Busan City is making every effort to manage the safety of the competition, including the management of various infectious diseases such as measles.