Executive President of the European Table Tennis Union (ETTU) Pedro Miguel Moura is on a visit to Azerbaijan, Azernews reports.
Expressing his satisfaction with the visit, the head of the organisation said in Baku:
"I have been welcomed very well here. I would like to thank the Azerbaijan Table Tennis Federation for their friendly attitude and hospitality. Considering that I am Portuguese, Baku is one of the significant cities for us. In the first European Games held in your capital, it was the national team of my homeland, Portugal, that won the victory in table tennis. I would assess the level of this sport in Azerbaijan highly. The results that your athletes have shown in international competitions substantiate this claim. The conditions created for them will lead to even greater achievements in the future. It is no coincidence that Azerbaijani athletes are among the most talented table tennis players in Europe. I value their prospects highly," he said.
ETTU President also supported the idea of organising a continental-scale tournament in Azerbaijan in the near future.
"Since the activity strategy of the local federation is in line with European standards, I see the prospects of our mutual cooperation as promising. I hope that one of our continental tournaments will indeed be held in Azerbaijan soon."
The European Table Tennis Union (ETTU) is the governing body of the sport of table tennis in Europe, and is the only authority recognised for this purpose by the International Table Tennis Federation.
The ETTU deals with all matters relating to table tennis at a European level, including the development and promotion of the sport in the territories controlled by its 58 member associations, and the organisation of continental table tennis competitions, including the European Championships.
Following their decision to make the World Table Tennis Championships a biennial event from 1957 onwards, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) invited the separate European table tennis associations to consider holding a European Championships in the intervening, even-numbered years.
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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr
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