India, Bahrain & South Africa Apply for 2011 World Junior Championships

The World Junior Table Championships continues to gain momentum as one of the most sought after ITTF properties. When the bidding process for the 2011 World Juniors officially closed the 31st January 2008, three potential organisers had confirmed interest to present their case at the forthcoming ITTF Board of Directors meeting in Guangzhou, China.

India
India is formally bidding for the second time, having lost the very first ITTF World Junior Championships in a neck and neck race with Santiago, Chile; back in 2003. New Delhi or the city of Pune is listed as a candidate city in the Indian proposal.

Bahrain
The Bahrain Table Tennis Association made no secret of their interest for the 2011 Championships and was the first association to enter the race.

Following a sensational and very impressive debut as international organizers, with the presentation of the 2007 Bahrain Junior Open, commitment to excellence can hardly be doubted from a small but sport loving country. The capital city of Manama is the confirmed host city for the Bahrain bid.

South Africa
The third and final offer is from Africa and the South African Table Tennis Board.

Once again it is the city of Cape Town receiving the SATTB nod to be the prime candidate for an ITTF event. We all remember the excellent work put in by Brian Buckton and his local Cape Town crew for the 2007 World Cadet Challenge & World Junior Circuit Finals back in October last year. An interesting fact is that many of the 2007 World Cadet Challenge participants in fact would be eligible for a return to the Western Cape and a potential 2011 World Juniors.

Prime Event
Over the years the ITTF World Junior Championships has grown and matured into a prime meeting point for young players from all over the world. The event itself was organized for the first time in Santiago, Chile 2003 and is now, in the year 2008, travelling to North Shore and New Zealand for the last stop in the first continental rotation.

Colombia
Colombia will start of the second “world tour” by hosting the 2009 event in Cartagena De Indies whilst Slovakia bids welcome to the top juniors in the world to compete for glory in Bratislava 2010.