Memorandum

To: National Paralympic Committees

CC: Kevin Simmonds, SPOC

From: Massimo Bernardoni, ITTC Selection Officer

Date: 26/01/00

Re: Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games Qualifications in Table Tennis

Please find enclosed the following very important material.

The International Table Tennis Committee for the disabled (ITTC) January 2000 ranking list has 1447 active athletes listed from 83 countries. In the four 1999 regional selection Championships 656 athletes participated. In Sydney Table Tennis has only 272 allocated slots. Table Tennis offers events for Men and Women and for wheelchair, Cerebral palsy, amputees, les autres, and Intellectually disabled athletes. Table Tennis has one of the most competitive selection systems of all sports, and only athletes that competed and demonstrated true international elite standard was selected by ITTC.

I encourage each National Paralympic Committee to give your selected athletes the chance to compete.

The entry and the applications have to be received by February 15th, 2000, and should be addressed to:

International Paralympic Committee

Table Tennis

Adenaueralle 212-214

53113 Bonn

Germany

Tel: +49(228)209-7200 Fax: +49(228)209-7209 E-mail: info@paralympic.org

The best way to communicate with me in regards to questions is by

E-mail: Massimo Bernardoni: maxitizi@tin.it

THE SELECTION PROCESS AND HOW TO ENTER

Each country can only enter a maximum of three athletes in each singles event or one team in a team event. Only a National Paralympic Committee (NPC) in good standing with the International Paralympic Committee can enter athletes to the Paralympic Games.

    1. The Regional Selection: (see selection list) If an athlete is listed as "1st EUROPE" then this is a personal selection that can not be changed for other athletes by the NPC. If the NPC decides to not enter a regional selected athlete then that slot goes to the next highest finisher in that event in the respective regional qualifying Championships.
    2. The Ranking Selection: (see selection list) If an athlete is listed as "Ranking" then this is a selection that can be changed for other athletes by the NPC. Athletes can only be changed for other national athletes in the respective events, that fullfills the minimum selection critieria (See below). Only 30% rounded upwards of the total number of selected athletes by ranking can be exchanged by the NPC.

EXAMPLE: If a country has 8 selected athletes by ranking then 30% of those is 2.4 and rounded upwards will make it 3 that can be exchanged to other athletes. If a Nation has an athlete in Men class 3 that they would like to exchange, it can only be by another national athlete in Men class 3 with min. selection criteria. An exchange with an athlete from another class will not be allowed. If the NPC declined the selection then the spot goes to the next entered reserve. An Athlete that is selected as a reserve has to enter as well to keep the chance of being selected as an alternate. The exchange can in theory, in emergency situations, happen as late as in August.

On the attached Selection lists write one of the following three options in the Entry form column.

    1. If you accept the selection make a: X.
    2. If you do not accept the selection, (the slot will then go to a reserve) write: NO
    3. If you want to exchange the athlete write: CHANGE
    1. The Wild Card application: A NPC can apply for a wild card (WC) or Team Target Player (TTP) on the allocated form. No athlete can be selected for a WC unless the NPC applies for it on time. The MAXIMUM wild cards that a country can receive are for two athletes (Except the host country in this case AUS) but a country can apply for more. Each applicant has to fullfil the minimum selection critieria, which is according to the "Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games Qualification guide"; the invited Wild Card or Team Target Players must be included on the ITTC Ranking list at January 1 2000 and have an international classification card, (Available on the ITTC website (http://www.ipttc.org)

Please note: If no entry is made by a country in either A, B or C then that slots goes to an entered reserve.

I hope we have made the process as clear as possible, but please do not hesitate to contact me for any questions on how to fill in the selection forms. These documents will also be available on the ITTC website at: http://www.ipttc.org

 

 

Massimo Bernardoni

ITTC Selection officer