The Irish Squad has been named ahead of this years World Table Tennis Championships.
This year, it is the turn of the bi-annual World Singles Championships following the Team Championships which took place in Kuala Lumpar, 2016. The showpiece event will be held in the German city of Dusseldorf, with play commencing on Monday the 29th May.
Ireland will be represented by a total of 6 players in Germany, with a blend of youth and experience making up a strong group.
Commenting following the selections, National Performance Coach John Murphy said;
”This is obviously a really exciting event for all involved within the National team. We will travel to Dusseldorf with a very experienced team, 4 of the 6 players having already competed at a WTTC.
In addition, we are delighted to blood two of our top young players at this level, as Katie and Mia will both make their first appearances at a WTTC.
For Katie, she goes into the event on the back of some excellent results, having recently been crowned National Champion in Senior, Junior and U21 categories.
For Mia at just 14 years old, the WTTC represents an opportunity to gain some invaluable experience, which I am sure will help her as she continues to progress on the junior international circuit over the next few years.
On the aspirations of the Irish Squad in Dusseldorf, coach Murphy is optimistic of the chances of taking some scalps;
”Of course we are under no illusions just how difficult this event is, but we will approach it with full belief in what we can do. There has certainly been momentum on our side in terms of International results in recent times so we will be aiming to take some big wins when the qualification kicks off. I have every confidence in the players”.
The Irish Squad selected for the event is as follows:
Men: Paul McCreery, Ashley Robinson & Gavin Maguire
Women: Katie McGlone, Ashley Givan & Mia O’Rahilly Egan
NPC’s: John Murphy & Mark O’Flynn
Delegate: Patricia Hunter