Thirty-two of the world’s finest players – men and women – gathered in a unique bubble event to achieve something that was inconceivable only but a few months ago.

WTT Macao saw a renewed spirit of table tennis magic reach out to the world amidst these difficult times, and the players involved in November’s celebrations have been expressing their gratitude and happiness to be offered the opportunity to experience this brand-new format of international table tennis:

Hugo Calderano, Brazil:

Hyo Won Seo, Korea Republic:

Robert Gardos, Austria:

Ma Long (CN), winner of the first-ever WTT men’s singles trophy in Macao, also expressed his joy at being part of the new-era in the sport:

“Congratulations on the success of the first WTT event. I would like to thank the ITTF, CTTA and the Macao SAR Government and everyone who have supported the WTT Macao event. Thank you for creating a new stage for table tennis players to showcase ourselves. Lucky to be the first to the trophy in the new WTT era, I hope and believe that WTT events will get better and better.” Ma Long

The Chinese star’s thoughts were mirrored by fellow players from around the world, who posted supportive messages and congratulations to the WTT team:

Liam Pitchford, England:

Mattias Falck, Sweden:

Bernadette Szocs, Romania:

Ding Ning, China:

Lily Zhang, USA:

Adriana Diaz, Puerto Rico:

The success of the past week is the result of months of planning and hard work behind the scenes, and from everyone at ITTF and WTT, we just want to say thank you to our athletes for trusting us with their health as well as the growth of the game as we look ahead to the next generation of table tennis.