WTT China Smash tickets to go on sale on Aug. 28

BEIJING, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Tickets sale of World Table Tennis (WTT) China Smash will start on Wednesday, August 28, organizers announced at a press conference here on Monday.

The first stage of the tickets sale will commence at 8:28 a.m. on Wednesday, and the remaining tickets will be sold in mid-September.

The WTT China Smash will take place in the Shougang Park of Beijing's Shijingshan District, where the Beijing Winter Olympics venue Big Air Shougang is located, from September 26 to October 6.

Qualifying rounds are slated for the first three match days, and the main draw will start from September 29, with 64 berths in the men's and women's singles apiece, and 24 spots in each of the mixed doubles, men's and women's doubles. Winners in each event will earn 2,000 world ranking points.

It marked international top-tier table tennis tournaments' return to the Chinese capital after 63 years, after the 26th World Table Tennis Championships was held in 1961.

According to Yang Haibin, deputy director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports, the city had more than 6,500 public table tennis playing fields as of the end of last year, and hundreds of thousands of people have participated in table tennis events annually. He believes the WTT China Smash will spur Beijing citizens' enthusiasm for the sport.

The WTT's elite tournament will be held in the ice hockey, short track and figure skating venues in the Shougang Park.

Apart from scintillating matches, spectators can immerse in some interactive and entertaining activities in the Smash Park near the competition venues, and have the opportunity of meeting and interacting with players, the organizers said.