Co-hosted by the Fédération Internationale de TEQBALL (FITEQ), the Beijing Olympic City Development Association (BODA), the Beijing Sports Federation and Chaoyang District People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, the Teqball World Series Beijing was held at the south gate plaza of Beijing Olympic Forest Park from 20 to 22 September. Gabor Borsanyi, President of FITEQ, Han Zirong, member of the Party Leadership Group of the Beijing Municipal Political Consultative Conference and Executive Vice President of BODA, and Fu Xiaohui, Vice President and Secretary-General of the Beijing Municipal Political Consultative Conference, watched  the finals and attended the awards ceremony on the afternoon of 22 September.

Gabor Borsanyi and Han Zirong presented awards to the male and female MVPs, respectively.

(Gabor Borsanyi and Han Zirong present awards to the male and female MVPs)

Fu Xiaohui, along with Zhang Guocheng, Secretary-General of the Beijing Sports Federation and Ding Jun, Deputy Director of the Management Committee of the Beijing Olympic Park Central Area, presented awards to the mixed doubles champion and runner-up.

(Fu Xiaohui, Zhang Guocheng and Ding Jun present awards to the mixed doubles champion and runner-up)

Zhang Liang, Vice Chairman of the Beijing Federation of Trade Unions, Laszlo Vajda, Secretary-General of FITEQ, and Han Wen, Deputy Secretary-General of BODA, presented awards to the men’s doubles champion and runner-up.

(Zhang Liang, Laszlo Vajda and Han Wen present awards to the men’s doubles champion and runner-up)

Ji Chuanpai, Deputy Secretary-General of BODA, Zhang Hua, Level-II Councillor of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports, and Yang Ping, President of the Beijing Teqball Association, gave awards to the men’s singles champion and runner-up.

(Ji Chuanpai, Zhang Hua and Yang Ping present awards to the men’s singles champion and runner-up)

The Teqball World Series is a high-level international event second only to the World Championships. The Beijing leg took place at the south gate plaza of Beijing Olympic Forest Park from 20 to 22 September 2024. More than 120 players of 80 teams from 16 countries competed in three events: men’s singles, men’s doubles and mixed doubles. The total prize purse was USD60,000, the highest in the history of the Teqball World Series.

(Men’s singles final)

(Mixed doubles final)

(Men’s doubles final)

Gao Yunchao, Deputy Secretary-General of BODA, said that BODA has kept a close watch on the development of emerging sports and been actively involved in the promotion of Teqball in China. Since 2020, BODA has carried out strategic cooperation with FITEQ, held various activities to promote Teqball, provided guidance for the construction of Teqball promotion bases and supported Zhangjiakou and other cities outside Beijing in promoting Teqball. This year, the Beijing Teqball Association was established, and the Teqball World Series debuted in Beijing. Teqball events are now growing in both scale and influence. At present, there are nearly 40 Teqball promotion bases in Beijing, and about 30,000 people play Teqball frequently. The Teqball World Series Beijing aims to inject new impetus into Beijing’s endeavours to leverage its advantages as the first and the only city that has hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympics to bring sporting events into scenic spots, neighbourhoods and business districts and accelerate the building of Beijing into a world-class host city of international sporting events. “We are ready to take the promotion of Teqball as an opportunity to strengthen sports and cultural exchanges between China and Hungary. It is hoped that FITEQ will extend continued support to the development of Teqball in Beijing, set up offices in here and strengthen the training of Teqball practitioners. We look forward to hosting the Teqball World Series Beijing and Teqball World Championships in the future,” said Gao.

Gabor Borsanyi stated that Teqball events have been held in various regions of Asia, but it is the first time to have taken place in the amazing city of Beijing. Many people in Beijing love sports, and the staging of the international Teqball event in  Beijing, the “dual Olympic city”, is one of the best choices for FITEQ and has been made possible with the support of the hosts. Mr. Borsanyi noted the determination of Chinese athletes in the competition, believing that they would achieve even better results in the future. The development of Teqball in China is crucial, as it will impact the growth of the sport not just in Asia, but globally. To foster the growth of Teqball in China, FITEQ will provide help and support to the best of its abilities. FITEQ has more than 150 federations worldwide, and its priorities will be to increase the number of athletes, further develop grassroots sports and hold more international events. “FITEQ’s goal is to make Teqball an Olympic sport, and I believe that the development of Teqball in China will accelerate the realization of this objective. We are honoured to cooperate with the hosts including BODA in this event and hope that the two sides can organise more exciting activities and competitions together in the future,” said the president.

(Gabor Borsanyi is interviewed by the press)

Teqball, which originated in Hungary in 2014, is an emerging hybrid of table tennis and football. It has rapidly gained popularity worldwide, with over 5,000 athletes and more than 2,000 clubs across over 150 countries and territories. Teqball is now played at the training grounds of some of the world’s best football clubs and national teams and has been officially recognised by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and the Organisation of Sports Federations of Oceania (OSFO). Founded in 2017, FITEQ is the governing body presiding over TEQBALL and Para TEQBALL.

According to the hosts, the Teqball World Series Beijing is also an important part of the 15th Beijing Olympic City Sports Culture Festival. Launched by BODA in 2010, the Beijing Olympic City Sports Culture Festival is an IOC-certified flagship Olympic legacy programme and has been held 15 times in a row, attracting a total of more than 20 million participants. The Beijing Olympic City Sports Culture Festival has played a significant role in promoting the Olympic spirit, advancing the “Healthy China” initiative and supporting the endeavour to build Beijing into a centre for international exchanges, and become an influential national fitness sports culture brand. This year’s Sports Culture Festival opened on 8 August and will last until the end of the year.

Other officials present at the event and the awards ceremony included Wang Kun, Deputy Secretary-General of BODA; Gabor Pongracz, advisor to the President of FITEQ; Nikoletta Kázmér, Sports Development Manager (Asia & Oceania) of FITEQ; and Katalin Sogor, diplomat (economy and trade) of the Hungarian Embassy in China.