Table tennis ace Dimitrij Ovtcharov on serve. Photo: Michael Kappeler/dpa
“I don’t think it was the right decision to let Russian teams back into the competition at the moment. As of today, that is a very bad signal, »said the former world number one in the ZDF sports studio.
In early March, the European table tennis association ETTU banned all Russian and Belarusian teams from international competitions as a reaction to Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Since this also affected the two Champions League semi-finalists from Orenburg and Yekaterinburg, the German champions Borussia Düsseldorf were declared the Champions League winners after their semi-final success against 1. FC Saarbrücken.
Both Russian clubs and the Russian FA appealed against this decision and were at least partially right. According to a verdict by the Board of Appeal, Russian and Belarusian national teams, but not Russian and Belarusian club teams, may be suspended from international competitions. The semi-final between Orenburg and Yekaterinburg must therefore be held. However, the people of Düsseldorf definitely don’t want to play against a Russian team in the final. And the ETTU is also considering going before the International Court of Arbitration for Sport CAS.
Born in Kyiv, Ovtcharov left Orenburg after around twelve years because of the war. “It was clear that things couldn’t go any further in Orenburg because you have to position yourself clearly,” said the 33-year-old. “It hurt me athletically. Unfortunately, sport has now become political. So there was no other option.” He also thinks Borussia Düsseldorf’s attitude is correct: “At the moment you shouldn’t be playing against a Russian team so as not to send the wrong signal.”
Ovtcharov called the sports court verdict “a farce. Now two Russian teams are playing against each other in the semifinals. In the final, a German team is waiting, which will not compete anyway. That’s why it’s just bad advertising for table tennis.”
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