ITTF President Petra Sörling, welcomed KhunyingPatama Leeswadtrakul, the Deputy President of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) and IOC member, to the WTT Star Contender Bangkok 2023.      

The two leaders met twice during the event and discussed ways in which their respective sports can work together to grow the popularity and reach of both table tennis and badminton in the world. President Sörling expressed her delight to meet KhunyingPatama again and emphasised the importance of collaboration between sports.    

“It was an honour to have KhunyingPatama at the WTT Star Contender Bangkok 2023. Table tennis and Badminton share many commonalities, and we believe that by working together, we can achieve greater success for both sports.” — Petra Sörling  

They also watched the finals of the event and presented trophies to the winners of the women’s doubles. KhunyingPatama praised the organisation of the event, the sport presentation and the high level of play on display.    

“I truly felt honoured and enjoyed watching the WTT Star Contender Bangkok 2023 which was the first event of the WTT Series hosted in Thailand,” said KhunyingPatama Leeswadtrakul. “The competition was organized professionally and was a huge success.  Table tennis is one of the popular sports in Thailand that Thai people of all ages and genders play all over the country. I was glad that Thai people could witness this world-class championship and watch excellent players from 40 nations competing expertly.  

“Under President Petra Sörling’s leadership and guidance, the ITTF has been taken to the new height of success and has accomplished many great achievements.  

“Both table tennis and badminton are racket sports and hence, we can share useful information, knowledge and experience related to sports science with each other. In 2018, I helped organize the 6th World Congress of Racket Sport Science in Bangkok. Many sports personnel from table tennis family participated in the Congress and contributed to the success of the event  

“In Thailand, I have been working relentlessly towards the encouragement of people to play sports and the promotion of equal and wider access to sports in order to create an active lifestyle and a healthy Thai society. Through collective efforts, we can achieve this target. Therefore, I would like to thank the ITTF for staging the WTT Star Contender in Thailand which gave Thai people a great inspiration for sports.”