Doha to host 2025 table tennis worlds

BEIJING: The 2025 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Table Tennis Championships Finals will be staged in Doha, Qatar following a vote from member associations on Tuesday at the Annual General Meeting in Amman, Jordan.

Doha won 57 votes against 39 for Alicante, Spain, the other candidate city, reports Xinhua news agency.

The ITTF said the announcement continues Doha's longstanding association as one of the most established cities in global table tennis.

Staged in Doha, the World Table Tennis (WTT) Middle East Hub in 2021 marked the WTT's first official events, featuring back-to-back Contender and Star Contender events in March last year.

"Having been a hotspot for major events for almost three decades, the Qatari capital has recently proved itself a key location and launchpad for a new era in table tennis," said the ITTF.

Doha will mark the 59th edition of the World Championships.

The last World Championships Finals was staged in Houston, the United States in 2021 and the next edition will be held in Durban, South Africa in 2023. Busan, South Korea will stage the 2024 World Team Table Tennis Championships.