• The tournament saw the Chinese national team secure top honors, with Sun Yingsha and Ma Long winning the Women’s Singles and Men’s Singles championships respectively.
• GEG hopes to share the excitement of table tennis with the public and tourists, contributing to the development of “Sports + Tourism” in Macau. 

The “ITTF Men’s and Women’s World Cup Macao 2024 Presented by Galaxy Entertainment Group” was successfully held from 15 to 21 April at the Galaxy Arena, the largest indoor arena in Macau. The tournament saw the Chinese national team secure top honors, with Sun Yingsha and Ma Long winning the Women’s Singles and Men’s Singles championships, claiming the Harmand Cup and the Evans Cup, respectively.

Marking the return of the World Cup after a three-year hiatus, the event is sanctioned by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), organized by the Macao Sports Bureau, Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) and World Table Tennis Management Group Limited (WTMG), and co-organized by the Macau Table Tennis General Association. Being one of the table tennis “Grand Slam” events (Olympics, World Championships, World Cup), the ITTF World Cup’s return to Macau represented a vital opportunity for players aiming to fulfil their Grand Slam dreams.

The competition format was refreshed this year, drawing 96 top-tier athletes from around the globe, including Olympic champions, to vie for the singles championships.

In the final day’s nail-biting battle, World No.1 Sun Yingsha clinched victory with a hard-fought 4-3 triumph over Wang Manyu, showcasing her enduring dominance on the global stage and capturing her first World Cup championship title. In a post-match interview, she expressed, “I’m very happy, I gave it my all. It was an extraordinary match and a significant achievement in my career.”

The final match of the day featured Ma Long versus Lin Gaoyuan. The match was tightly contested, but Ma Long eventually turned the tables and won 4-3. This victory marks his third World Cup championship title since 2015. After the match, Ma Long said, “Both Lin Gaoyuan and I played very well, and I would like to thank the fans for their continuous support.”

A flag handover ceremony was held after the conclusion of the matches when Chief Executive of the Macao SAR, Mr Ho Iat Seng handed the ITTF World Cup flag to ITTF President and IOC Member Petra Sörling.

The event’s introduction sparked a table tennis frenzy in Macau, demonstrating the community’s enthusiastic support.

The edition also marked Galaxy Arena’s first hosting of a top-tier global table tennis event. Equipped with high-tech facilities, the new venue has been widely recognized and highly praised by the organizers, staff and participating players, among others. By presenting this top-level event, GEG hopes to further promote Macau as a “City of Sports” to the world by sharing the excitement of table tennis with the public and tourists.

Diverse linked activities spark a table tennis frenzy

A series of linked activities throughout Macau sparked widespread enthusiasm for table tennis. Along with other organizers, GEG actively created a variety of enriching activities to maximize the impact of this major sports event, pushing the boundaries of “Sports + Tourism” in Macau and fostering community sports exchanges.

Amid the excitement, the event coincided with the 100-day countdown to the 2024 Paris Olympics. Olympic champions Ma Long and Chen Meng; ITTF President and IOC Member, Petra Sörling; ITTF Deputy President and WTT Board Chair and CTTA President, Liu Guoliang; ITTF Group CEO, Steve Dainton; ITTF Secretary General, Raul Calin; President of the Sports Bureau of Macao, Pun Weng Kun; and Director of GEG, Philip Cheng, attended the “100 Days to Paris” countdown held at the Outdoor Lawn near Galaxy Macau, joining the public in welcoming the much-anticipated quadrennial Olympic Games and further enhancing the vibrant sports atmosphere in Macau.

In response to fan demand, the organizers jointly arranged meet-and-greets with table tennis stars. The World No.3 in Men’s Singles, Liang Jingkun, the World No.2 in Women’s Singles, Wang Manyu, Korean player Shin Yubin and Puerto Rican player Adriana Diaz met fans up close at Galaxy Macau’s East Square, signing autographs amid an electrifying atmosphere.

More than 600 members from 20 local associations and organizations were also invited to experience the matches onsite, to watch the games live and experience the intense sports atmosphere. These associations and organizations included Ka Ho Nursing Home of the Macao Federation of Trade Unions (FAOM), the Tele-Assistance Service “Peng On Tung” of General Union of Neighbourhood Associations of Macau, Tung Sin Tong Elderly Activity Centre, the Youth Association of The Women’s General Association of Macau, Macau Special Olympics, Macau Autism Association, Macau Deaf Association, University of Macau Lui Che Woo College and the GEG Youth Achievement Program.

Accompanied by GEG volunteers, six residents from FAOM enjoyed the matches. The Nursing Home’s Dean, Ms Ung Vai Ha, said the residents were excited to be invited to watch an international sports event for the first time and thanked GEG for the careful arrangements, which enabled elderly people with limited mobility to enter the spacious, brand-new and fully-equipped stadium to witness the development of Macau. They were immersed in the enduring cheers and shouts to add a touch of excitement and fun to their lives.

To allow young students to learn about the preparation of large international sports events and increase their interest in sports, GEG also invited students from the Macao University of Tourism for a backstage tour of the “ITTF Men’s and Women’s World Cup Macao 2024 Presented by Galaxy Entertainment Group”. Under the guidance of the ITTF Project Manager, students visited the players’ training area, the press conference room, media interview area and competition area at Galaxy Arena, where they also experienced the excitement from another perspective by stepping into the spotlight via the athletes’ entrance and taking photos with the trophies. In addition, the students were also given the special opportunity to meet with national team players, Liang Jingkun and Wang Yidi, who took selfies and signed autographs to the surprise of the students.

GEG ran a series of diverse and rich peripheral activities to harness the synergistic effects of the sports event, thereby fully demonstrating the event’s appeal and enriching Macau’s status as a “World Center of Tourism and Leisure” through multiple aspects.

In the past, GEG has supported large-scale international sports events in Macau in various ways, which have been well received by local residents and tourists. Meanwhile, GEG has also actively leveraged the synergistic effect of large-scale sports events to help promote Macau’s sports industry and drive the economic growth of sports tourism and related industries. This time, GEG is honored to be one of the organizers of the World Cup, which is known as one of the three major international table tennis events, and to help the Macau SAR Government to demonstrate to the world Macau’s ability to host large-scale international events.