A familiar mantra in sports, especially those of the team variety, is "be ready when they call your number." The Qatar Table Tennis Association (QTTA) has seemingly taken this suggestion to heart. Although they appeared a long shot to snag the 2021 Asian Table Tennis Championships, facing stiff competition from the world's two most populous nations, China and India, the QTTA nonetheless took a shot at the prize. Then --surprise!-- China, India both withdrew their bids, leaving Qatar the winner by default. As a result, all of the prestigious tournament's seven gold medals will be awarded September 2021 in Doha. Qatar previously hosted the prestigious event, an official International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) continental championship, on one other occasion in 2000. QTTA President Khalil Al Mohannadi, who triples as the Arab Table Tennis Federation President and the ITTF Deputy President, was understandably excited for the windfall. "We are very happy with the honor that the State of Qatar has been chosen as the hosts for the second time," said Al Mohannadi. "We will have the honor to host the best players of the region especially the ones from East Asian countries like China, Japan, India, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei and South Korea. It will be like a mini-world championship." Reigning singles champions Xu Xin and Sun Yingsha (pictured) will be keen to defend their titles. Women's and men's doubles and teams, as well as mixed doubles, round out the septet of gold medals on offer. While China is the favorite in every discipline, President Al Mohannadi is excited for young Qatari players to learn from the top players by osmosis. "I am confident that our youth will come into contact with the best-ranked players in the region," said Al Mohannadi. "Also, it will be another opportunity for Qatar to host yet another world-class event - we have top-notch infrastructure in Qatar." When the ITTF called Qatar's number, they were ready. The rest, as they say, is history.

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