Teamwork, as they say, makes the dream work. Fans of teamwork (and/or any concomitant byproducts thereof, including but not limited to dreams, whether in working order or otherwise) will be relieved to hear that the 2020 World Team Table Tennis Championships are still on the table. Originally scheduled for March 22-29 in Busan, South Korea, the biennial championships were provisionally pushed back until June 21-28 due to the COVID-19 coronavirus. As the pandemic has worsened, now soaring past 1.3 million confirmed cases worldwide, even the initially defiant International Olympic Committee has conceded to reality and postponed the games until 2021. In light of these developments, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) and the Korea Table Tennis Association (KTTA) had some tough choices to make about the World Team Table Tennis Championships. ITTF President Thomas Weikert and KTTA President Ryu Seung-min worked with all stakeholders involved, including athletes, coaches and the city of Busan to arrive at the new target dates for the World Championships. Mark your calendars for September 24-October 4, 2020. Of course, if 2020 has taught us anything, it is that the world is unpredictable. The ITTF cautioned that the new dates were not set in stone, and that they "have other optional dates to stage the World Championships, if necessary." Whenever the venerable championships are held, they will likely produce more than the customary output of joy and excitement. Not only will they represent the long-awaited return of world-class table tennis, but also a step toward reestablishing the sorely missed "old normal." Now, team, let's all do our part to make that dream work.
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