After Budapest and Madrid, our capital will be the stop of the European Taekball Tour, the tournament of the highest category after the World Championship.
The best deckers in the world will fight for a trophy, a prize fund of 30.000 dollars, but also points that could secure them a place at the most massive sports event in 2023 - the European Games.
Taekwondo will make its debut at the games in Krakow, and the last visas for that competition are being checked in Podgorica.
"As a world federation, we have existed for five years, and taekbol as a sport for only 10. This is an incredible progress of a sport, almost unheard of. Now we will present takball at the European Games, which is extremely important for us, because we will get a chance to show ourselves globally", said Laszlo Vajda, Secretary General of the International Taekball Federation (FITEQ), at the press conference before the start of the tournament.
By winning the organization of the tournament in the "Voco" hall, where over 149 participants will perform, the Taekbol Association of Montenegro received great recognition and confirmation of successful work on the promotion and development of this sport.
"The association has existed for less than two years, and you already have a lot of athletes, referees, clubs, there is also an initiative to establish a regional league, which is a logical continuation of progress for table tennis in this part of Europe," emphasized Vajda.
"It is a big competition, we have 149 participants from Europe, over 200 guests who came to Montenegro for this tournament. This kind of competition will greatly help the development of tekball in our country, and I believe that it is also important from the tourist aspect", said Milorad Šutulović, president of the tekbol association of Montenegro.
The Ministry of Sports supported the organization of the tournament, as well as the development of taekball in our country, emphasized Miloš Lalević, Head of the Department for International Relations in the Ministry of Sports and Youth.
"The Ministry of Youth and Sports is a natural partner when it comes to such activities, primarily in the organization of international competitions. From the point of view of sports tourism, it is very important that competitions like these are part of the offer, because Montenegro is promoted as a sports destination, especially in the off-season. "This year, we allocated a record amount for co-financing sports organizations, and the Taekbol Federation was also supported more than before because of two significant events, primarily this tournament, and then the Adriatic Taekbol League," said Lalević.
"Thanks to the International Tableball Federation, which has supported us since the beginning, as well as to the Ministry of Sports and Youth. Minister Vasilije Lalošević recognized the importance of this sport and appreciated our work," continued Šutulović.
The Balkan region is very important for the International Taekball Federation, because some of the best players on the planet are from our region.
Bogdan Marojević and Nikola Mitro from Novi Sad are three-time world champions in men's doubles.
"Our expectations are always to go for medals and the best results. We feel at home here, it's almost our home field, so I expect a great result and I hope to reach the final. That is our goal. I'm a little sad that taekbol is not developing in Serbia, like in Montenegro. I have to praise the work of the Montenegrin association, it is a great progress in just two years. Top results haven't been reached yet, but I believe they will, because the players in Montenegro are progressing and will continue to progress," said Mitro.
Five taekball disciplines will be played at the tournament in Podgorica: men's and women's singles and doubles, as well as the mixed doubles competition.
In the first three days, the program starts at 9 a.m. The culmination of the four-day program is on Friday, March 31, when the final matches are played from 14 p.m., and a special and extremely valuable prize awaits the audience.
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