Table Tennis World Cup facts for kids
Quick facts for kids ITTF World Cup |
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Status | Active |
Genre | World Cup |
Frequency | Singles: every year Mixed team: every year |
Location(s) | Various |
Inaugurated | 1980 |
Organised by | ITTF |
The Table Tennis World Cup has been held annually since 1980. There had only been men's singles until the start of women's singles in 1996 and team competitions in 1990. The competitions are sanctioned by the International Table Tennis Federation.
In the years 2021–2023, the event has been suspended. A new WTT event, WTT Cup Finals, began in 2021, which is the season-ending championship of the WTT. WTT stated that the winners of the WTT Cup Finals would win the prestigious ITTF World Cup trophies in March 2021, but the winners have been actually presented with WTT Cup Finals specific trophies since the inaugural edition, and the event has been renamed to simply WTT Finals since 2023, making it a pure season-ending event.
ITTF World Cup returned with an innovative mixed team format in 2023 in Chengdu, and ITTF Singles World Cup returned in 2024, in Macao, China.
Competitions
Men's and women's world cups
For 2024 singles world cup, participants of the competition composed of:
- The World Champion.
- The U19 World Champion.
- The top 4 player from each of the 5 continents' (Africa, Asia, Europe, Americas and Oceania) Continental Cup. If a continent does not have this tournament scheduled in 2024 prior to the World Cup, player selection will be based on the World Ranking.
- 24 additional players shall be selected from the World Ranking.
- There shall be no more 4 players from an association, except an association with players qualified from items World Champion and U19 World Champion may compete with up to 6 players.
For previous editions, participants of the competition are composed of:
- The current holder of the World Cup.
- The World Champion.
- The champion player or the strongest current player from each of the 6 continents (Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America and Oceania).
- 1 player from the host association.
- The top 8 players from the world ranking list.
- 2 wild card selections.
- No more than 2 players from an association unless a third is invited as a wild card.
- If the World Champion and the World Cup title holder is the same player, or the host association has a player qualified as title holder or from the world ranking, the vacancy goes to the next highest eligible player on the world ranking list.
Team World Cup
- Top 7 associations at the preceding World Team Championships.
- If the team of the host association is not on the top 7 list, the team of the host association and 4 teams from continental federations would be represented at the event.
Mixed Team World Cup
- 18 teams comprising a minimum of three and maximum of four players per gender.
- Each team shall be accompanied by a non-playing coach.
- Maximum 10 teams, the winners of either the men's or women's competitions at the last continental team championship.
- 1 host team if not already qualified.
- Minimum of 7 teams will be determined based on the qualification and seeding list.
Playing system
Men's and women's world cups
The 2024 World Cup was divided into 2 stages:
- The 1st stage, Group stage: The 48 players are divided into 16 equal groups, with all the members of a group playing each other, and the group winners advance towards the 2nd stage.
- The highest-ranked player will be placed in Group 1, the 2nd highest in Group 2, the 3rd highest in Group 3 and the 4th highest in Group 4; the remaining players will be drawn into the other groups using a modified snake system 4 at a time in ranking order. Players from the same association will be drawn into separate groups.
- Matches of 1st stage shall be 4 games (result 4-0, 3-1 or 2-2). Final ranking will be determined in terms of Regulation 3.7.5, excluding match points, and based solely on the ratios of wins to losses first in games and then points, as far as is necessary to resolve the order.
- The 2nd Stage- Knockout:
- The draw for players will be as follows:
- First-place finisher of Group 1 will be placed in position 1.
- First-place finisher of Group 2 will be placed in position 16.
- First-place finishers of Groups 3 and 4 will be drawn into positions 8 and 9.
- First-place finishers of Groups 5 to 16 will be drawn randomly into the remaining positions.
- Matches of stage 2 shall be the best of 7 games.
- The draw for players will be as follows:
Mixed Team World Cup
There will be a total of 56 matches (32 in Stage 1 + 24 in Stage 2). In stage 1 the teams will be divided into 4 groups (2 groups of 4 and 2 groups of 5), with all the members of a group playing each other.
For stage 1, the highest-ranked team will be placed in Group 1, the 2nd highest in Group 2, the 3rd highest in Group 3 and the 4th highest in Group 4; the remaining teams will be drawn into the groups 2 at a time in seeding order, with the exception teams 17 and 18 will be drawn into groups 3 and 4.
In stage 2, the group winners and runners-up from Stage 1 will compete in a single group with all the members of a group playing each other, with the exception that teams having played each other in stage 1 will not play again, but the results will carry forward.
Former playing system
Men's and Women's World Cups
The playing system is determined by the executive committee on recommendation by the competition department. The 2009 World Cup was divided into 3 stages. All matches were the best of 7 games.
- The preliminary stage, Intercontinental Cup: The 4 continental representatives from Africa, Latin America, North America and Oceania compete on a group basis. The winner joins the remaining 15 players in the 1st stage.
- The 1st stage, Group stage: The 16 players are divided into 4 equal groups, with all the members of a group playing each other, and the group winners and runners-up advance towards the 2nd stage.
- The highest-ranked player is placed in Group A, the 2nd highest in Group B, the 3rd highest in Group C and the 4th highest in Group D. The remaining players are drawn into the 4 groups at a time in ranking order.
- If there are 2 players from the same association, they will be drawn into separate groups, but the 3rd player from the same association may be drawn into any group.
- The 2nd stage, Knockout:
- Quarter-finals: 4 quarter finals (Q1-Q4) are arranged according to both the groups and the rankings in the 1st stage. Q1-Q4 are as follows: A1 vs. B2, C1 vs. D2, D1 vs. C2, and B1 vs. A2.
- Semi-finals: the matches are winner of Q1 vs. winner of Q2, and winner of Q3 vs. winner of Q4.
- Winners of semi-finals enter the final, with the losers competing for the third place.
Team World Cup
All team matches are played as the Olympic system with a maximum of 4 singles and 1 doubles. All individual matches of a team match are the best of 5 games.
- Intercontinental Cup: The 4 teams from continental federations not qualified by their ranking at the preceding World Team Championships shall compete in an Intercontinental Cup played in round-robin.
- Knockout: 7 teams qualified from World Team Championships and the host are seeded, based on latest ITTF World Team Ranking. The winner of the Intercontinental Cup play a match against the lowest seeded of the other 8 teams, other than the host association's team. The winner of this match shall promote to final knockout. The top 4 seeds are separated in different matches in quarter-finals.
Winners
Men's singles
Year | Host city | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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1980 | Hong Kong | ![]() |
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1981 | Kuala Lumpur | ![]() |
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1982 | Hong Kong | ![]() |
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1983 | Barbados | ![]() |
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1984 | Kuala Lumpur | ![]() |
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1985 | Foshan | ![]() |
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1986 | Port of Spain | ![]() |
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1987 | Macao | ![]() |
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1988 | Guangzhou & Wuhan | ![]() |
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1989 | Nairobi | ![]() |
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1990 | Chiba | ![]() |
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1991 | Kuala Lumpur | ![]() |
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1992 | Ho Chi Minh City | ![]() |
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1993 | Guangzhou | ![]() |
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1994 | Taipei | ![]() |
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1995 | Nimes | ![]() |
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1996 | Nimes | ![]() |
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1997 | Nimes | ![]() |
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1998 | Shantou | ![]() |
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1999 | Xiaolan | ![]() |
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2000 | Yangzhou | ![]() |
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2001 | Courmayeur | ![]() |
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2002 | Jinan | ![]() |
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2003 | Jiangyin | ![]() |
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2004 | Hangzhou | ![]() |
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2005 | Liège | ![]() |
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2006 | Paris | ![]() |
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2007 | Barcelona | ![]() |
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2008 | Liège | ![]() |
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2009 | Moscow | ![]() |
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2010 | Magdeburg | ![]() |
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2011 | Paris | ![]() |
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2012 | Liverpool | ![]() |
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2013 | Verviers | ![]() |
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2014 | Düsseldorf | ![]() |
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2015 | Halmstad | ![]() |
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2016 | Saarbrücken | ![]() |
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2017 | Liège | ![]() |
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2018 | Paris | ![]() |
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2019 | Chengdu | ![]() |
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2020 | Weihai | ![]() |
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2024 | Macao | ![]() |
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2025 | Macao | ![]() |
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Women's singles
Year | Host city | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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1996 | Hong Kong | ![]() |
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1997 | Shanghai | ![]() |
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1998 | Taipei | ![]() |
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2000 | Phnom Penh | ![]() |
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2001 | Wuhu | ![]() |
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2002 | Singapore | ![]() |
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2003 | Hong Kong | ![]() |
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2004 | Hangzhou | ![]() |
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2005 | Guangzhou | ![]() |
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2006 | Urumqi | ![]() |
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2007 | Chengdu | ![]() |
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2008 | Kuala Lumpur | ![]() |
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2009 | Guangzhou | ![]() |
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2010 | Kuala Lumpur | ![]() |
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2011 | Singapore | ![]() |
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2012 | Huangshi | ![]() |
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2013 | Kobe | ![]() |
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2014 | Linz | ![]() |
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2015 | Sendai | ![]() |
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2016 | Philadelphia | ![]() |
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2017 | Markham | ![]() |
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2018 | Chengdu | ![]() |
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2019 | Chengdu | ![]() |
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2020 | Weihai | ![]() |
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2024 | Macau | ![]() |
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2025 | Macau | ![]() |
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Men's doubles
Year | Host city | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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1990 | Seoul | ![]() ![]() |
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1992 | Las Vegas | ![]() ![]() |
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Women's doubles
Year | Host City | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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1990 | Seoul | ![]() ![]() |
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1992 | Las Vegas | ![]() ![]() |
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Men's team
Year | Host city | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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1990 | Chiba City | ![]() Mikael Appelgren Erik Lindh Jörgen Persson Jan-Ove Waldner |
![]() Chen Longcan Chen Zhibin Ma Wenge Wei Qingguang Yu Shentong |
![]() Sky Andrew Chen Xinhua Alan Cooke Desmond Douglas |
![]() Kim Guk-chol Kim Song-hui Ri Gun-sang |
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1991 | Barcelona | ![]() Ma Wenge Wang Hao (born 1966) Wang Tao Xie Chaojie Zhang Lei |
![]() Peter Karlsson Erik Lindh Jörgen Persson Jan-Ove Waldner |
![]() Nicolas Chatelain Damien Éloi Jean-Philippe Gatien Olivier Marmurek |
![]() Choi Kyong-sob Kim Guk-chol Kim Song-hui Ri Gun-sang |
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1994 | Nimes | ![]() Ding Song Lin Zhigang Liu Guoliang Wang Hao (born 1966) |
![]() Mikael Appelgren Peter Karlsson Jörgen Persson Jan-Ove Waldner |
![]() Thierry Cabrera Andras Podpinka Philippe Saive Frederic Sonnet |
![]() Patrick Chila Damien Éloi Jean-Philippe Gatien Christophe Legoût |
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1995 | Atlanta | ![]() Chu Kyo-sung Kim Bong-chul Kim Taek-soo Lee Chul-seung Yoo Nam-kyu |
![]() Steffen Fetzner Peter Franz Richard Prause Jörg Roßkopf |
![]() Ichiro Imaeda Kōji Matsushita Toshio Tasaki Ryo Yuzawa |
![]() Jim Butler Cheng Yinghua David Zhuang |
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2007 | Magdeburg | ![]() Chen Qi Ma Lin Wang Hao (born 1983) Wang Liqin |
![]() Cheung Yuk Leung Chu Yan Li Ching |
![]() Chen Weixing Robert Gardos Bernhard Presslmayer Werner Schlager |
![]() Joo Sae-hyuk Lee Jung-sam Oh Sang-eun Ryu Seung-min |
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2009 | Linz | ![]() Ma Long Qiu Yike Xu Xin Zhang Jike |
![]() Joo Sae-hyuk Oh Sang-eun Ryu Seung-min Yoon Jae-young |
![]() Patrick Baum Dimitrij Ovtcharov Bastian Steger Christian Süß |
![]() Cheung Yuk Jiang Tianyi Leung Chu Yan Tang Peng Tse Ka Chun |
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2010 | Dubai | ![]() Hao Shuai Ma Long Wang Hao (born 1983) Xu Xin Zhang Jike |
![]() Jeoung Young-sik Joo Sae-hyuk Lee Jung-woo Oh Sang-eun |
![]() Chen Weixing Stefan Fegerl Robert Gardos Daniel Habesohn Werner Schlager |
![]() Patrick Baum Zoltan Fejer-Konnerth Steffen Mengel |
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2011 | Magdeburg | ![]() Ma Lin Ma Long Wang Hao (born 1983) Wang Liqin Xu Xin |
![]() Joo Sae-hyuk Kim Min-seok Oh Sang-eun Ryu Seung-min |
![]() Patrick Baum Ruwen Filus Dimitrij Ovtcharov Bastian Steger |
![]() Kenta Matsudaira Koki Niwa Kaii Yoshida |
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2013 | Guangzhou | ![]() Ma Long Wang Hao (born 1983) Wang Liqin Xu Xin Zhang Jike |
![]() Chen Chien-an Chiang Hung-chieh Chuang Chih-yuan Huang Sheng-sheng Wu Chih-chi |
![]() Khalid Assar Omar Assar Mohamed El-beiali El-sayed Lashin Ahmed Saleh |
![]() Kenta Matsudaira Jun Mizutani Koki Niwa |
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2015 | Dubai | ![]() Fan Zhendong Fang Bo Ma Long Xu Xin Zhang Jike |
![]() Chen Weixing Stefan Fegerl Robert Gardos Daniel Habesohn |
![]() Chen Chien-an Chiang Hung-chieh Huang Sheng-sheng Wu Chih-chi |
![]() Tiago Apolónia Marcos Freitas João Geraldo João Monteiro |
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2018 | London | ![]() Fan Zhendong Lin Gaoyuan Ma Long Xu Xin Yu Ziyang |
![]() Tomokazu Harimoto Koki Niwa Yuya Oshima Jin Ueda |
![]() Paul Drinkhall Tom Jarvis David McBeath Liam Pitchford Sam Walker |
![]() Jeong Sang-eun Jeoung Young-sik Lee Sang-su Lim Jong-hoon |
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2019 | Tokyo | ![]() Fan Zhendong Liang Jingkun Lin Gaoyuan Ma Long Xu Xin |
![]() Cho Dae-seong Jang Woo-jin Jeoung Young-sik Lee Sang-su Lim Jong-hoon |
![]() Chen Chien-an Liao Chen-ting Lin Yun-ju Peng Wang-wei Wang Tai-wei |
![]() Tomokazu Harimoto Takuya Jin Koki Niwa Maharu Yoshimura |
Performance by nations in men's world team
Women's team
Year | Host city | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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1990 | Chiba City | ![]() Chen Zihe Deng Yaping Gao Jun Qiao Hong |
![]() Li Bun-hui Li Mi-suk Yu Sun-bok |
![]() Mika Hoshino Miki Kitsukawa Rika Sato Tomoko Shimonaga |
![]() Hong Cha-ok Hong Soon-hwa Hyun Jung-hwa |
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1991 | Barcelona | ![]() Chen Zihe Deng Yaping Gao Jun Liu Wei Qiao Hong |
![]() Hong Cha-ok Hong Soon-hwa Hyun Jung-hwa |
![]() Mika Hoshino Fumiyo Yamashita-Kaizu Rika Sato |
![]() Li Bun-hui Li Mi-suk Yu Sun-bok |
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1994 | Nimes | ![]() Galina Melnik Irina Palina Elena Timina |
![]() Christina Fischer Elke Schall Jie Schöpp Nicole Struse |
![]() Wang Chen Wu Na Zhang Ling |
![]() Gerdie Keen Mirjam Hooman-Kloppenburg Emily Noor Bettine Vriesekoop |
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1995 | Atlanta | ![]() Deng Yaping Liu Wei Qiao Hong Qiao Yunping Yang Ying |
![]() Otilia Bădescu Emilia Elena Ciosu Georgeta Cojocaru |
![]() Csilla Bátorfi Vivien Ello Krisztina Tóth |
![]() Kim Moo-kyo Park Hae-jung Park Kyung-ae Ryu Ji-hye |
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2007 | Magdeburg | ![]() Guo Yue Li Xiaoxia Wang Nan Zhang Yining |
![]() Kim Kyung-ah Kwak Bang-bang Lee Eun-hee Park Mi-young |
![]() Lau Sui Fei Lin Ling Tie Ya Na Zhang Rui |
![]() Li Bin Petra Lovas Georgina Póta Krisztina Tóth |
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2009 | Linz | ![]() Ding Ning Guo Yue Li Xiaoxia Liu Shiwen |
![]() Feng Tianwei Zena Sim Kai Xin Sun Beibei Wang Yuegu Yu Mengyu |
![]() Jiang Huajun Lau Sui Fei Lin Ling Tie Ya Na Zhang Rui |
![]() Ai Fukuhara Sayaka Hirano Kasumi Ishikawa |
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2010 | Dubai | ![]() Ding Ning Guo Yan Guo Yue Li Xiaoxia Liu Shiwen |
![]() Feng Tianwei Li Jiawei Sun Beibei Wang Yuegu Yu Mengyu |
![]() Kim Kyung-ah Park Mi-young Seok Ha-jung Yang Ha-eun |
![]() Hiroko Fujii Ai Fukuhara Kasumi Ishikawa |
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2011 | Magdeburg | ![]() Ding Ning Fan Ying Guo Yan Guo Yue Li Xiaoxia |
![]() Ai Fukuhara Sayaka Hirano Kasumi Ishikawa |
![]() Jiang Huajun Lee Ho Ching Ng Wing Nam Tie Ya Na Yu Kwok See |
![]() Feng Tianwei Li Jiawei Sun Beibei Wang Yuegu Yu Mengyu |
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2013 | Guangzhou | ![]() Chang Chenchen Ding Ning Li Xiaoxia Liu Shiwen Wu Yang |
![]() Ai Fukuhara Sayaka Hirano Kasumi Ishikawa |
![]() Guan Mengyuan Jiang Huajun Lee Ho Ching Ng Wing Nam Tie Ya Na |
![]() Feng Tianwei Isabelle Li Yee Herng Hwee Yu Mengyu |
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2015 | Dubai | ![]() Chen Meng Ding Ning Li Xiaoxia Liu Shiwen Zhu Yuling |
![]() Kim Hye-yong Kim Jong Ri Mi-gyong Ri Myong-sun |
![]() Sayaka Hirano Yuka Ishigaki Misaki Morizono |
![]() Feng Tianwei Isabelle Li Lim Eunice Yu Mengyu Zhang Wanling |
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2018 | London | ![]() Chen Xingtong Ding Ning Liu Shiwen Wang Manyu Zhu Yuling |
![]() Hina Hayata Miu Hirano Kasumi Ishikawa Mima Ito |
![]() Doo Hoi Kem Lee Ho Ching Mak Tze Wing Ng Wing Nam Minnie Soo |
![]() Cha Hyo-sim Choe Hyon-hwa Kim Nam-hee Kim Song-i |
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2019 | Tokyo | ![]() Chen Meng Ding Ning Liu Shiwen Sun Yingsha Wang Manyu |
![]() Miu Hirano Kasumi Ishikawa Mima Ito Hitomi Sato |
![]() Chen Szu-yu Cheng Hsien-tzu Cheng I-ching Liu Hsing-yin Su Pei-ling |
![]() Choi Hyo-joo Jeon Ji-hee Shin Yu-bin Suh Hyo-won Yang Ha-eun |
Performance by nations in women's world team
Team | Winners | Runners-up | Third place |
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11 (1990, '91, '95, 2007, '09, '10, '11, '13, '15, '18, '19) | 0 | 1 (1994) |
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1 (1994) | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 2 (2009, '10) | 3 (2011, '13, '15) |
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0 | 4 (2011, '13, '18, '19) | 4 (1991, 2009, '10, '15) |
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0 | 2 (1991, 2007) | 3 (1995, 2010, '19) |
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0 | 2 (1990, 2015) | 2 (1991, 2018) |
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0 | 1 (1995) | 0 |
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0 | 1 (1994) | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 5 (2007, '09, '11, '13, '18) |
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0 | 0 | 3 (1990, '95, 2007) |
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0 | 0 | 1 (1990) |
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0 | 0 | 1 (1994) |
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0 | 0 | 1 (2019) |
Mixed Team
Year | Host City | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
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2023 | Chengdu | ![]() Chen Meng Fan Zhendong Lin Gaoyuan Ma Long Sun Yingsha Wang Chuqin Wang Manyu Wang Yidi |
![]() An Jae-hyun Jang Woo-jin Jeon Ji-hee Kim Na-yeong Lee Sang-su Lee Zi-on Lim Jong-hoon Shin Yu-bin |
![]() Miwa Harimoto Tomokazu Harimoto Hina Hayata Miu Hirano Miyuu Kihara Kakeru Sone Shunsuke Togami Ryoichi Yoshiyama |
2024 | Chengdu | ![]() Kuai Man Liang Jingkun Lin Gaoyuan Lin Shidong Sun Yingsha Wang Chuqin Wang Manyu Wang Yidi |
![]() An Jae-hyun Cho Dae-seong Jang Woo-jin Jeon Ji-hee Kim Na-yeong Oh Jun-sung Shin Yu-bin Suh Hyo-won |
![]() Chan Baldwin Doo Hoi Kem Lam Siu-hang Lee Hoi Man Karen Ng Wing Lam Wong Chun-ting Wong Hoi Tung Yiu Kwan To |
2025 | Chengdu | |||
2026 | Chengdu | |||
2027 | Chengdu | |||
See also
In Spanish: Copa del Mundo de Tenis de Mesa para niños