"Germany can be proud of a fantastic World Championships"

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Sunday, 1st April: “It was the dream final we had all hoped for, but today the old and now the new World Champions demonstrated just why China is the best table tennis nation in the world. Our team tried to attack and even if China was justified in winning the title, we still had our chances despite the clear 0:3 result. However, against China you have to purposefully seize even the smallest of opportunities which comes your way, which didn´t quite work out for us today. Nevertheless, in all of the three singles matches, we did demonstrate that we are capable of attacking the best nation in the world.

If despite top performances by Timo Boll, Dimitrij Ovtcharov and Patrick Baum it wasn´t enough on this occasion, we will continue to seek our opportunities, the next one being in a few months time at the Olympic Games in London. The men´s team performed outstandingly at the World Championships, reinforcing their position as the second best nation behind China in an extremely impressive manner.

We should be proud about the outcome of these World Championships, in which both our women´s and men’s national teams have presented themselves in outstanding form. The women, who achieved a pleasing seventh place at the end of proceedings, may on the surface seem to have achieved less in comparison with their bronze medal win in Moscow, following their quarter-final knockout. However, as regards their level of performance, their 2:3 against Singapore in Dortmund was more significant than their victory two years ago over Hong Kong.

Last but not least, on behalf of the whole team I would like to thank the fans, who have rooted and crossed their fingers for us right here on the internet, in front of the TV screen at home or even in person in the Westfalenhalle. The crowd and the atmosphere in the hall with over 11,000 spectators were simply fantastic, often causing a tingling down ones spine. Also the many comments made in forums and social networks showed just how many people were partaking in the thrill and cheering us on. Thank you for a great World Championships and all your support.”