Mikael Andersson has been appointed as ITTF Group Sports Director to innovate the technical aspects of the sport of table tennis and to support the vision and direction that delivers sustainable success at all major events. In his new role, he will consult and support all three entities of the ITTF Group – the ITTF, World Table Tennis and the ITTF Foundation – on all table tennis related matters.

“My professional career in table tennis started some forty years ago when I took on the duties of coaching one the best clubs in Sweden – Halmstad BTK. I was young then and could never imagine that my passion and professional drive would take me thus far and provide me with multiple opportunities to work with the development of table tennis internationally. It goes without saying that i am excited and motivated to invest all my accumulated competence and innovative spirit into the new ITTF Group Sports Director role. It will be full steam ahead with many interesting projects lined up for the ITTF Group with a new model on the rise as the centrepiece for professional development. I am looking forward to coming along for that journey and to support our membership and future stars in the process.” – Mikael Andersson, ITTF Group Sports Director

Andersson will also be responsible for innovating the technical and regulatory aspects of the sport of Table Tennis and coordinating with the Member Associations.

“It is my pleasure to welcome Mikael Andersson; he has a wealth of experience both on the table and off the table. It is his second stint with the ITTF, having pioneered the successful Global Junior Programme, which had many new and excellent initiatives. As our new Sports Director, Mikael will focus on some of the areas affected by the pandemic, which need some rethink as the world is restarting. I am looking forward to collaborating with him.” – Steve Dainton, ITTF Group CEO

Another mission of the Group Sports Director is to create an international network of Academies to develop the next generation of players. He will oversee the implementation of the project in its entirety, from coaching to performance support and operations, to ensure more regions of the world produces high-level table tennis players.

Since September 2018, Andersson has been the Swedish Table Tennis Association High Performance Director. He began his career as the coach of Halmstad Table Tennis Club and became the national coach Danish Table Tennis Association in 1988. He joined the ITTF in 1998 and occupied several roles in high performance and education and created iconic projects in youth development. Andersson was also one of the leading figures of the successful 2018 ITTF World Table Tennis Championships in Halmstad, Sweden.