Timo Boll bids a ceremonial farewell in China

Record European champion Timo Boll has played his last table tennis match in China and received a standing ovation from the fans. The 43-year-old failed to reach the last 16 of the 800,000 dollar WTT Champions Chongqing on Saturday. The former world number one will end his international career after the Olympic Games in Paris (July 26 to August 11).

“These are very emotional moments for me these days in China. I'm a bit speechless. The atmosphere was just great today, it was the right match for a farewell,” said the player from Düsseldorf: ‘I would like to thank all my fans in China.’

Boll put in a strong performance in his round of 16 match against world number five Felix Lebrun (France), but was ultimately beaten by the world's best player outside of China. Boll narrowly lost the exciting and high-class generational duel against the Frenchman, who is just 17 years old, 10:12.

However, Boll is not yet completely finished with the Middle Kingdom. “China is my second home and I will come back - next time as a tourist,” said Boll, who also had words of praise for Lebrun: “It's incredible how strong he already is at the age of 17.”

Source: SID
Featured image above: Timo Boll (Photo: World Table Tennis)