Azernews.Az

Laman Ismayilova

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An official confirmation certificate has been sent by the relevant authority recognizing Azerbaijani table tennis player Nihad Mammadov as a new Guinness World Record holder, AzerNEWS reports citing the Azerbaijan Table Tennis Federation.

In April this year, during a ceremony held at the Shua Sports Complex, the national team member attempted to break the world record for the longest successful table tennis serve.

Under the supervision of officials from the Ministry of Youth and Sports, representatives of the Table Tennis Federation, and international referee Zaur Mikayilov, Mammadov successfully completed the serve from a distance of 18.20 meters.

The previous record of 17.50 meters had belonged to Turkish athlete Osman Gürcü.

The Azerbaijan Table Tennis Federation (ASTF) was established in the early 1950s, following the organization of a Baku section for table tennis. This came after a growing interest in the sport in the 1930s and 1940s.

Officially, ASTF has been a member of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) since 1995, and at the same time a member of the European Table Tennis Union (ETTU).

One of the main goals of ASTF is to organize and develop table tennis across the country: to build a stable and well‑equipped national federation; to ensure proper material and technical support and training for the national teams; to promote the sport at the grassroots level, including among youth; and to involve Azerbaijani athletes in national and international competitions.