Dimitrij Ovtcharov

Dimitrij Ovtcharov (Russian: Дмитрий Овчаров) or Dmytro Ovtcharov (Ukrainian: Дмитро Овчаров; born 2 September 1988) is a Ukrainian-born German table tennis player.[6] His father Mikhail, a Soviet table tennis champion in 1982, moved his family to Germany shortly after Dimitrij was born.

Dimitrij Ovtcharov
Дмитро Овчаров
Ovtcharov at the 2008 Olympics
Personal information
NationalityGerman
ResidenceDüsseldorf, Germany
Hamelin, Germany
Born (1988-09-02) 2 September 1988
Kiev, Ukrainian SSR[1]
Playing styleRight-handed, shakehand grip
Equipment(s)Blade: OVTCHAROV No.1 SENSO

Rubber (Forehand): Dignics 09C

Rubber (Backhand): Dignics 05
Highest ranking1 (January 2018)[2]
Current ranking11 (April 2020)[3]
ClubGAZPROM Fakel Orenburg
(Russia)[4]
Height186 cm (6 ft 1 in)[5]
Weight78 kg (172 lb)

Ovtcharov won one silver and three bronze medals at the Olympics between 2008 and 2016. Ranked first January to February 2018, he is currently ranked eleventh in the world by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF).[2]

Career

At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Ovtcharov won the silver medal as part of the German men's team, together with Timo Boll and Christian Süß.[1][7]

He used a special technique in his serves, which was later picked by TIME as one of the top 50 innovations of 2008.[8]

On 22 September 2010, Ovtcharov had been suspended by the German Table Tennis Federation (DTTB) due to a positive A-sample test for Clenbuterol that may be used as a performance-enhancing substance.[9] Ovtcharov himself denied the doping accusation and requested a B-sample analysis which still tested positive.[10][11] After hearings and further investigations, the hair sample voluntarily offered by Ovtcharov showed no evidence of clenbuterol and its abuse. DTTB later unanimously decided to abolish the suspension on 15 October 2010.[12] The decision was endorsed by ITTF.[13]

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Ovcharov won bronze medals in singles and team events. In June 2015, he won a gold medal at the inaugural European Games. At the 2016 Summer Olympics, he was defeated by Vladimir Samsonov in the singles quarter-final. He then won a team bronze medal.[5] In June 2017, he won the title at the China Open against Timo Boll (4 sets to 3), and in August 2017 he won the title at the Bulgaria Open. In January 2018, Ovtcharov became the World's Number 1 Table Tennis Player.

Equipment

Ovtcharov is a right-handed player and uses the shakehand grip. He is a Butterfly sponsored athlete. He uses a custom-made Arylate Carbon blade with Dignics 09C on his forehand and Dignics 05 on his backhand.[14]

Personal life

Ovtcharov married Swedish table tennis player Jenny Mellström in 2013. They had a daughter, Emma, after the Rio Olympics.[15]

Career records

Singles (as of 6 July 2013)[16]

  • Olympics: round of 16 (2008), bronze medal (2012), Quarter-Finals (2016)[1]
  • World Championships: round of 16 ( 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017 ), round of 64 (2015).
  • World Cup appearances: 1st in 2017 5. Record: 5–8th (2008, 09, 10, 11), 3rd position : ( 2013, 2015 ) .
  • World Tour winner (9): 2010 India Open. 2011 Brazil Open. 2011 Korea Open. 2012 German Open. 2014 German Open. 2017 India Open. 2017 China Open. 2017 Bulgaria Open. 2017 German Open.
    Runner-up (2): 2009 Danish Open. 2010 Polish Open.
  • World Tour Grand Finals appearances: 9. Record: Runner-up (2014, 2017).
  • European Championships: SF (2007). Winner (2013, 2015).
  • Europe Top-12: Winner (2012).
  • Europe Top-16: Winner (2015, 2016, 2017).

Doubles

  • World Championships: round of 16 (2009).
  • Pro Tour winner (1): 2007 Chinese Taipei Open.
  • Pro Tour Grand Finals appearances: 1. Record: QF (2007).

Mixed doubles

  • World Championships: round of 64 (2007).

Team

  • Olympics: Silver (2008), Bronze (2012), Bronze (2016) .
  • European Games: 4th (2015).
  • World Championships: 2nd (2010, 2012, 2014, 2018).
  • World Team Cup: 3rd (2009, 2011).
  • European Championships: 1st (2007–2011, 2013, 2017, 2019) 2nd (2014, 2015).

References
  1. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Dimitrij Ovtcharov". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2010.
  2. "ITTF world ranking". International Table Tennis Federation. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  3. https://ranking.ittf.com/#/home
  4. "European Champions League". European Table Tennis Union. Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 17 October 2010.
  5. Dimitrij Ovtcharov Archived 13 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine. rio2016.com
  6. "OVTCHAROV Dimitrij". Players' Biographies. International Table Tennis Federation. Archived from the original on 11 February 2009. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  7. Guériau, Hubert; Marius Widmer (18 August 2008). "Chinese Players Merciless with German Challengers". ITTF News. International Table Tennis Federation. Archived from the original on 11 February 2009. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  8. "The new ping-pong serve". TIME. 29 October 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
  9. "Dimitrij OVTCHAROV suspended because of positive doping test". European Table Tennis Union (ETTU). 22 September 2010. Archived from the original on 24 September 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  10. Miletic, Alex (23 September 2010). "Dima interviewed by ZDF: "The worst day in whole my life"". ETTU. Archived from the original on 7 October 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  11. Hinz, Simone (30 September 2010). "Positive B sample doping test for Dimitrij OVTCHAROV". ETTU. Archived from the original on 7 October 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
  12. "OVTCHAROV's suspension is over: "Huge stone fell from my heart"". ETTU. 15 October 2010. Archived from the original on 20 October 2010. Retrieved 17 October 2010.
  13. Marshall, Ian (15 October 2010). "Good News for Ovtcharov". ITTF. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 17 October 2010.
  14. https://butterflyonline.com/dignics-09c-interview-with-top-player-dimitrij-ovtcharov/
  15. (28 August 2016) "Dimitrij Ovtcharov becomes a father", ITTF, Retrieved 14 October 2016
  16. "ITTF Statistics". International Table Tennis Federation. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
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