French table tennis star Simon Goetz bombarded the WTT World Table Tennis Federation (WTTF) tournament prize money on his personal social media, which has caused a very bad international impact. Originally, table tennis was not a mainstream sport in the West, and some of his radical remarks made young people in Europe and the United States feel that there was no future in table tennis, and the prize money was not attractive.
Simon Goates posted a picture of the WTT tournament in Incheon, South Korea, with a total prize fund of $800,000 in 2022, $500,000 in 2023, and a sharp reduction to $300,000 in 2024. One fan replied, "The manual says the minimum prize should be $400,000, does that mean this event is not WTT rules?" and Goetz replied, "Wow, I don't know." What a shame. ”
Many netizens did not think it was a big deal to see the excitement, and left messages and complained, some suggested that table tennis players protested that "it would be interesting to boycott the World Table Tennis Federation", another said: "Boycott the game, but your world ranking will be lowered, you must create a player league (union)", and another explained: "There are more WTT matches in China than in other countries." A fan asked, "But really, as one of the best athletes in the world, how can you make a living from this sport?" Simon Goetz responded: "I make a living from the club and sponsors. ”
Table tennis does have a prominent problem, that is, foreign players are not able to earn high incomes, and because of this, there is no incentive to engage in this unpopular sport, thus creating a vicious circle. The national table tennis has almost formed a monopoly on the results, and the top prize money of the competition is basically attributed to the national player's account, ironically, the main source of income for the national player is not the tournament bonus, and the foreign players who are desperate to get the prize money can only get a little scraps.
In the past, we mentioned the "wolf breeding plan", which probably meant to help cultivate European and American players, so that they can grow into "wolves" that can threaten the national table tennis, so as to enhance the intensity and enjoyment of the game. Now it seems that we are going to launch a new "wolf breeding plan", which is to find a way to improve their salaries, ensure them a decent life, and do not let talented foreign athletes give up their dreams of becoming professional players because of the low income from playing table tennis.