Asian nations book their places at London 2026!

October 16, 2025 | Paul Stimpson

Powerhouse China lead the list of 16 Asian nations to qualify for the centenary ITTF World Team Championships 2026 in London.

Both the menâ€s and womenâ€s teams are defending champions and therefore did not need to qualify for London, but both took their customary continental titles at the Asia Championships in Bhubaneswar, India.

Among the other nations to qualify both menâ€s and womenâ€s teams are Japan, South Korea, India, Chinese Taipei, North Korea and Malaysia (pictured above).

The full list of qualifying nations is:

Men
China (reigning world champions)
Regional champions: Bahrain (west Asia), Kazakhstan (central Asia), India (south Asia)
Via continental championships: Japan, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, South Korea, North Korea, Iran, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Qatar, Mongolia, Uzbekistan

Women
China (reigning champions)
Regional champions: Syria (west Asia), Kazakhstan (central Asia), India (south Asia)
Via continental championships: Japan, Singapore, South Korea, North Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, Iran, Sri Lanka, Macau, Mongolia

Although China winning both continental titles is not a surprise, the menâ€s team had an almighty scare in an incredible semi-final against Japan.

Every match went to five games and China had to come from 2-0 down to take their place in the final. Tomokazu Harimoto (WR 4) put Japan in front by beating Liang Jingkun 12-10, 11-13, 13-11, 9-11, 11-9 and Sora Matsushima (WR 16) then sunk world No 1 Wang Chuqin 8-11, 11-4, 12-10, 9-11, 11-7.

World No 2 Lin Shidong started the comeback as he beat Hiroto Shinozuka (WR 31) 12-14, 11-2, 11-5, 10-12, 11-6 and Wang then beat Harimoto 8-11, 11-1, 11-9, 13-15, 11-8.

World No 7 Liang then clinched the gold as he came from 2-1 down to beat Matsushima 8-11, 13-11, 11-13, 11-4, 11-3. China went on to defeat Hong Kong 3-0 in the final.

In contrast, Chinaâ€s women came through to take the title without dropping a game, culminating in a 3-0 win over Japan in the final. The team tournaments at the continental championships in Africa and the Americas will finish on Sunday, with eight nations in each gender from each continent earning a place at London 2026.

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