October 16, 2025 | Paul Stimpson
Englandâ€s stars are relishing the chance to get under the spotlight at the biggest table tennis event in London since 2018.
WTT Star Contender London brings together Olympic medallists, top-20 world stars and a battalion of English athletes at the iconic Copper Box Arena on Londonâ€s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
With hundreds of spectators cheering them to the rafters, the Box That Rocks will ignite!
It all starts with the qualifying rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, with established and up-and-coming England stars bidding to join the leading lights in the main draw.
England will also be well represented at that stage, with the likes of Tom Jarvis and Tin-Tin Ho aiming to get in amongst the top seeds as they start their campaigns from Thursday morning.
We caught up with Tom, Tin-Tin and some of the other English stars and found out they canâ€t wait to show their skills in front of a passionate home crowd.
For Tom Jarvis, there are happy memories of the ITTF Team World Cup at the same venue in 2018, when England won bronze medals for reaching the semi-finals, where they were knocked out by all-conquering China.
And he believes home crowds, building on the successful WTT Feeder Manchester events in the past two seasons, will help the players.
Tom said: “I think the Manchester Feeders have been a massive success and weâ€ve all really, really enjoyed them. Weâ€ve had big crowds and I think for all of us it doesnâ€t get more fun that playing in front of a home crowd.
“Obviously, theyâ€ve taken it up a notch from Manchester in a bigger arena. Weâ€ve played in that before at the World Cup. Itâ€s really big for all of us and hopefully some of us can put up a good run.
“WTT is very tough, especially starting in the main draw. You canâ€t really play anyone outside the top 70 or 80 in the world, so any win you get there is going to have to be a real battle.
“I think that home crowd gives you that extra little boost of energy, it makes it mean more. Some people get maybe get nervous in it, but I find it more fun to play in that. Itâ€s what we practise for, to play in front of big crowds at big tournaments.â€
Womenâ€s No 1 Tin-Tin Ho, who also played at the Team World Cup in her home city in 2018, says having family and friends in the crowd will also make a big difference.
“Itâ€s so exciting having a big WTT in London and really exciting to go back to the Copper Box,†she said. “We played World Cup there and it was a really good experience playing so close to home and having the players from other countries visit London as well.
“Itâ€s nice just knowing the crowd have got your back and Iâ€m excited for hopefully my parents and friends to watch as well.â€
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