November 3, 2004

Colorado Springs, Colo. – The 2004 USA Table Tennis National Championships will roll into the bright city of Las Vegas, Nevada December 15 – 18, 2004 to determine who will have bragging rights for the upcoming year as the 2004 USA National Champions. The five-star tournament will be held in Hall S2 of the Las Vegas Convention Center with approximately 600 – 800 competitors.

Competitors will settle all wagers on the 80-plus playing courts with 61 different events including Championship Age events, Hard Bat Championship events, USATT Rating events, National School Championship events, and National Disabled Championships events.

2005 National Team Trials

The 2005 National Team Trials will take place at the 2004 USA Table Tennis National Championships in Las Vegas and will determine the final rosters for all of the 2005 USA Table Tennis National Teams.

The Men's and Women's Singles events (which both start on Thursday, Dec. 16) will serve as the Men’s and Women’s National Team Trial events. The top four finishers in these events will qualify as members of the 2005 USA Table Tennis Men’s and Women’s National Teams. The format for these events will be single elimination to the quarterfinals. From the quarterfinals, there will be two four-person round robin groups. There will be a crossover and final for each position. All matches from the round of 32 will be the best of seven.

The “Mr. Neng-Chin Shih Memorial” Junior and Cadet National Championship Events will consist

of Junior Boys & Girls trials (16 – 18 years old), as well as the Cadet Boys & Girls trials (15 years and under) beginning on Thursday, December 16th. The playing format will be single elimination to the quarterfinals. From the quarterfinals, there will be one round robin of eight players. All matches will be the best of five.

Prize Money

The total prize money for the 2004 USA Table Tennis National Championships will be $28,500 which was increased from 25,700 in 2003. The top prize main event is the Men’s Singles event which will receive $3000 for first place. Women’s Singles will receive $2500 for first place.

Tournament Hotel

The tournament Hotel for the 2004 USA Table Tennis National Championships will be the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino (2000 S. Las Vegas Blvd; Las Vegas, NV 89104). To make your reservation, call 1-800-998-6937 and mention USA Table Tennis to get the special rate of $31/night plus tax. Reservations must be made before Nov. 10, 2004 to get this rate. Free shuttle service will be provided to/from the Las Vegas Convention Center and to/from the Stratosphere Hotel.

Media

All media is welcome and no media credentials are necessary. If any media would like to set an appointment please email Tommy Perkins at programs@usatt.org.

For more information please visit our 2004 US Nationals home page at (http://www.usatt.org/events/2004nationals/) or call Tommy Perkins at (719) 866-4583 ext. 6.

- TP03-PNX4_'04 Nationals Press Release.doc