The International Table Tennis Federation announced Thursday it has opened the bidding process for cities to host two qualifying events next year for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The events, dubbed "Rise2Tokyo," consist of a team qualification tournament and a singles qualification tournament to take place next January and May, respectively. As Olympic host, Japan automatically qualifies for the singles, team and mixed doubles events at the main event from July 24 to Aug. 9.
Of the 16 team berths available, nine National Olympic Committees will qualify for Tokyo 2020 based on their results at the team tournament. The other six spots will be first decided via continental qualification.
The 16 teams will then nominate 32 players to compete in the singles tournament, featuring 64-70 athletes who qualify through various avenues, resulting in between two to eight players securing berths for the Olympic tournament.
The Japan Table Tennis Association plans to send next January's top-ranked male and female singles players to compete at Tokyo 2020, with the team's third member chosen based on compatibility with their doubles partner. A mixed doubles team will be decided among the three players.