To all ETTA County and League Members

Dear Member

First of all, I would like to write again about the future.  I see a very bright time ahead for table tennis providing that the opportunities are grasped and that the sport is driven from the centre in a knowledgeable and motivated manner by people who know where the sport needs to go and, more importantly, know how to get there. Many of our plans and proposals are detailed in The New Agenda. Throughout my life I have always delivered and, given the opportunity, I will do so again! 

Unfortunately, I will have to respond to the second manifesto from the other candidates as they are conveying the wrong impression of how matters are and have been over the last six years.  If everything is as rosy as they say, why is it that so many people involved at the national level of the sport, who can compare my period in charge with the last six years, are now calling for change?  Many who supported Alex Murdoch six years ago are now asking me to return.  The reason is that the most important issues involved can be managed and dealt with in a much better way.  For example:

Development:
For table tennis to do well there clearly needs to be good facilities and more table tennis centres need to be opened. More grants are essential to help the local volunteers and the team of Regional Development Officers to be much more effective in their work to help the local members.  Previously Mike Lewis, Vice Chairman Development, although a volunteer, worked pretty much full time with the Director of Development motivating and managing the RDO network.

Events: 
We must have more major events to stimulate interest in the sport.  Previously we staged the World Championships, World Veterans, European Championships, Olympic European Qualifications and several English Opens.  Over the last six years there has been nothing of this kind.  Yes, Glasgow will stage the 2009 Commonwealth Championships, with a useful  offshoot for the ETTA of a series of international matches against India whilst their team is in Britain... but this Commonwealth Championships is an event  I brought to the UK after negotiation with Table Tennis Scotland and Glasgow City Council in my Commonwealth capacity.
 
Top Players:
In 2002 England won gold medals at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.  There have been no major senior medals won for England since.  The most promising cadet players were improving fast at that time and had a training programme that gave them a chance to succeed.  Nothing similar is in place now.

Budget Issues:
Alex Murdoch gives details of the increased bank balance in the ETTA accounts.  Hoarding money for the ETTA is easy – you just stop spending on some programmes and leave the money in the bank - but at what cost ?

The lack of opportunities, particularly for our junior and cadet players.  The Safirs Swedish Junior event takes place next weekend.  Some of our junior girls are attending, but their parents are having to pay all the costs.  In the past, the players’ and coaches’ travel and accommodation costs have been met.  The support for our girl players is poor and with this level of investment the chances of international success are very slim.

There is no Facilities Officer and there has been a major slow down in the opening of new centres.  According to Alex’s manifesto, 12 centres in six years.  Previously there were 12 in twelve months!

Delayed RDO appointments:  Some regions have had to wait many months for the appointment of their RDO after a former RDO has left.

Coaching Tutor upgrading:  A lack of investment in courses to bring previously qualified tutors in line with the new arrangements have been seriously delayed.  One region has been waiting for more than two years for a course.
These are just some of the programmes that have been hit by lack of investment.

More Motivated Staff
In 2003 the Management Committee and Staff were working together as a much more motivated and co-ordinated team.  Major rifts are now apparent between the Management Committee and some of the staff under their guidance.

The RDO teams need to be better motivated so that they can make a real difference to the volunteers on the ground.  Previously there was strong senior officer involvement in motivating and managing the RDO team, but now there appears to be only little interest by the Officers in this important aspect of the Association’s work.

The Chief Executive is out of the office much more doing a lot of the work that Management Committee members did during my previous term and clearly needs more help.  I have every confidence in the Chief Executive but he is now grossly overloaded. 

Trade Issues:
Martin Clark is trying to make a big issue about my trade commitments.  I have issued my statement and it is available on my website for anyone who has not received it so far.  The rules are in place both at the ETTA level and in Government.  The guidelines can be found on the uksport.gov.uk website.  These have been and always will be followed so that no conflict will take place.
 
The Government does not want to stop people with a contribution from making that contribution, except that it needs to be open and fair and comply with the rules.

Our opponents have a lot to say, but the bottom line is that this matter is covered by the Government’s and ETTA’s rules and regulations concerning potential conflict.  With regard to the injection about the ITTF’s policy, the ITTF rules are different because the ITTF is a world wide organisation and there is no body to monitor them.  Therefore, their rules are appropriate for their organisation.  I appreciate this and I have no intention of running for high ITTF office. 

The suggestion that the Government would stop making grants to an organisation that is following the rules seems to me to be bizarre. In any case, the grants have already been awarded for the next four years.  Whether I am in office or not, I see no problems at that time except that the Olympics will be over and the funding for sport may be less.

If Alex Murdoch and Martin Clark have such a big problem with people with a trade connection being in ETTA office, why have they appointed Charlie Childs, the head of the TT Links company which sells Chinese table tennis equipment in this country, to the Management committee as the Coaching Vice Chairman? 

It is clear to me that our opponents are making a big issue of this because they think it just might win the election for them.  They know that my knowledge and ability to run the sport because of my experience in so many facets of table tennis is far stronger than theirs and they need something to tip the votes their way.

It’s Your Choice
For Chairman, the Members have a choice between a candidate who can do the job very well, has a track record (see CV on my website www.alanransome.com) and has proved it many times, and a candidate who is very friendly but needs others to do much of the thinking, planning and negotiations for him, and has no, or very little, track record.  He has had time to prove what he can do in six years.

Why, then, are people asking me to return?
If elected, I will put together a team of the best experts and managers and this will make such a difference to the performance of the sport and giving the members, Sport England and UK Sport so much better value for their contributions to table tennis.

Yours sincerely

Alan Ransome