Valentina Popova (table tennis)
Valentina Popovová (originally Russian Валентина Ивановна Попова, Valentina Ivanovna Popova, English transcription Valentina Popova, . Born November 21, 1960 in Sumqayıt, Azerbaijan SSR, Soviet Union) is a Slovak table tennis player of Soviet origin. She was nine-time European champion in the 1980s.
Youth
1968 Popova began with the table tennis sport. She trained at that time in Baku under Yuri Oparin, and later under Nikolai Novikov.
In 1974 she took in Göppingen at the European Championship of pupils gold with the team; in individual she failed in the semifinals at Gabriella Szabó. The European Youth Championships she reached several times 2nd place in individual: 1975 ( behind Gordana Perkučin ), 1976 ( behind China Tatjana Roma ) and 1977 ( behind Bettine Vriesekoop ). With the team she won 1975, 1976 and 1978 the title. In doubles, she won in 1977 and 1978 (each with Narine Antonyan ).
Adult
From 1977 to 1981 Popova won five times in a row the Soviet national title.
At the European Championships in 1976 she came to her first title, in the team competition. In 1980 she won a gold medal in singles, a double ( with Narine Antonyan ) and with the team. In 1984 she won in all four competitions in a single, double ( with Narine Antonyan ), in mixed ( with Jacques Secretin ) and with the team. At the European Championships in 1986 Popova could be used only in the team because the association had failed to report them to the individual competitions. At their last European title they came in 1988 in the team competition.
1992 left Popova together with her family Azerbaijan because of the unrest there and moved to Slovakia to Bratislava. As of early 1994, she was eligible to play for Slovakia. Here she won in 1996 the Slovak Championship in 1996 in singles and doubles (with Zuzana Poliačková ).
Between 1977 and 2001 she participated in 13 World Championships, including five times for Slovakia. The Olympic Games in 1988, she contested for the USSR, 1992 United for the team and 1996 for Slovakia.
In 2005 she was again European Champion of seniors Ü40 in singles.
In the 2000s she played in the Austrian Bundesliga, including the clubs SVS Lower Austria and SV Schwechat.
Trainer
Popovová is coach of the Slovak national women's table tennis World Cup for 2014.
Private
Valentina Popovová graduated from the philological faculty of the University of Azerbaijan. She is married to a journalist since 1985 and has a son ( born 1985 ). She speaks German.
Results from the ITTF database