Jean-Michel Saive

Jean -Michel Saive ( born November 17, 1969 in Liège ) is the most successful Belgian table tennis pro.

Achievements

Saive is continuously best Belgian table tennis players since 1985. 1985, 1986 and 1987, he won the singles, doubles and mixed competition in the Belgian national championships. Overall, he was until today ( March 2014 ) 25 times Belgian champion in singles, at least six times in a double, at least seven times in mixed and at least 12 times in the team competition. In 1984 he was winner of the student's European Championship.

He took from 1988, was as table tennis Olympic sport until 2008, six Olympic Games in part. At the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games in 1996 and 2004 he was the standard bearer of the Belgian team. Since 1983 he was represented at all world championships. He became vice world champion in singles in 1993. In 1994, he led the ITTF World Ranking.

Saive came in 1983 club TTC Jülich ( 2nd Team, 2nd Bundesliga) and has since played at several Bundesliga clubs, from 1996 to the TTF Bad Honnef and occasionally also in Belgium at Royal Villette Charleroi (from 1997) and in France at the club SSSS Tours. In 2012 he left the Royal Villette Charleroi and joined the Brussels club Logis Auderghem.

The international breakthrough came in 1993 when he won the International Championships of China. He defeated Ma Wenge in the final 3-2.

In February 1994, he won the European ranking tournament Europe Top -12, and thus climbed the top of the world rankings. A few months later he was single European champions. In the fall Saive confirmed his supremacy in Europe by winning the European Masters Cup EMC. At the end of the year he reached the final of the World Cup in Malaysia, where he was defeated (as already in the World Cup 1993) against Frenchman Jean -Philippe Gatien.

After the early exit at the World Cup 1995 in Tianjin, when he failed as Topgesetzter, he lost the top position in the world rankings. The victory at the Qatar Open in early 1996, he managed to climb again No. 1 in the world rankings.

In 2001, he won with his club Royal Villette Charleroi the World Cup, won the European Champions League winner and also won the trophy for the Pro Tour single player world championship. He also reached the final of the Belgian national team at the World Championships in Osaka against China.

A total of 130 medals won Saive (51 gold, 38 silver and 41 bronze medals ).

He was 1991 and 1994 Belgian Sportsman of the Year and received the 1988 Fair Play Award by UNESCO.

At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing Saive was next to the athletes Zoran Primorac (CRO ) and Jorgen Persson (SWE ) won for the sixth participation in the Olympic table tennis competition. This has participated alongside Primorac and Persson at every Olympic Games since the introduction of Table Tennis competition in Seoul in 1988 Jean -Michel Saive.

Private

Saives parents were powerful play table tennis player. His father Jean -Paul finished 1971 ranked 10th in the Belgian ranking, his mother, Jeanine won the 1969 Championship of Belgium in a double as Saives younger brother Philippe Saive is also a Belgian TT -National player.

Results from the ITTF database

Philately

From the Belgian Post a stamp to the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996 with a nominal value of 16 4 France France surcharge because it was released on 29 June 1996. On this stamp is Jean- Michel Saive shown ( Michel catalog number 2698 ). This stamp exists in perforated and cut copy as well as ministers block. For this purpose, in Brussels on June 29, 1996 used a special on a table tennis bat, table tennis ball and a table tennis net are mapped.

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