Table Tennis England has appealed against UK Sport’s decision not to award the sport funding for the 2020 Olympic cycle.

Table tennis was one of the sports told before Christmas that it would not receive any elite funding for its performance programme working towards the Tokyo Olympics.

This is despite being in the group of sports projected to achieve zero to one medal in Tokyo.

Table Tennis England has now formally submitted its appeal to UK Sport. It will be heard on February 7 and a decision is expected later that month. Seven other sports have made similar appeals – badminton, archery, fencing and weightlifting plus Paralympic sports goalball, powerlifting and wheelchair rugby.

Chief Executive Sara Sutcliffe said:

“We feel there is nothing more we could have done to secure funding. We have overachieved on everything we have been asked to do and we have done it without funding since London 2012.

“Effectively, the goalposts have now moved, leaving us still without funding despite the successes we have had. That is why we have appealed.

“In the meantime, we are fully committed to continuing the build on the huge progress made by the England athletes at all levels of the performance pathway and to give our athletes the best possible chance to achieve on the world stage.”

Table Tennis England also expects to hear in February how much funding will be awarded to the sport by Sport England for the next four-year cycle. This money funds participation and other grassroots projects.