World Table Tennis has signed a partnership with Ganten ©WTT

Chinese water brand Ganten has been named by World Table Tennis (WTT) as a new global premier partner.

Ganten is set to deliver its products to events such as WTT Grand Smashes, the WTT Cup Finals, WTT Champions and the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Championships.

The company is the largest mineral water brand in China and exports products to almost 30 countries and regions worldwide, including Australia, Italy, Germany and Serbia.

"I am delighted to welcome Ganten to our partnership family," Matt Pound, the managing director of WTT, said.

"It is a highly respected and recognised brand with the highest quality standards.

"Premium hydration is a key component of the sport and the players' performance.

"We are tremendously excited to embark on this long-term journey with Ganten."

Ganten's natural mineral water is claimed to contain elements such as metasilicic acid, calcium and potassium, while a spokesperson said the company was seeking "to raise awareness of the health benefits of natural mineral water" through this deal.

Chen Meng is one of the athletes looking to claim the first WTT Champions title in Budapest ©Getty Images
Chen Meng is one of the athletes looking to claim the first WTT Champions title in Budapest ©Getty Images

It was announced as the first WTT Champions event began yesterday in Hungarian capital Budapest, with the men’s and women’s singles contests taking place and the event due to conclude on July 23.

The competition only features the 30 highest-ranked male and female athletes in the world, as well as two wildcards per tournament, with the winners due to take home a prize of $30,000 (£25,000/€29,000) and 1,000 ranking points.

China's Olympic champion Ma Long is the headline participant in the men’s event while compatriots and Tokyo 2020 team champions Chen Meng, Sun Yingsha and Wang Manyu are among those in the women’s competition.

Notably the event is taking place at the time a WTT Grand Smash - the most significant event under the WTT structure - had been planned to take place in Budapest.

The Grand Smash - set to be Europe's first and boast an overall prize pool of $2 million (£1.7 million/€1.9 million) - was postponed.

Originally, before the coronavrius crisis, WTT said four WTT Champions tournaments - four for women and four for men - would be staged each year, but the event in Budapest is the first.

WTT, launched in 2020, is the new commercial arm of the ITTF.