Team unhappy about Olympic format changes

YOKOHAMA, Japan: The Olympic Commission of the International Table Tennis Federation has decided to play singles ahead of team events at the 2012 Olympics in a disappointing move for the dominant Chinese squad.

The ITTF will seek to have singles events held first at the London Games by submitting a proposal to the International Olympic Committee, according to an ITTF statement on Tuesday. China voted against the proposal, said an ITTF official, who asked not to be named.

"The proposal, once approved by the IOC, will hurt the interests of Chinese players," said the official.