The 3rd Tetra Open Cologne (TOC) will soon be underway in Cologne, Germany, with many top placing athletes competing in the hopes to better their World ranking in the Paralympic Sport.

The tournament in table tennis will take place from August 26 to 28, 2010 at the Deutsche Sporthochschule (DSHS) in Cologne, four years after the previous world gathering. With the first two tournaments having taken place in 2004 and 2006, athletes are ready to come together again and compete in an event bringing in the best athletes from around the world.

Tournament Director Holger Nikelis said that many top athletes have confirmed their attendance at the event. Nikelis is also himself a Paralympian, having competed in both the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games and the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. He won the gold medal in the men's singles and bronze in the men's teams in Athens for his home country of Germany.

Nikelis said the location of this year's tournament is ideal because many students will be able to witness the competition and get an interesting look into sport for athletes with a disability.

Table tennis was included in the first Paralympic Games in 1960 and is practiced by athletes from more than 100 different countries and regions. Athletes from all disability groups (with the exception of athletes with a visual impairment) participate and compete in table tennis in standing and sitting classes.(The End)