Uttam Chandarana

Uttam Chandarana (* around 1919; † October 2, 2013 ) was an Indian table tennis player from the 1940s and 1950s. He took part in four world championships and is still considered one of the best Indian players to this day.

Career

Uttam Chandarana was left-handed. He was four times national Indian champion in singles, namely in 1943, 1948, 1949 and 1954. In addition, there are several titles in doubles and mixed competitions. From 1947 to 1956 he took part in four world championships . He reached the quarterfinals in doubles with Randir Bhandari in 1950 , which was lost against the Czechs Bohumil Váňa / Ladislav Štípek . With the Indian team he came in ninth in 1947 , 1950 and 1956 .

After the end of his active career, he promoted many young Indian players as a coach. According to his own statements, the Indian master from 1966 and 1967, Farrokh Khodaji, benefited from the support provided by Uttam Chandarana.

In addition to table tennis, Uttam Chandarana also played tennis, billiards, snooker and cricket successfully. The Indian Cricket Club made him an honorary member.

Uttam Chandarana had been a widower for 35 years. He died on October 2, 2013 at the age of 94. He left four daughters.

Results from the ITTF database

Association	event	year	place	country	singles	Double	Mixed	team
IND	World Championship	1956	Tokyo	JPN	last 64	last 16	last 32	9
IND	World Championship	1952	Bombay	IND	last 32	last 32	last 16
IND	World Championship	1950	Budapest	HUN	last 128	Quarter finals	last 32	9
IND	World Championship	1947	Paris	FRA	last 128	last 32	no participants	9

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Double results at the 1950 World Cup on ittf.com (accessed on May 18, 2015)
2. ↑ Uttam Chandarana Results from the ITTF database on ittf.com (accessed May 18, 2015)

Web links

• Obituary by Ian Marshall in SCI-New No. 96, March 2014, page 24 (accessed on May 18, 2015)
• G. Viswanath: Uttam Chandarana is no more , obituary on October 3, 2013 in THE HINDU (accessed on May 18, 2015)