Entries were up for this year’s annual Table Tennis Open with the 80 competitors highlighting the local growth in the sport.
The ages ranged from under 11 to over 70.
Canterbury player Griffin Buchanan took out the elite men’s grade, while Auckland teenager Yelena Yi starred in the women’s section.
The Ping Pong Parkinson’s section, which was launched two years ago, attracted eight players including newcomer Simon Hassan.
“I played as a kid but hadn’t been back since. I enjoy being forced to act quickly and make judgements. It is all good for what ails me and good fun.
“I was belting the ball so I have a long way to go to get back to where I was,” declares Simon, who was a Southland school teacher and rugby coach before becoming a financial adviser and then moving to Nelson eight years ago.
“I love sport and go to boxing classes at Victory Gym twice a week, play golf three times a week and pickle ball as well,” says the 74-year-old, who started feeling the effects of Parkinson’s in his 30’s, but wasn’t diagnosed until four years ago when the symptoms became more obvious.
He was competing alongside Nelson’s PPP trailblazers Brian Renwick and Lawrie Halkett, who are also in their 70’s.
“We have now got 15 to 17 people coming to our Ping Pong Parkinson’s training on Fridays. It is growing in leaps and bounds,” enthuses Brian.
He was playing up to a dozen games, often with long rallies.
“And amazing concentration,” he quips.
The Open was Lawrie’s first tournament of the year.
“I tell myself I am playing better, but sadly I have stayed pretty much the same. It is a good game to play because you have to be alert and be prepared to receive the ball back two seconds after you have hit it. So that involves a lot of concentration and when that happens, a lot of your Parkinson’s symptoms disappear,” says the 76-year-old.
Meanwhile, two wheelchair para players, 13-year-old Benjamin Murphy and Aidan Brown, 14, were competing for the first time.
“There are lots of opportunities developing for para players in the sport. Thoe boys are doing awesome and it is fantastic to have them being part of it,” says former Table Tennis Nelson president Anna King.
Five standing para players also took part over the open weekend.
