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Table tennis anniversary success
Hastings and District Table Tennis Association recently celebrated its 80th anniversary. The event was hailed as a huge success and boasted an attendance of over 200 people. Held at the local leisure centre, it even attracted the attention of the Hastings MP Michael Foster, a keen player and at one time a regular competitor in the local league.
The celebrations were free and open to all. It was an encouraging sight to see so many young players in attendance all enjoying having a knock and receiving guidance from the many experienced players and coaches on hand. There was also a robot which added the usual novelty factor, with a constant stream of players eager to give it a try, plus various interesting coaching aids and fun games. Andre Keen the Hastings and District Table Tennis Association Chairman, said: “We had no idea how it was going to go, but it was a superb day.” This comment was backed up by the huge smiles on everyone’s faces and the constant sound of table tennis balls in action on every table throughout the whole day.
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Table Toppers were also in attendance and added a touch of class and humour to the proceedings. Everyone took their seats to watch the antics of John Hilton, former European Champion and Brian Kean, a former Scottish Champion, run through their now legendary exhibition (for full profiles click here). Also included within the exhibition were local players who assisted in demonstrating the basics of the game for newcomers as well as competing in a series of exhibition matches. |
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The finale to the exhibition was fantastic to watch as the table toppers pulled out and played with various strange items from their mystery bag under the table. These included a super sized bat, a frying pan, a bat with a hole and more... this combined with a series of astonishing acrobatics over the table made for a thoroughly enjoyable evening that treated all onlookers. |
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Robert Sinclair, ETTA General Secretary, said: “This was an enjoyable and well organised celebration. It was a pleasure to be invited, and exceptionally encouraging to see so many people eager to participate in our sport. Congratulations to the Hastings and District Association for organising such a wonderful event.”
Brian Kean wrapped up the event by thanking everyone who came along, including town MP Michael Foster, and all those who helped out with the organisational side of things. The whole event demonstrated that there is a clear appetite for table tennis among the Hastings community, particularly the younger generation many of whom will now hopefully be inspired to join one of the local clubs. |
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