Saskatchewan’s table tennis scene was on full display last weekend at the Estevan Comprehensive School’s gym.
Players from all ages hit the tables for some fast paced action as they tried to accumulate points for provincial standings and compete against competitors close to their age and skill level.
“It’s one of six official competitions organized by Table Tennis Saskatchewan Association,” said Paul Noel, the provincial technical coach. “It’s part of the provincial tour where all the players must be members of the TTA to participate.”
There were between 60-70 people participating in the event with three divisions: youth, open singles and under 600 rating.
“Here, the girls play with the boys but sometimes we organize a competition where it’s separate,” said Noel. “But here, we combine. Most of the time it is determined on the level and the age.”
All of the players were in the rating system and the players would win or lose points depending on how they did.
It’s a busy time of year for table tennis. Next month at the Saskatchewan Winter Games and then the week after the provincial championship will be held in Fort Qu’Appelle. In April, the high school championships will take place and then soon after, Saskatoon hosts a big tournament with players from across the prairies.
The sport is trying to grow but is trying to fight perceptions, according to Noel.
“Perception is really low in Canada,” Noel said. “Canadian ping pong is the sport for the Chinese because they suck at football and ice hockey. That’s all (people) they see.”
Numbers of participants are far behind what they should be, Noel said, but the numbers are improving although they are still fighting the concept of table tennis as a sport
“When you go a little bit higher, the ball goes over 100 kilometres per hours… you have to master everything at the same time.”
Saturday, the top four junior open A winners were Joshua Lu of Saskatoon, Jean Rose Be of Estevan, Nino Ding of Regina and Shaheer Hasan of Regina. The junior open B winners were Estevan’s James Kim, Hunter Wallster, Dinalyn Coronel and Fort Qu’appelle’s Lanelle Muirhead. Junior Open C winner were all from Estevan: Cain Kruger, Chris Sutter, Mac Peters and Dann Pangan.
Open B winners were Estevan’s Jamie Collins and Curtis McGillvary, and Carry the Kettle’s Brendon O’Watch and Carson Aisiacan. Open C winners were Estevan’s Bernadette Pangan and Carry the Kettle’s Cree Cappo, Joey Ashdohonk and Madison Littlechief.
U150 winners were Carry the Kettle’s Cortez Rope and Estevan’s Gage Stepp, Cain Kruger and Chris Sutter, and Tate Wrubelski was one of the U600 winners.
