A programme from the inaugural 1926 World Championships in London, a bronze medal won by England at the 1939 Worlds in Cairo and mementos of England’s Swaythling Cup victory in 1953 were among artefacts on display at the Mark Bates Ltd National Championships recently. England is of course hosting the centenary World Team Championships at the OVO Arena, Wembley, in 2026. Apart from the first ever tournament 98 years ago, England has hosted the Championships on six other occasions – in London in 1935, 1938, 1948 and 1954, Birmingham in 1977 and, most recently, in Manchester in 1997. England als ..read more

Grantham College may need to invest in a bigger trophy cabinet as students on the table tennis programme continue to win multiple medals at home and abroad. From Preston to Plymouth and Stockton to Sweden, the squad has racked up a staggering haul of gold, silver and bronze this season. Female and male players from England, Wales and further afield have contributed to the success, which spans international events as well as domestic Grands Prix, one-to-four-star events and, most recently, the Mark Bates Ltd National Championships, where Ella Pashley (pictured above) picked up Under-21 Women’s ..read more

Paralympic champion Will Bayley and rising star Bly Twomey journeyed to the birthplace of the Paralympics when they caught up with a Brighton TTC club-mate at the National Spinal Injuries Centre (NSIC). Photos by Caleb Yule Photography The star duo joined Brighton TTC founder Tim Holtam to visit Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire, where 18-year-old Jack Silberston has been undergoing rehabilitation. Jack came to the NSIC following a tumour on his spine and started playing wheelchair table tennis during his first admission. He enjoyed the sessions so much that he began playing regularly at Br ..read more

The destination of the division two title was finally decided in week 30 as Chelmsford C did enough to get over the winning line having sparred over the top spot with Hatfield Peverel A for much of the season. The division three title goes to the final match of the season as second-placed Buttsbury A host leaders Galleywood B needing a 9-1 victory to snatch the title – this match is scheduled for Monday 22nd April. Division 2 Chelmsford C became division two champions with a 9-1 home win over Danbury G’s two-manned team of Mervyn Perriman and Denis Balic. Balic fought back from 2-0 down (and ..read more

London’s mighty Central League draws to a close for the 2023/24 season and to describe Division 1 as “tough” is very much an under-statement! The Division 1 champions are St Katherine’s Trust (aka Ghana’s national team) who have won 18/22 of their matches thanks to their strength in depth and two regular players – Derek Abrefa and Emmanuel Kwesi Asante. The TT Fight Club enjoyed a good season, led by Jerry Fung and Ho Yin Tam. Highbury 1 had a very good squad with Ching Jay Law, George Downing, Bryan Kwan and Israel Awolaja but they could not quite keep pace with the leaders.  Fusio ..read more

One of the key components of the National Competition Review comes into effect this season with the evolution of the National Championships for the youngest age groups. The Mark Bates Ltd U10-U13 National Championships takes place on the weekend of June 8-9 in Wolverhampton and entries are now open. The competition previously saw eligible athletes invited to compete in Under-11 or Under-13 age groups. From this season, Under-10 and Under-12 categories are added – and the tournament is now open entry. That means any young players within those age groups who meet the criteria are able to enter ..read more

Tom Jarvis was knocked out of the WTT Feeder Havirov in qualifying, despite fighting hard and saving a stack of game or match points against opponent Kwan Man Ho. Having received a bye in the first qualifying round, Jarvis’ first action was against a Hong Kong opponent who is ranked 353. Jarvis (WR 176) led the first 5-4 but his opponent went on a run of seven out of eight points and took it 10-6. The second saw Jarvis hit back, taking a third game point to win it 12-10. The third was a lengthy game, which Jarvis trailed 10-8 and led 11-10 – that turned out to be his only game point, but he s ..read more

There was an increased and encouraging attendance at this year’s Isle of Wight Doubles tournament. After the initial group stages were played, the finalists emerged in the Men’s, Women’s and the Mixed doubles events. It was good to see a spread of experienced players with some of the Island’s talented youngsters. The Doubles finals, together with the singles, divisional championships, hardbat and handicap events will be played on Wednesday 1st May (7pm) at the Island’s Table Tennis Centre at Smallbrook. Doubles finalists – Pat Thorley & Tim Giles, Anna Joyce & Don Hobbs (pairs pi ..read more

With the top two divisional winners already crowned all eyes are on the bunfight that has developed at the top of Division 3 in the Burnham & District Table Tennis League. The battle betwixt bookies favourites St Lawrence and the tortoise like Blackwater D is set to go to the final match of the season with Blackwater D needing a convincing win to secure the most unexpected of titles. Runaway Division 3 leaders St Lawrence have faltered of late, dropping points when least expected and this has left a window of opportunity for the chasing pack. With the three Blackwater teams continually ta ..read more

One of Ormesby, BATTS, Ormeau and Brighton TTC are just three matches away from the SBL Premier crown. BATTS start favourites to become league champions, having lost just one of their seven fixtures so far this season. Brighton TTC and last season’s runners up Ormesby won six whilst Ormeau secured their spot in the top mini league thanks to the 15 points they picked up throughout the first half of the season. Watch every match live on TTE.TV On Saturday Ormesby will host BATTS, with the travelling side looking to replicate their 5-2 win of a few weeks ago. The BATTS team of Chris Doran, Ralph ..read more