Sheffield’s table tennis stars have returned to the city with early Christmas presents and recognition that they are favourites to break the Asian stranglehold on the sport.
A squad of four players who train daily in world-class facilities at the English Institute of Sport – Sheffield (EIS Sheffield) have come back from the World Junior Championships in Spain with a set of outstanding performances.
In the singles, 2012 hopeful Paul Drinkhall, who lives in Clifton in Rotherham, secured silver while doubles partner Darius Knight made the last 16 of the competition and 15 year old Gavin Evans was in the last 32.
The squad, which also included Chesterfield youngster Liam Pitchford and coaches Jia Yi Liu and Linus Mernsten who are all based at EIS Sheffield, finished third in the team event.
Steen Hansen, Performance Director for the English Table Tennis Association (ETTA), which is based at EIS Sheffield and runs the British Table Tennis Federation (BTTF), said: “This was a fantastic performance and again we proved that we are the only nation in Europe on the boys side who can compete with Asia.
“It was another high profile opportunity for the likes of Paul and Darius to show that they are rapidly becoming key faces of the sport in the build-up to London’s 2012 Olympic Games and for Gavin to make the last 32 at only 15 years old is a real achievement.”
Paul Drinkhall is currently ranked third in the world at his age group. The 18-year-old, plays for Julich Table Tennis Club in Germany and trains for up to 30 hours a week, plus fitness work, performance support, studying and matches at the weekend.
Eighteen-year-old Darius Knight first started in the sport at nine years old. He already plays for Great Britain on the World Pro Tour, is the national under-21 champion and is the figurehead for the Urban Cup initiative, which promotes the sport in inner-cities.
London 2012 prospect Gavin Evans, who lives in Newark, comes from a family of table tennis players and his parents and three brothers all play the sport. Gavin plays his league table tennis in Germany and is ranked four on the World Ranking list for Under 15 level.
Liam Pitchford, current Under 15 number two in England, was individual and team champion at the 2007 Cadet Six Nations and was a member of the Under 15 team at the 2006 European Youth Championships.
The squad celebrated their success at EIS Sheffield’s fifth birthday party on Saturday, December 20, which featured a host of sports sessions including table tennis masterclasses with Paul Drinkhall and Gavin Evans as well as a few others including former World number 26 Alan Cooke who now coaches the women’s team.
EIS Sheffield is home to 12 National Governing Bodies and organisations, 10 Olympic sports and provides facilities for more than 60 local sports clubs and table tennis is one of the venue’s biggest success stories.
Paul Hudson, general manager of EIS Sheffield, said: “The EIS Sheffield table tennis centre continues to go from strength to strength and the sport is fast becoming internationally recognised for what it has achieved at the venue. Steen and the rest of the team have developed a remarkable group of players, by investing in youngsters from the bottom up to create a 2012 legacy.”
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