Zimbabwe ends 31-year wait with successful regional table tennis championships

ZIMBABWE successfully hosted the Southern Africa Regional Table Tennis Championships for the first time in 31 years, staging a world class tournament at Glen City from July 10 to 12 that earned praise from players and international officials.

The three-day championships marked Zimbabwe’s biggest international table tennis event since 1995 and brought together the region’s top players, with South Africa once again asserting its dominance by winning both the team and singles titles.

Although Zimbabwe missed out on the podium, the hosts produced improved performances against the region’s leading nations, underlining the progress made in recent months.

Zimbabwe Table Tennis Union president Noah Ferenando said the successful hosting of the championships was a major achievement for the country.

“We are grateful as Zimbabwe that we have hosted a unique tournament and we are proud. The appraisers from the International Table Tennis Federation said these games were unique,” Ferenando said.

“I want to extend my gratitude to our local organising committee, the Sports and Recreation Commission, the Government of Zimbabwe and the Ministry of Sport for all their support in making sure these games were a success.”

Ferenando said Zimbabwe’s improved displays reflected the impact of appointing a high performance coach in Liping Wang three months ago.

“If you look at the gradual progress we have been making, our previous results were poor, but now our performances have improved,” he said.

“Given more time with the team, I am confident we will soon have a podium finish. These results reflect the hard work our coaches have put in and we are on a positive trajectory.”

He said the tournament highlighted the importance of sustained investment in the sport.

“South Africa have professionalised table tennis. Their athletes play the sport professionally, while we are still largely at a recreational stage. They have invested heavily in junior development and that is the model we are trying to follow,” he said.

Ferenando said limited funding continued to hamper Zimbabwe’s ambitions.

“The budget for hosting these championships was around US$70,000 and raising that money was a challenge. Without adequate resources it becomes difficult to compete with countries such as South Africa, Angola and Botswana, who continue to invest heavily in their athletes.”

Despite the challenges, he said Zimbabwe’s players had shown a new competitive spirit.

“In previous years our players came to participate. This time they came to compete. They challenged their opponents and showed real improvement. We will evaluate our performance and continue building because we have another team travelling to India in the next two weeks.”

He also thanked sponsors for backing the event.

“We have shown that Zimbabwe can organise a world class event and we hope this marks the beginning of long term partnerships that will help us grow the sport.”

South African champion Luke Abrahams, who retained the men’s singles title, described the tournament as one of the best organised in the region.

“I think it was a really nice event overall. The organisation was good, the venue was good, the food was good and the people were awesome,” Abrahams said.

“As players we really appreciate the effort that went into making this event possible. Thanks to the Zimbabwe Table Tennis Union for putting this together.”

Abrahams said the standard of table tennis across Southern Africa continued to improve.

“South Africa and Angola have always pushed each other, but countries like Botswana, Namibia and Zambia have made huge strides, while Zimbabwe and Malawi are also improving. It is good to see the overall standard rising.”

He revealed South Africa had fought back from 2-0 down to beat Angola in the men’s team final before he completed a successful defence of his singles title.

“This is my third regional title and it means a lot to me. Zimbabwe also gave us personal trophies, something I had never received before, so I really appreciate that.”

Abrahams said he hoped to return to Zimbabwe.

“My father-in-law is from Zimbabwe and I have friends here. I enjoyed my stay and I will definitely come back if I get the opportunity.”

The successful hosting of the championships has strengthened Zimbabwe’s reputation as a capable host of international sporting events and provided fresh momentum for the growth of table tennis in the country after a 31-year wait.