The paddles were moving like mad on Saturday as more than 50 people participated in a table tennis tournament at William McDonald Middle School.
The event was part of the Table Tennis 4 All program, which aims to promote the sport across the territory.
The competition featured players of all ages and skill levels, from beginners to seasoned athletes. Among them were five members of Team NT, who are preparing for the Arctic Winter Games in in Alaska in March. The team had a training camp before the tournament and got to play against a variety of opponents.
“We’re preparing for the Games and we thought a good way for them to practice would also be hosting a table tennis tournament,” said Thorsten Gohl, the executive director of Table Tennis North. “We have a huge interest from [Fort] Providence, which is very exciting. There are nine kids and two adults from Providence here. They came for the weekend.”
He thanked the Mackenzie Recreation Association for bringing people from various NWT river communities, as well as Table Tennis Canada and Sport Canada for funding the event. He also said he hopes to help start a table tennis club in Yellowknife soon.
“This is the second time we’re doing a tournament like this. The first one was a few months ago and it was called the YK Open. We do that every year when we do the school championships,” Gohl said. “We’re having five regional events as part of the Table Tennis 4 All program. So hopefully for the next few years, we’re just going to continue doing tournaments because people seem to be excited about it.”
A Yellowknife-based club would offer regular practice sessions, coaching and tournaments for players of all ages and skill levels.
Roland Laufer, who also hopes to be one of the organizers of a future club in the NWT capital, said he has been playing table tennis since he was 13, but took a 20-year break before resuming the sport in 2019. He said he and a few other people decided to start a club after participating in the weekend tournament at the Multiplex.
“We’re very interested in this because there’s no table tennis club in Yellowknife yet,” he said. “We want to have a place where people can play table tennis, learn a new skill and have fun.”
Table tennis is a great opportunity for people in the North, especially for young kids who need positive activities, according to Laufer.
He also said that the club would have a coach who would teach players the basics of table tennis and help them improve their game. In addition, tournaments would be organized monthly, and there could be collaboration with other table tennis clubs in the North, such as Fort Smith, Whitehorse and Nunavut.
“We want to have something steady going on, so that people can join us on Thursdays and Saturdays and play a few games of table tennis,” he said. “We also want to support Table Tennis North and their Table Tennis 4 All program, which promotes the sport across the region.”
Laufer said the club is expected to start next month, and is currently looking for a board of directors and a venue. He said he hopes the club will attract more people to the sport and create a community of table tennis enthusiasts in Yellowknife.