Thorsten Gohl has a goal of seeing table tennis grow in popularity in Hay River.
That's why the executive director of Table Tennis North is holding table tennis clinics three days a week at the Rec Centre.
Thorsten Gohl, the executive director of Table Tennis North, is offering clinics for the sport until June 15.
Gohl believes it is a good time to promote table tennis with the South Slave Arctic Winter Games (AWG) fresh in everybody's minds.
"It's the momentum of the Arctic Winter Games again," he said. "We had a huge success with the Arctic Winter Games. We have this beautiful arena. And we are now one of the first sports in it."
No one from Hay River played table tennis at the recent AWG. The players came from Yellowknife, Fort Providence and Fort Simpson.
The Rec Centre now has two new table tennis tables as a result of the AWG, and two others have been provided to Diamond Jenness Secondary School.
Fort Providence's Gohl was the marketing and IT manager for the games.
The clinics he is offering began on May 18 and will run to June 15, and are for various ages.
After-school clinics are being held for ages 10-13 years from 3:45 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
"They might have played table tennis already," Gohl said of that age group. "Maybe they did hold a racket in their hands. So it's easier to start with them."
Those clinics will begin with the basics, such as how to hold a racket and hit the ball.
Also on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, he is holding clinics for adults – 16 years of age and above – from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Gohl said those clinics for adults are mostly for them to play table tennis, and he will offer advice if requested.
In the final week of the clinics, there will also be training offered for players aged 14 to 17 years on June 11, 13 and 15 from 4:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. each day.
And from June 8 to June 10 there will be an officiating and coaching clinic in advance of the table tennis territorial championships set for Hay River in mid-June.
Players are expected from Yellowknife, Fort Providence, Hay River and maybe Fort Resolution.
Gohl has 20 years of experience playing table tennis to draw on for the various clinics.
Originally from Germany, he played professional table tennis in Europe.
In fact, he paid to go to university in Belgium by playing table tennis.
"I financed my entire studies," he said.
Gohl noted many people call table tennis ping-pong, and he even uses that term although not for the type of game he plays.
"For you, it's ping-pong. For me, it's table tennis," he said. "Ping-pong for me is in a basement where you hit the ball forward and back and it makes the sound ping pong. But when I serve, in the territories I don't think anyone can return my serve."
Gohl said there are many benefits from playing table tennis, such as exercise, hand-eye
co-ordination and conditioning.
More information on the various table tennis clinics, including on the fees, is available by contacting the Rec Centre.