- Mobile site
- E-Newsletters
-
- News feed
- Find us on Twitter
@bournemouthecho
All the latest news and chat from the Echo
@bmthechosport
All the latest sport from the Echo team
- Find us on Facebook
Bournemouth Daily Echo
Like us on Facebook
Sporting sessions serve up ping pong fun (From Bournemouth Echo)
When news happens text pix and video to 80360. Start your message with BE then leave a space.
Sporting sessions serve up ping pong fun
4:00pm Wednesday 30th January 2013 in News By Katie Clark
The Mayor of Christchurch joins other table tennis fans at the launch of the Ping project in Druitt Hall in Christchurch
Lottery-funded ping pong sessions have been officially launched in Christchurch.
The free sessions will take place on Mondays from noon to 3pm at Druitt Hall, with the first official session attracting a crowd of people keen to show off their skills.
Transition Town Christchurch who is organising the sessions, won a Sport England grant last year to provide free tennis under “Ping”, a scheme which runs nationwide.
And although the popular hall is due to close on March 31, council bosses have allowed the scheme to take place at the community facility until then, after a petition was handed to councillors in December urging them to allow the use of the hall for the sessions.
The mayor of Christchurch, Cllr Peter Hall, helped to launch the event on Monday taking on the council’s strategic director Neil Farmer in a game on the new wheelchair friendly table.
Cllr Hall said: “It is lovely to see so many people here to enjoy playing ping pong.
“It’s good to see Druitt Hall being used for this purpose.
“I can see people getting a lot of enjoyment from it,” he added.
Elliot Marx, from Transition Town Christchurch, added: “This is a sport which is inclusive and completely affordable for everyone.
“There are already some fantastic players and until the hall shuts on March 31 we can continue here.
“We are calling it ping pong because it sounds a lot more fun than table tennis.”
Youngsters Trisha Mason, 17, from Twynham School and Christchurch number one table tennis player Zac Dowling were also on hand to show the crowd their game.
James Lewis, Dorset development coach for the English Table Tennis Association, said: “This is a fantastic scheme and I’m really pleased to see so many people getting involved.
“It’s great for everyone and will hopefully encourage the elderly people in Christchurch to come out for a game.
“It’s really sociable and everyone is really friendly, which is a great incentive to get people through the doors,” he added.
