The new club going in to bat for juniors

THE dedicated team behind the Tweed’s newest sports club has a mission to place table tennis bats in the hands of young people, rather than phones, and the launch of the Tweed Regional Table Tennis Club was the first step in achieving that goal. Club president Patricia Berrutti said table tennis was a popular sport, but the region had few facilities for juniors to play.

The new club operates from the PCYC on Florence Street, Tweed Heads, which means juniors will no longer have to travel to the Gold Coast or Lismore to train and compete. The club held Table Tennis Gala Day for Schools last week, which club president Patricia Berrutti said has sparked an interest in some students to take up table tennis, and for schools to add it to their sport curriculum.

“We wanted to provide a venue to attract young people to the sport,” Ms Berrutti said.

“All of the schools have come back to me saying how much they enjoyed it.”

Table tennis kept young people active, but it also helped foster new friendships, she said.

Grassroots clubs were also a stepping stone for those who want to compete on the world stage and Ms Berrutti said their club could grow to host national and international competitions in the future.

With the Olympics coming to Brisbane in 2032, she said there was an opportunity to attract elite competitors to train at the club and to shine a spotlight on the region as a great place to live.

The club is affiliated with Table Tennis Queensland, which Ms Berrutti said “has been of tremendous assistance”.

The association has given the club funding to run girls-only sessions as part of an initiative to bring women into sport.

Richmond MP Justine Elliot opened the school gala days last week and played the first round of the day against Table Tennis National Championships Para player Prakash Srinivasan, who is currently in Perth representing Queensland in the Para Nationals.

She congratulated the club for hosting a “phenomenal event for our local school students”.

“Table Tennis is a great sport that is fun for all ages and provides health benefits, both physically and for wellbeing,” Ms Elliot said.

“It was great fun to play a round with Prakash. He is ever the gentleman and let me win a round,” Ms Elliot said.

The grand opening gala day is open to the public tomorrow (Saturday, September 28) from 10 am to 4pm. Entry is $3.