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Rosehill College is hosting the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Oceania Para Table Tennis Championships for the first time this weekend.
The event is part of the inaugural Para Table Tennis Festival.
Forty-eight athletes, from Fiji, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, Tuvalu, and New Zealand, are attending. Among them will be 15 Paralympians who will be competing for oceanic titles and qualifying spots at the 2026 World Para Championships.
New Zealand’s team has 16 members, including 11 who will be making their international debut.
Matthew Britz, who competed at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris after winning the 2023 ITTF Oceania Para Table Tennis Championships in the Solomon Islands, said he hoped to inspire others to compete.
“Winning the 2023 ITTF-Oceania Para Table Tennis Championships in Honiara to qualify for the Paralympic Games Paris 2024 was one of the proudest moments of my career and something I will always carry with me.
“That experience gave me the belief that I could compete at the highest level. Now I can compete in New Zealand in front of my family, friends, and community, and that is incredibly special.”
The benefits of hosting the championships should have a run-on effect that will create opportunities for aspiring future athletes.
Izania Downie, chief executive of Table Tennis New Zealand (TTNZ), hopes that the event will have a lasting impact on the sport in the country and encourage others to participate.
“The 2025 Para Table Tennis Festival will deliver a lasting community legacy through the establishment of a new inter-schools table tennis hub in South Auckland. TTNZ will provide the equipment to set up the table tennis hub, with the Counties Manukau Table Tennis Association offering training, coaching, and ongoing support.”
Among those making their debut will be Paralympic gold medallists Tim Johnson and Jai Waite, members of the Wheel Blacks rugby team, which won gold at the Paralympic Games in Athens in 2004. They will compete at the ITTF Oceania Para Table Tennis Championships.
“This is a fresh chapter for us. We’ve loved the competitive spirit of para table tennis, and we’re excited to test ourselves on the international stage.
“It may not be as physically demanding, but the level of cognitive focus is much higher. That is why we keep our physical fitness up, to help manage mental fatigue,” said Johnson.
Waite added that “To be part of another Paralympic pathway is special, and we’re motivated to show what we can achieve in this sport.”
The ITTF Oceania Para Table Tennis Championships will be held from today, September 26, until Sunday, September 28, at the Rosehill College Gymnasium, 5 Edinburgh Avenue, Rosehill, Auckland.
The National Para Development Camp runs from September 29 to October 1, and the New Zealand Open Championship from October 2 to 4.
