Whitehorse Daily Star

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Photo by Whitehorse Star

SUCCESSFUL SEASON – Emily Gaw returns a ball in the girls singles table tennis championships in May.

Table Tennis Yukon hopes to grow again this season

The president of Table Tennis Yukon is hoping to share his love of the sport with the community this season.

By Marissa Tiel on October 19, 2016

The president of Table Tennis Yukon is hoping to share his love of the sport with the community this season.

“It’s a great game to come and play,” said president Dave Stockdale. “It’s a fun thing.”

The club has drop-ins every Wednesday and Friday evenings from 7:30 to 10 p.m. and Sunday afternoons from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at École Whitehorse Elementary School , where the association has about eight tables.

Last year, with major events like the Arctic Winter Games, membership swelled to the low 90s.

Stockdale said the association bought seven new tables last year. They cost around $1,300 each and were distributed around the territory. One table now resides in Keno City, while three made their way to Dawson City and its growing club of table tennis enthusiasts.

Last season was the first time in recent history that the Dawson City club was affiliated with Table Tennis Yukon. In the past they had done their own thing.

For the first time since 1970, a table tennis trial was held outside of Whitehorse. Dawson City hosted a trial for the Arctic Winter Games. The 1970 trial was held in Elsa for the first Arctic Winter Games in Yellowknife.

Yukon table tennis athletes travelled a lot this year, including to the Arctic Winter Games in Nuuk, Greenland. The Yukon team won three bronze medals at that multi-sport event.

“It was an excellent performance and augers well for the future,” wrote coach Kevin Murphy in his coach’s report for the Table Tennis Yukon annual general meeting.

Players also travelled to the Alaska/Yukon Challenge in Anchorage this year and the junior national championships in Winnipeg.

Stockdale recognizes that without a major event to draw in members, it could be hard to grow the membership this year.

“We’ve had a very slow start to the year ... It’s hard to grow,” he said. “I’ve just realized we should be getting people to play the game just to play the game.”

The Whitehorse club will be hosting a Family Doubles Tournament on Sunday at Whitehorse Elementary School starting at 2 p.m. The event is open to everyone and all equipment will be provided. There is no cost to play.

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