Competitors had come from all over New Zealand to compete in the Para Open Championships, and it was clear everyone was excited to be there. We had the awesome opportunity to speak with some of these competitors over the course of the weekend, to get to better understand their individual journeys and motivations, and what kept them coming back to Table Tennis.

Cadence, who had only been playing for a few months, came up from the Bay of Plenty to join the competition. She managed to secure herself third place in both the Class 6-7 Combined Singles and the Under 19 Girls Singles, despite her relative lack of experience. She says that while competing against people that have been playing for a long time is a big challenge for her, that her personal key to success is perseverance; to keep trying and trying, to never give up, and if you fail to just try again. “Failure always comes before success,” she says.

Another competitor, Alfie, had been playing for 4 years to be at the tournament. While he isn’t sure, he believes he might be the only Downs Syndrome Para Table Tennis Competitor in New Zealand. His attitude towards competing is commendable, as he states that while winning is great, that the best thing is just participating. He says to keep trying, to enjoy it, and to “be happy, like me.”

We were so pleased to get the chance to have a more at-length conversation with Liam and his parents, who shared Liam’s journey to the championships with us through a Video Diary prior to the event. He says that the way he motivates himself when he’s having a difficult day is to just “rush out of bed and get on with it,” and this attitude of pushing through and persisting was definitely on display throughout the weekend. Liam had a laser focus in-game, and the way he was able to balance ‘getting his head in the game’ while still having fun on the side-lines was really great to see. We would like to congratulate Liam on winning First Place in the Class 6-7 Combined Singles! If you’re interested in his story, check out his video diary here.