ENGLAND number 1 and double Olympian Paul Drinkhall gave his seal of approval to Carlton le Willow’s Academy’s new state-of-the-art table tennis centre during a visit for a pre-Championship training session this week.
World Championship medallist Paul, who is currently ranked 40 in the table tennis world rankings, tested out the national-standard facilities during a mid-week training session with GB national team coach Alan Cooke on Tuesday (17) ahead of the table tennis National Championships to be held in Nottingham in March.
And pupils from Burton Joyce, Willow Farm and St Peter’s Primary Schools invited down to watch the champion in action were absolutely delighted to get the chance to hit a few balls with the elite sportsman.
Carlton le Willows Academy head teacher Craig Weaver said: “We are very proud of the table tennis facility we have at Carlton le Willows and are delighted that Olympian and England number 1 Paul Drinkhall has chosen to come and train here.
“This offers a great opportunity for younger students to see an Olympian in action and maybe inspire interest in a sport for which many at Carlton le Willows have already developed a great passion. Sport of any discipline raises aspirations and builds character and through table tennis we continue to bring our young people more opportunities than before.”
Speaking after the training session, three-times Olympian Alan Cooke had nothing but praise for the Table Tennis Centre.
He said: “Facilities really don’t get much better than this. This centre is of an incredible standard and we are so lucky to be able to come and train here.”
Carlton le Willows’ table tennis centre – a flagship project for Table Tennis England – opened in September as part of an ongoing bid to develop talent and increase the country’s impact on the international stage. It is one of only nine talent development centres in the country and the only one of its kind at a secondary school.
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