A RECORD 192 teams with 470 participants from 69 schools will be taking part in the Penang Chief Minister Cup Interschool Table Tennis Championships 2022 at the Penang Table Tennis Association (PTTA) training centre at Macallum Street Ghaut on Oct 22 and 23.
PTTA deputy president Datuk Ang Aing Thye said this would be the biggest event ever held by his association as 600 people, including parents, officials and participants, are expected to turn out for the competition.
“This is the second time we are holding the Chief Minister Cup championships. When we held it for the first time in 2019, we had 147 teams with 347 players.
“The event is sponsored by the Penang Chief Minister’s Office and organised by the Penang Table Tennis Association,” Ang told a press conference at the PTTA training centre today.
PTTA president Datuk Michael Tiah said the overwhelming response shows that table tennis is gaining much popularity.
“In the old days, we organised Unity Games for the non-Chinese, basically to encourage the Malays and other races to play table tennis.
“But now, we don’t have to do that. In fact, this year’s tournament has attracted 39 Malays compared to seven in 2019. This augurs well for the development of the game,” Tiah said.
There are six categories for the championships: the Under-10 boys’ team, Under-10 girls’ team, Under-12 boys’ team, Under-12 girls’ team, Under-15 girls’ team and Under-15 boys’ team.
The organisers expect to incur RM30,000 to run the tournament. The top three teams will receive RM300, RM200 and RM100 plus trophy, medals and certificates of achievement.
There will be prizes until the 12th placing, with the fourth placing team receiving RM80, trophy and medals; the 5th to 8th placing teams receiving RM50 and trophy, and the 9th to 12th placing teams receiving RM30. All participants will receive a certificate of participation.
Lau Keng Ee, the Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow’s special affairs officer in Padang Kota, said the championships would help unearth talents so that they could be developed into future national players.
“We did not have many sports facilities like the current generation. So, I hope parents will not just encourage their children to excel in academics but also to take up sports so that they will be well-rounded people,” Lau said.
He added that the chief minister had approved an allocation of RM50,000 for PTTA to make repairs and upkeep the training centre.
Also present at the press conference were PTTA treasurer Neoh Hin Peng and Tiah’s personal assistant Loke Boon Leong.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Joanne Foong