MARGAO
Peter Karlsson, the Swedish Table Tennis Legend and 5-time World Champion, on the sidelines of Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) Season 7, had an interactive session with the media in Fatorda on Wednesday.
The brand ambassador of HVR Kolkata Thunder Blades, was effusive in his praise for the parental support to their wards present at the South Goa Table Tennis Association Academy, Fatorda.
Citing his nascent years, three-time Olympian revealed he was introduced to Table Tennis at around 6 or 7 years along with his older brother at home. “Our parents asked us to play in the club which was a 20 minutes’ drive away from home and they took us for training. To have good support from the parents is essential,” the former professional Table Tennis player said.
Stating further, the much-decorated former Table Tennis player turned coach asserted that the values we get through sport will help us in our lives. “Our students might not win competitions but they learn something and this is very important in life. They are not only learning but they are winning. We also learn when we lose and we need to be brave enough to put ourselves in a situation where we are not comfortable, only then we can grow,” Karlsson remarked.
“The parents and coaches should be patient with the children, continue training, continue learning and continue to enjoy. Then only the students will be a winner,” he asserted.
Speaking how the Table Tennis landscape has changed over the last two decades in the country, Karlsson stated, “I see a much active sports society in India today. Parents are involved, coaches are there, sports academies too and lot of sports in schools is growing. Table Tennis has benefited a lot from this and we can see the results that the Indian team has done is amazing.”
“But I still believe that the best is in the future. It will be better. However, now we have come to a level where the women’s team is in the top 8 in the world, while the men’s team is not far behind. It is now time to take them to the next step. And there I think Ultimate Table Tennis League is doing a fantastic job, along with the private academies. We see Indian players are playing in international leagues and doing well. But now it will be very interesting to see if India can take very good youth and junior players to become good senior players. This is because the youth side of India is doing extremely well. I think you will see the results if the youth side can make the transition to the senior side, then India can be in the top 5 in the world, with both the men’s side and the women’s side as well. But this is the challenge for the youth side for sure,” Karlsson added.
On his impression on the technical training methods and the mental preparations for high-pressure tournaments for the Indian players, Karlsson was of the firm opinion that Table Tennis is very much about knowledge and experience, and India is doing good.
“If you compare India with China, the latter has a longer history. China has more top-quality trainers and the sport has a huge position in the country,” he reasoned. But the multi-title former champion believed that India will reach there with time and the support that they have.
“With the number of players India has, I am sure the future will look extremely bright but India needs to learn to work clever, to work intelligent, to work together in order to use the big numbers that they have. Internal competition is something positive, working together is a must. Only by then, India can bring maximum output from their resources. So, with experience, knowledge and co-operation, we can see even better results in the future,” Karlsson emphasized.
