THE Northern Marianas Table Tennis Federation is getting ready for this year’s season, its members said.
Although table tennis or ping-pong is not included in the 2022 Pacific Mini Games, veteran player Budhi Gurung said there will be local tournament in the coming months.
The NMI table tennis community, he said, has rising stars like Liu Fuliang and Jayrold Villacrusis who continue to improve.
Another veteran player, Mario Espeleta, has started practicing again and will be back to form “pretty soon,” Gurung said.
Gurung himself and another local resident, Charlie Cheng, have been playing ping-pong since 2005.
However, Gurung said, “we were unable to play” since the onset of the global Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020.
Still, the local federation is thankful to Cheng for providing the group with a suitable place equipped with a mini generator and a lighting system free of charge, Gurung said.
“Ping-pong equipment can be obtained easily, but it is hard to get a place with a proper lighting system so we are trying our best to get a bigger place at the Ada Gym where we used to practice ping-pong for many years,” Gurung said.
Currently, he said they play every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. next to Gree Air-Conditioner on Beach Road in Garapan. Interested people are welcome to join them, he added.
For his part, Espeleta said, “We want to let the community know that our team exists and we have talented, multi-awarded players.”
He noted that Gurung has represented the CNMI in the South Pacific and Micronesian Games while Cheng is the champion of Tinian. Mimi Zhang is a certified Oceania club coach while Espeleta is an Oceania certified school coach.
Zhang is the only one left on the CNMI women’s team after Micronesian Games champion Jean Shi moved to California for good.
The members of the Northern Marianas Table Tennis Federation, from left, Charlie Cheng, Mimi Zhang, Liu Fuliang, Budhi Guring, Mario Espeleta and Jayrold Villacrusis pose for a photo during a meeting Thursday at Kinpanchi Restaurant in Garapan.
