Ross Wilson – Table Tennis

Ross Wilson is a 16 year-old Table Tennis player from Minster, who is hoping to be selected for the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. Wilson has Multiple Epiphyseal Dysplasia, which affects the joints at the ends of his long bones, and plays in Paralympic Class 8. He recently won a silver medal in the Men’s Singles competition at the European Championships in Croatia.

Wilson, who took his sport for fun at the age of seven, only switched from able-bodied to Paralympic Table Tennis last year, and says that this has been a life changing move for him. “My first tournament was in Hungary, and I’ve been to nine more since then, so it’s been quite a good year! It’s quite scary being a world class player all of a sudden, because I didn’t expect it to be so quick, but I’m really enjoying it.”

As to who has been the most influential figure in his fledgling career, Wilson clearly has little doubt. “My mum has been the biggest influence on my career so far, because she has helped me with funding, and getting to tournaments and to airports when I’ve been going abroad. She has just helped me so much!”

The talented youngster, who plays at the Howard Table Tennis Club in Rainham, is clearly still coming to terms with his meteoric rise over the past twelve months. “I started for fun, because I just really enjoyed the sport. Then I played at national tournaments, and went to a bigger club, and now I’m quite high up in the world, which has been brilliant because I’ve got there so quickly.”

Wilson’s success at last year’s European Championships, which he describes as his biggest achievement, has seen him rise to 6th position in the world rankings, giving him a real chance of selection for the London Paralympics. That is, of course, what he is currently training towards, and he is clearly in positive mood. “The preparations are going really well, it’s good to be training with the whole squad as we all feed off each other. It’s friendly competition, but it is quite competitive.”

However, whether Wilson is selected this year or not, there can be little doubt that he is an immensely bright prospect for British Table Tennis. His remarkable successes at such a young age show that he has the talent and the attitude to make it to the very top of his sport, which is what he now considers his aim. “I’m looking forward to playing more tournaments next year, because I’ve only had a year so far and I’m not that experienced. But I just want to keep climbing and, hopefully, be number one.”

Meanwhile, Wilson is also eager to encourage others to take up his sport, and stresses its accessibility. “I think it’s really good to start the sport for fun, and to get in at quite a young age, because you then have more time to develop and get better at the sport. Whatever you have got, even if you have got a really bad disability, you can still play Table Tennis; Table Tennis is for everybody.”

 

Written by Dan Webster