Excellently organized by USATT at a truly high-level location, an ITTF High Performance training activity took place in the American city of Charleston, West Virginia. 20 athletes engaged in intense training sessions linked to the ongoing 2023 ITTF Pan American Youth Championships.

“When it comes to preparation for a competition, the work at the table is extremely specific and aimed at achieving the best possible form during the competition days”, explains ITTF High Performance Elite Coach Massimo Costantini who was leading the activity. Athletes from the USA, Canada and Panama collaborated and worked hard together in a spirit of cooperation, and the attending coaches also contributed to ensure that the training sessions provided the necessary technical and tactical information for each individual athlete. They also had the opportunity to engage in training sessions with 17 participants of a USATT training camp running simultaneously, who would later compete at the Championships.

The usual educational session was not missing, focusing on “How to manage a match”. Overall, it was a valuable experience on various levels. However, what is most important, beyond the performance in the competition, will be the takeaways that each participant, either players or coaches, will have had the opportunity to gain from the training activity.

“My team really enjoyed to prepare for the Pan American Youth Championships by joining the ITTF camp led by Massimo. They enjoyed the atmosphere of hard work with the opportunity to smile and have fun. They were able to play with different partners which is not easy for us on a regular basis. As a coach, I really liked the schedule, which included a lot of time on the table with an educational session as well. I was very happy with the planned drills and it was a great bonus to have some time for individual drills and multi balls. It was very nice to interact with Massimo with questions regarding technic and strategy. I recommend this camp and I hope my team and me can attend more of those.” – Maxime Surprenant (CAN)

“The training camp held in conjunction with the Pan American Youth Championships at Charleston, West Virginia was well attended and   included USATT National Coaches, former champions and Olympians.  The addition of Head Coach Massimo by ITTF, an experienced international coach, improved the experience for all involved by bringing in a new perspective that held the students’ attention and benefited their training.” – Gao Jun, Head Coach USATT