BELIZE CITY, Mon. Nov. 23, 2015– The 2015 BNE National Junior Table Tennis Championships concluded yesterday, Sunday, November 22, with the following results:
12 and Under Category: 1st place, Taye Parkinson; 2nd, Samron Pott; 3rd, Terry Su; 3rd, Aidan Arnold.
15 and Under Category: 1st place, Amiri Hoare; 2nd, Latrell Solis; 3rd, Jaylen Nicholson; 3rd, Terry Su.
18 and Under Category: 1st place, Taye Parkinson; 2nd, Latrell Solis; 3rd, Jaylen Nicholson; 3rd, Joshua Gegg.
Doubles Category: 1st place, Latrell Solis/Joshua Gegg; 2nd, Taye Parkinson/Luis Bardales;
3rd, Amiri Hoare/Jaylen Nicholson; 3rd, Eric Li/Sergio Glori.
This is the third year that a BNE Junior National Championships has been hosted separately from the BNE National Championships, due to the increased growth in numbers of our junior players. The Belize Table Tennis Association (BTTA), in partnership with our sponsor, Belize Natural Energy (BNE), will continue to move forward with these events being held separately.
Board Director, Hector Lopez, along with ITTF High Performance Coach, Aleksy Yefremov, presented 20 trophies to all winners of the Junior Championships. The association thanked the sponsors, players, spectators and organizing committee for their assistance in this event. Aleksy Yefremov then briefly discussed the National Hopes Program which will be taking place over the next week at our Body 2000 facility.
Each year, the ITTF works along with National Associations to organize a week long training camp. A professional is sent in from the ITTF to conduct the camp and to work with coaches and juniors in the 12 and Under category. At the end of the week long training, a tournament is held, and the top performing junior gets the opportunity to participate in a Continental Hopes Training Camp, where the process is repeated.
We welcome Aleksy Yefremov, and thank the ITTF for affording us this opportunity at greater junior development, and the overall development of the sport.
Special mention also goes out to our 12 and Under Champion, Taye Parkinson, who participated and placed in three categories for this event. He is just ten years old, but managed to take the first place title for both the 12 and Under event and, more impressively, the 18 and Under event as well, in addition to his second place win with Luis Bardales in this year’s first time Doubles event at the Junior Nationals.
Latrell Solis, who was last year’s 15 and Under National Champion, also placed in the three categories he participated in this year, 1st in the Doubles with partner Joshua Gegg, and second in both the 15 and Under and 18 and Under age categories.
Jaylen Nicholson, last year’s 15 and Under runner-up, took third place in the 15 and Under, 18 and Under, and Doubles categories.
Aidan Arnold, an up and coming junior player, now playing for only about 4 months, managed to clinch his first trophy, placing 3rd in the Under 12 category. He has been showing great progress over this short time, and we are sure he will continue to do well in the future, especially now that he has his eyes set on the Central American Junior Championships to be held in Costa Rica in July of 2016.
Once again, thanks to our sponsors, Belize Natural Energy, and all others who managed to make this event a great success!