By Bill Roumeliotis.
Since Tuesday, July 23, three international Greek table tennis players have been in Australia. They are Giorgos Konstantinopoulos, an athlete from Panathinaikos and captain of the Greek national table tennis team; Gerasimos Chatzilygeroudis, an athlete from A.O. Tatavla; and Ioanna Gerasimatou, an athlete from Panathinaikos.
The goal of the three Greek international players is to assist with preparing Australia’s Paralympic team for the Paris Paralympic Games. Australia boasts top athletes in disability sports, with Giorgos Logothetis serving as the head coach of Para Table Tennis in Australia. Logothetis has been in Australia for the past ten years and has significantly contributed to the development of table tennis.
Of course, achieving success requires support from the government and table tennis organisations. As Logothetis mentioned, the sport receives substantial backing, both for him personally as a coach and for the athletes, and he believes that his players will have a positive impact at the Paris Paralympic Games.
The preparation for Australia’s Para Table Tennis team is taking place at the Albert Park sports facilities in Melbourne, Victoria, where I met with the three Greek players and spoke with them.
Konstantinopoulos mentioned that table tennis is not one of the popular sports in Greece. However, the positive aspect for professional athletes is that, in addition to representing their home clubs, they have the right to compete for teams abroad. These regulations help keep them engaged in the sport, and over the past few years, he has competed with clubs in France and Poland.
The same applies to the Kefalonia-born athlete Gerasimatou, who has achieved significant success with international clubs.
Regarding the athlete from Patras, Chatzilygeroudis mentioned that he moved from Patras to Athens because there are no clubs in the provincial areas that participate in Greece’s inter-club championships.
Concluding, the head coach of the team, Logothetis, stated: “The three international athletes are among the top players from Greece and are in Australia at my invitation. They possess the qualities I look for in their playing style, which will aid my athletes in the planning and training for individuals with disabilities.”
It is also worth noting that Australia will cover all expenses for the Greek athletes for their approximately one-month stay in Melbourne.
