‘Not just about swinging the racquet’: Calgary teen ready for table tennis championships

The Calgary United Sports Table Tennis Association will host the Western Canada Championships this weekend.

The event will feature junior teams U11 through U19, junior singles, open singles and over-40 singles.

One player from Calgary is hoping to continue his fine play.

Jesse Yin is busy getting prepared for the event.

Yin started playing table tennis at a young age.

He was five when his grandfather took him under his wing to teach him the finer points of the game.

His grandpa was a coach, and Yin fell in love with table tennis.

“I love how you have to use your thinking,” Yin said.

“It’s not just about swinging the racquet and hitting balls—you have to think and be strategic against your opponents.”

Yin is 13 years old and one of the top junior table tennis players in the province.

He’s looking forward to this weekend.

“My goal is to help Alberta win … I value a lot of teamwork over individuality,” he said.

“I’m very excited to play against other provinces like B.C., Manitoba and Saskatchewan.”

Team Alberta is expecting big things from Yin at the Western Canada Championships.

He definitely gives them a chance to win.

“He’s one of the best players at under-15 boys currently in Alberta,” said Phillip Xie, Team Alberta’s head coach.

“He’s been training pretty hard—he’s very dedicated.”

Yin’s long-term goals are to represent Team Canada and get to the Olympics.

He also has some short-term goals.

“I would probably continue,” he said.

“I’ll probably play until I go into university, and I hope to get other younger kids to start playing the sport as well.”

The Western Canada Championships will be held Saturday and Sunday.

Doors open at 8 a.m. both days.