DFWTT Progress of Activities for 2009

(By Daniel Rutenberg – USATT Certified Coach)

As we continue with our mission to provide quality table tennis to our members and players in the DFW area, once again, 2009 has started with a very strong support and lots of playing activities. We would like to thank all of our members and volunteers for their continued support, without you we couldn't’t accomplish many of the goals and activities we have developed for you. In addition, DFWTT will continue to do its part to promote the Olympic sport of table tennis in the Metroplex.

DFWTT is one of the largest, longest established and most active table tennis clubs and programs in North Texas. DFWTT is a fully sanctioned club by USATT, the governing body of Table Tennis in the USA. DFWTT offers multiple tournaments, leagues and programs year-round. Our tournaments are very popular and have become traditional events for all table tennis players in Texas and out of State.In addition, DFWTT offers multiple locations to play, leagues, coaching, clinics, exhibitions and many other activities for both youth and adults. We look forward to continue supporting many school programs in the area and providing support to our communities interested in starting table tennis activities. Needless to say that DFWTT will continue to work hard in 2009 to engage more school and youth into the sport of table tennis.If you have any questions, comments, suggestions or feedback in general, please let us know as we would like to hear from you. 

Remember that DFWTT is here for you!

Here is a summary of DFWTT’s activities, news and community involvement so far for this year…

2009 DFWTT Fall Open Tournament – 87 players participated in our tournament on November 14, 2009 at the JCC.  Ying Wang, our newest resident to the Dallas area, won $300 in the Singles Class A defeating 3-0 Yijun Feng (won $200) in the final.  Nelson Ramos (won $100 3rd place) and Andrew Chen were the semi-finalists.

Jose Luis Gutierrez M from Monterrey, Mexico defeated our local player Brandon Gardner in the finals of the Singles Class B.  Austin Austin won over Michael Kahookele in Singles Class C and Joy Li won the Singles Class D by defeated Grant Bergmann.

Yijun Feng won the U-2400 and took $120 with him by defeating Nelson Ramos, who took $75 in the final.

James Eddie Yang was defeated by Jose Luis Gutierrez M in the U-2200.  While Sunil Idnani won over Brandon Chow in the U-2000 event.  In the U-1700 Grady Thompson came on top after winning over Sidung Lam.  Grant Bergamann defeated Adam Levy in the final to win the U-1500.  Another of our visitors from Monterrey, Mexico and one of the youngest players in the tournament won the U-1300 by defeating Grant Bergamann in the finals.  The U-1000 event was also won by another player from Mexico Diego Villareal who defeated Safina Hsu in the final.

In the U-11 Chris Tiang defeated Gillermo Gasio.  Chelsea Elston won the U-15 event in the final against Ivan Alex Gutierrez.  Congratulations to all of the Cadets and Juniors who entered these events.

In the non-sanctioned events, we had the following winners:  Men’s Single: Anil Ready 1st place and Sangi Mbenkum in 2nd place.  Women’s Singles: Kayla Johnson won by defeating Louisa Ho.  The O-60 Grant Bergmann finished in 1st place by winning over Don Isgitt in the final.  In Doubles Class A Nelson Ramos and Steve Komegay defeated James Eddie Yang and Max Bu.  In Doubles Class B Weng-Heng Wang and Jan Wang won over Dorothea Taschner and Bob Donahoo.  And in Doubles Class C, Sangi Mbenkum and Joseph Hill finished in 1st place and Matthew Lee Osburn and Garret Paul Heakley ended in 2nd place.  Mixed Doubles: Winners Kayla Johnson and James Eddie Thompson defeated Dorothea Taschner and Bob Donahoo in the finals.

For complete tournament results go to: http://www.dfwtt.com/Results_File/Results_2009.htm#2009FallOpen

Playing Table Tennis stimulates the brain in areas of memory and learning – Recently, we have the opportunity to meet Paul, Patty and Buzz Jerde who came to our club to play ping-pong. However, this time the circumstances were completely different for the Jerde’s family. In June 2008, while Paul was riding his bike, he was hit from behind by a light-weight pick-up truck. He suffered severe head injury, fractured ribs and a punctured lung. Although Paul still is making his way to recovery, with no speech capabilities, very limited mobility and difficulties using his right hand, it was recommended to the Jarde’s family by one of their occupational therapists to consider ping-pong as an alternative for therapy. For the past few weeks, Paul has been working with Coach Donna in one of our clubs. We have noticed that Paul is able to hold his ping-pong paddle with his right hand and also is able to hit the balls while placing them on the table or on the different targets provided. Both his wife Patty and son Buzz also help and encourage Paul during the sessions. We hope that Paul’s ping-pong sessions are helping him and all of us at DFWTT wish him a speedy recovery!

It hasn’t been written much about it, but it seems that table tennis can stimulate the brain in areas of memory and learning. It’s been proven that table tennis improves hand-eye coordination.

Paralympic Table Tennis Exhibition – On Saturday, October 17, Coach Daniel was invited to participate in a Paralympic Sports Clinic at The University of Texas in Arlington (UTA).  Coach Daniel and U.S. Paralympic Table Tennis players Pam Fontaine and James Segrest demonstrated and explained how the sport table tennis is played for disabled players.  This was a multi sport event organized by UTA Movin’ Mavs at UTA.  Over 20 athletes showed up and participated at this event.  “I believe the more exposure the sport of table tennis has in the community, more likely people will come out and play – as not many disabled athletes are aware of this individual Olympic sport,” said Coach Daniel.

2009 ParaPanAmerican Table Tennis Championship, Margarita Island, Venezuela – September 27th thru October 4th – USA Table Tennis Team sweeps 10 medals at the most important Regional Table Tennis competition.  The U.S. Paralympic Table Tennis Team had a solid performance at the Championship winning 6 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze medals.  Team USA finished in 2nd place in the overall Gold medal count.  Two of our U.S. players – Mitchell Seidenfeld and Pamela Fontaine – received the “ITTF PTT 2009 Best Players of the American Region” Awards.

Team USA Athletes that participated and medals:

Andre Scott (1 Bronze medal – Teams)
James Segrest (1 Bronze medal – Teams)
Jennifer Johnson (1 Bronze medal – Singles)
Mitchell Seidenfeld (2 Gold medals – Singles and Teams and 1 Silver medal – Open)
Norman Bass (1 Gold medal – Teams and 1 Silver Medal – Singles)
Pamela Fontaine (2 Gold medals – Singles and Teams)
Tahl Leibovitz (2 Gold Medals – Singles and Open)
Tara Profitt (1 Gold medal – Teams)

Team USA was supported by:

Chance Friend (Acc)
Ernesto Ebuen (Coach)
Daniel Rutenberg (Head Coach)

103 athletes representing 10 countries participated in the 2009 ParaPanAmerican Table Tennis Championship in Margarita.

For official results go to:
http://www.ipttc.org/results/international/2009/parapanam/index.htm?PHPSESSID=f8dbfb0734babfc4bdcd17a532c18ea3

Head coach Rutenberg said that the team met his expectations.  "I strongly believe that we had a good experience at the ParaPanAmerican Championship.  Obviously winning 10 medals and 3 awards were the highlight of the tournament, but knowing that all 8 athletes all won medals and played well in their matches now can walk away knowing that they did their best!”

In addition, coach Rutenberg indicated that “he was very pleased with the passing of Seidenfeld, Leibovitz and Fontaine to the World’s next year and for the professionalism and positive attitude of all players in the Team.”

Paralympic table tennis is separated into 10 classes depending on a player’s disability.  The smaller the number is, the more severe their disabilities are.  Classes 6 to 10 are for standing competitors while classes 1 to 5 are for players seated in wheelchairs.

DFWTT is looking for Junior and women disabled players who might be interested in table tennis in all 10 classes. Contact Coach Daniel Rutenberg for more information and details.

Coppell High School – Ping-Pong Club – On September 23rd, Coaches Donna and Daniel were invited to participate in the kick-off of the 2009 CHS Ping-Pong Club season activities.  With over 50 students, Coaches Donna and Daniel made an exhibition on how the sport of table tennis is played.  They involved the students and answered questions as well.  CHS for its second year is showing its determination and interest in the sport.  “We’re delighted to be back to CHS this year and see so many known faces.  In addition it was very nice to see a lot of new players joining the school’s program,” said Coach Daniel.  DFWTT wants to thank teacher Ms. Binder, club sponsor and Davy Mares, President of CHS table tennis club for their continued efforts and enthusiasm in keeping the program running for their School.  We wish all CHS ping-pong club members’ good luck with their activities.  We at DFWTT look forward to working with CHS during the course of the academic year.

If your school has a ping-pong club or if you are interested in starting a club in your school please let us know we will be delighted to assist you.  Please contact Coaches Donna or Daniel for more information.

Donna Chen is recognized by DFWTT Members – Donna Chen was recognized by club members for her continued dedication and efforts in promoting table tennis in the DFW area.  Donna was presented with a nice card signed by club members and a commemorative award to recognize her dedication in providing us with quality table tennis for the past 15 years!  The Double Ten tournament was a perfect setting to present Donna with this recognition.  Donna job well done and keep it up!  On behalf of all of us at DFWTT congratulations and we do appreciate all of your hard work!  THANK YOU!

DFWTT Double Ten Table Tennis Tournament – On Saturday, October 3rd DFWTT celebrated once again its regular Double Ten tournament at Cimarron Rec Center!  Once again this traditional table tennis tournament was a complete success, with the participation of more than 90 players of different ages and skill levels. This classic event offered more than 14 different events!

Players and spectators were surprised this year, when Rick Carlisle, Dallas Mavericks’ Head Coach made an appearance to watch the completion.  “We are very happy with Coach Carlisle’s visit to our tournament and his support to our initiatives at DFWTT and for that we thank him,” said Donna Chen.

Donna Chen was recognized and presented an award during the Double Ten Tournament.  DFWTT Members awarded Donna with a nice surprise giant card and beautiful trophy in appreciation for her hard work and dedication to provide us with quality table tennis in the Dallas area for more than 15 years! Donna congratulations and THANK YOU! 

Don Isgitt, THANK YOU very much for the idea and coordinating all the details to get Donna properly recognized!

The 2009 Double Ten Table Tennis Champion is Andrew Chen, who defeated James Rautis in the finals of the Open Category.  Class B the winner is Allen Chung and Kam Mak in 2nd place; Class C 1st place Grady Thompson 2nd place Grant Bergmann; Class D 1st Place Justin Rath 2nd Place Jessica Wang

This year’s Doubles Champions James Rautis and doubles partner Kyle Drake by defeating in a close match opponents Chengdong Liu and partner Yukong Zhang.  Class B 1st Place Larry Sangren with partner Steve Kornegay 2nd Place Allen Chung and partner Zack Fuquay; Class C 1st Place Syed Azher Husaini / Sekar Srinivasan 2nd Place Helen Deng / Grant Bergmann; Class D 1st Place Sam Soo / Nam V Duong 2nd Place Dorothea Taschner / Bob Donahoo.

Mixed Doubles winners are Louisa Ho / Scott Ryan in 1st place and Dorothea Taschner / Bob Donahoo in 2nd place.

In the age events we had the following winners: O-70 Harry McKeever; O-70 Nam V Duong; O-60 Grant Bergmann; O-50 John Staley; O-40 Chendong Liu; 20-40 (A) Ryan Garret; 20-40 (B) Prashant Prabhulkv; U-20 Mohammed Aisadah; 12-14 (A) Max Bu; 12-14 (B) Jacob Hose; 10-12 (A) Chris Tian; 10-12 (B) Jessica Wang; 8-10 Jessica Wang and Women Open Lily Qian.

Congratulations to all winners and those who participated in this tournament. Also, we would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our members, volunteers, sponsors, special guests and participants who helped us to make this 2009 Double Ten Table Tennis tournament a classic event in the DFW area!  We hope to see you next year!  For complete tournament results please go to: http://www.dfwtt.com/Results_File/Results_2009.htm#2009DoubleTen

For pictures of the tournament and special guest, please go to: http://bbs.feiyer.com/thread-1976-1-1.html

Table Tennis Exhibition at GENBAND in Plano Texas – On September 2nd, Donna and Daniel were invited to GENBAND i n Plano to kick-off their 1st Company wide ping-pong tournament with an exhibition and demonstration of the Olympic sport of Table Tennis. A group of about 30 employees spent their lunch time with DFWTT. The company has 2 tables and they play in their break/lunch room. Donna and Daniel explained how the sport is played, answered questions from the attendees and demonstrated some of the strokes of table tennis. In addition the crowds were wowed when we used a mini and an oversized paddle during the exhibition. "It was a great fun and a good idea for GENBAND to kick-off their first company tournament with our participation. We believe that their employees are very motivated to participate in their company wide tournament and who knows they could even start their own internal league later on," said Daniel. DFWTT gave away as a door prize a brand20new paddle. We wish GENBAND and their employees good luck at their company wide tournament!

If your company has ping-pong tables and you are interested in having DFWTT come in to do an exhibition or to promote a company tournament or league, please let us know. We will be delighted to help you out!

JCC Maccabi Games 2009 – Team Dallas won 10 out of 12 possible medals in the table tennis competition. Athletes played Singles and Doubles in the 13-14 and 15-16 age categories. Under the training and leadership of our Coach Daniel Rutenberg, the team with 10 players participated in the week long games in San Antonio. This year’s table tennis competition had players from San Antonio, Houston, Columbus and Dallas. “I’m very pleased with the performance of our Team. Each player did their part and it certainly paid off the training, hard work and practices in preparation to the games. The kids have now a different view and more appreciation to the sport of table tennis”, said Rutenberg. Team Dallas won 4 Gold medals (Singles 13-14, Doubles 13-14 & Doubles 15-16); 3 Silver medals (Singles 13-14 & Doubles 15-16) and 3 Bronze medals (Singles 13-14, Singles 15-16 & Doubles 13-14). We also want to thank JOOLA USA for their support and generosity to Team Dallas 2009.

Team Dallas at the JCC Maccabi Games 2009 in San Antonio.

Rutenberg gets recognized again Ecuador July 2009 – Once again Coach Rutenberg gets recognized by Marlon Vite, a cadet player from Ecuador.  Daniel helped Marlon from the sidelines at the US Open in Las Vegas last July to secure the 2nd place in the U-1750 rating event. To read the full story, please click on the link: http://www.diariopinion.com/deportes/verArticulo.php?id=56732

Paralympics Pan-American Games Sep 27 – Oct 4 2009 – Our coach Daniel Rutenberg has accepted the invitation to join the USA National Paralympic Team to go the Paralympic Pan Am games as one of the coaches to Margarita Island, Venezuela.

He is currently working with a group of athletes from the DFW area who are currently in training to go to Germany prior to going to Venezuela for the Para Pan Am Games.

The Para Pan Am championship in Venezuela at the end of September will be a direct qualifier for the World Championships in 2010 in Korea.

Sean O’Neil who has been the head coach for the USA Paralympic Team for a good number of years and has been involved with the development and training of these athletes has put together a lot of information on this subject.  Here is a brief extract of information about Paralympic table tennis…

Here at DFWTT we are looking for junior disabled players who are interested in table tennis.  In addition, we are looking for women in all 10 classes.  Contact coach Daniel Rutenberg for more information.

Good luck to the USA Paralympic Team in the Pan American Games!

Rutenberg gets recognized in Machala Ecuador April 2009 – Our coach Daniel Rutenberg was recognized by Marlon Vite a 13 years old Cadet Player from the National Team of Ecuador.  Daniel has helped Marlon from the side lines in past US Open tournaments. Below is a copy of the article of April 13, 2009 from the “Opinion Deportiva” of Machala, Ecuador, page 7.

DFWTT was present at the US Open 2009 in Las Vegas – Our coach Daniel Rutenberg participated at the US Open Table Championship in Las Vegas July 1-4, 2009!  More than 650 domestic and international table tennis players participated to win the over $29,000 total purse prize!  There were over 57 different events and categories up for grabs.  Thomas Keinath (56 in the world) from Slovakia was crowned champion of the 2009 Table Tennis US Open men defeating 4-0 Adrian Crisan (33 in the world) from Romania.  While on the women side, Gao Jun (22 in the world) from the U.S. defeated Tanja Hain-Hofmann (115 in the world) in an incredible 4-3 match!

Texas was well represented at the US Open with over 40 players from the State.  From our area, we had more than 20 players to include some of our DFWTT club members and past tournament players as well.

Coach Rutenberg helped from the side lines some players from our neighboring clubs, plus some team members of the US Paralympic Team.

Our Scott Ryan among other duties as an umpire during the whole tournament, he had the privilege to sit as a scorekeeper on Women Final for the US Open 2009. Scott well done and good job!

Some of the most noticeable aspects at the tournament this year were the impact of the new gluing rule and the racket control protocol and procedures.  Most of the players who used speed glue or boosters are having problems adjusting to the new rule.  For example, some good players are now making easy mistakes they would never have done it using speed glue.  Players are forced to make some adjustments to their games, change slightly their strokes and learn how to play with new paddles/rubbers without the benefit of using speed glue or boosters.  It is obvious that these adjustments will take some time. Players don’t seem to like the rule because they are still talking about it. However, they need to get used to this, as there is no way back. The main reasons for the banning of speed glue were for health and legal issues.

During the tournament, racket testing was done randomly in all events and also it was conducted on the semi-finals as well as final rounds.  In addition, players could have also done a voluntary test of their racket(s) at any time during the tournament.  During the racket testing procedures, umpires performed a visual inspection of the racket and also performed 4 tests for physical properties.  The 4 tests consisted of: a) Thickness test; b) Curvature of the paddle; c) Shine/Gloss of rubbers and d) chemical test for VOC.

It is always recommended that each player always brings to a match with 2 legal rackets and 2 distinctively different colors shirts that are different from the color of the playing ball.

Understanding the rules and racket control protocols are very important. The last thing a player needs before a match is to worry about the possible failing of his/her paddle(s) or being disqualified from an event or the whole tournament for not complying with the rules.

In addition, Daniel participated in the 2009 Coaching Seminar.  During the seminar it was discussed a technical report from the 2009 World Table Tennis Championship in Yokohama Japan.  We benefited from the insights from Doru Gheorghe, USATT High Performance/Technical Director and head coach for the USA Women Team and from Wei Wang, USATT National Coaching Advisory Committee Member.  We also covered aspects on Paralympic Table Tennis, Junior Development Progressions, introduction to a new series of videos for coaches and training accessories.

For those of you that have never participated at any of the US Open or National Tournaments in the past, please find below a few pictures of what the table tennis hall looks like.  It is an amazing experience to play at any of these national recognized tournaments.

  
                 Doubles Quarter finals                                                            Center Court - Open Men Semis

 
   Table Tennis Hall – more than 80 Butterfly Tables                   Center Court – Semis Filimon vs Crisan

    
             Center Court spectators – Finals                                         Tourney Logo

2009 DFWTT Spring Round Robin Tournament – Once again on June 6, 2009 we witnessed a very exciting table tennis tournament at the JCC in Dallas. 17 professional Butterfly tables were used. More than 80 players participated in this fun and popular round robin sanctioned event, plus the different age & category events in the non-rated events. The 2009 DFWTT Spring Round Robin champion in the Sanctioned Open Division Class A was Wang Shuai who defeated Simhsay Tongkhuya 3-0. In Class B, Connie Chen defeated James Eddie Yang to finish in 1st and 2nd places respectively. In Class C, Aaron Gu finished in 1st place while James Smith in 2nd! In Class D Byron Anderson (1st place) defeated Adam Moussa (2nd place), 6 years old – our youngest participant! Once again, the doubles competition is very popular by our participants. The defending doubles champions of our Double Ten tournament of 2008 Sara Fu and Eddy James Young defeated Roger Blydes and Carlito Almirol in this year’s tournament. There were 11 other different events played. Congratulations to all winners and runner ups! In particular, we want to thank those who came out for the first time and we hope to see them in upcoming events and tournaments. For complet e results of this tournament, click here. Pictures of the tournament have been posted in the Gallery section of our website.

Also, we want to take this opportunity to THANK YOU all very much for having played at this tournament and as you know DFWTT makes a $2 donation from your entry’s fees to organizations that work in the education and development of children!

We look forward to seeing you in our next tournament – Double Ten Championship – later on in October 2009! More information about it coming soon!

Dallas Morning News – article about table tennis – Our Daniel Rutenberg was highlighted and quoted throughout the article. The premise of the article was that table tennis is making a huge comeback because it is a fun and inexpensive sport to play, especially in economic times. Our club members Don Isgitt and Adam Moussa were also featured and photographed. In addition, the article covered our 2009 Spring Tournament featuring many of our participants and especially some of our new comers! To read the article please click on the link...

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/lifetravel/stories/DN-nh_pingpong_0616gd.ART.State.Edition1.18c9605.html

DFWTT Exhibition at The Legacy at Willow Bend in Plano – To close the month of May, Donna Chen and Daniel Rutenberg spent an afternoon of fun and lots of table tennis at the newest resort like retirement community. Coaches Donna and Daniel demonstrated how the Olympic sport of table tennis is played to new and prospective residents of the Legacy at Willow Bend community. About 35 people attended and participated at the clinic. It was a fun event, filled with questions about the sport and lots of playing time. Table tennis is a sport available to all ages and genders, so we hope that our friends at The Legacy at Willow Bend continue playing table tennis and who knows, perhaps we’ll have some new Seniors players participating in USATT Sanctioned and Non-Sanctioned tournaments in the near future!

2009 DFWTT Spring Open – Mark the date Saturday, June 6th 2009! Don’t forget to register for our classic 2009 DFWTT Spring Open Tournament. Complete details and Entry Form could be found in our main page of our website at www.dfwtt.com. We look forward to seeing you at the tournament! Good luck and thanks for participating!

DFWTT Club Championship – After several weeks of continued outstanding matches, on May 15th we arrived to the final week of our 2009 DFWTT Club Championship at our Cimarron location. Over 40 players participated on Mondays and Fridays at our Cimarron club, located in Irving. The league was divided into Class A and Class B respectively. The champion of Class A was Kareem Moussa followed by Wally Devereaux who finished in 2nd place. The champion of Class B was Charlie Olisa, runner-up Stan Vosburgh. Please see some of the pictures in the Gallery section of our website. Congratulations to all the winners and all of you who participated in our Club Championship.

2nd DFWTT High School Table Tennis Tournament – Brandon Gardner from Birdville High School is the champion of the 2nd High School tournament. Congratulations!

On Saturday, April 25th at the JCC in Dallas DFWTT hosted the second high school tournament of its class in the Metroplex. This non-sanctioned tournament is becoming an unqualified success! This year we had 17 students representing the following schools: Birdville HS, Greenhill School, JJ Pearce HS, McKinney Boyd HS, Rockwall Heath HS, Southlake Carroll and St. Marks School of Dallas – they played singles and doubles.

The enthusiasm, energy and skills levels showed a solid display of amazing matches and shots during the event. All 8 tables used for the tournament were used at all times, non-stop! It was fascinating to see towards the end of the day, especially when the kids would have been tired, how they continued to play, said Daniel Rutenberg. “I was very impressed to see how much friendship was accomplished in such a small period of time,” he said.

We look forward to our 3rd High School table tennis tournament and we here at DFWTT will continue working hard to have more and more events for youth, plus supporting any school table tennis clubs! If your school has a table tennis club or if you are interested in participating in future events, please let us know.

Singles Class A was very competitive with Brandon Gardner from Birdville HS finishing in 1st place, followed by Allen Hung from JJ Pearce HS in Richardson in 2nd place, Nand Dalal from Greenhill School in 3rd and Adam Brobjorg from St. Mark’s School of Dallas in 4th place.

Under Singles Class B we had an amazing come back from Nathan Miller from Southlake Carroll HS who finished 1st after defeating his own teammate Carson Cons, who reached the 2nd spot, followed by Taylor Pitts from JJ Pearce in Richardson in 3rd.

Singles Class C was even where Paul Keller from JJ Pearce HS in Richardson clinched the 1st position, followed by Ian Johnson from McKinney Boy and in 3rd place Sergio Postolache from Rockwall Heat HS.

In Doubles, Adam Brobjorg (St. Mark’s) and Nand Dalal (Greenhill) finished in 1st; Taylor Pitts and Allen Hung (JJ Pearce HS) 2nd; Brandon Gardner (Birdville) and Michael Fortner (JJ Pearce HS) 3rd; and Paul Keller (JJ Pearce) and Carson Cons (Southlake Carroll HS) in 4th place.

We want to acknowledge and recognize the female players that entered the tournament – AJ Johnson from McKinney Boyd HS and Zoe Kahn from JJ Pearce HS in Richardson.

It is clear that DFWTT involvements and efforts with schools and youth in the Metroplex are showing its results. For this 2nd Championship we have double the number of schools participating, while maintaining the number of players.

DFWTT would like to thank everyone who participated in this event, but especially we want to extend our gratitude to the JCC for their generosity and continued support. Also we want to congratulate JJ Pearce HS Table Tennis club for their continued success!

We are very pleased with the turnout and results of this event. We strongly believe this is the foundation of a bigger annual area school event.

As we continue with our efforts to promote table tennis in the Metroplex for schools and our youth we ask that if you or your school – elementary, middle school or high school – are interested in participating at future school events, please let us know. For complete results of the 2nd DFWTT High School Table Tennis tournament go to Results and for pictures please go to Gallery.

Here is a sample of some of the pictures. See you in our 3rd DFWTT High School Table Tennis tournament!

DFWTT Club Championship – For the past few weeks DFWTT Club Championship at Cimarron is growing in popularity. With more than 40 players per week the challenge and competition is getting the word out. It is fascinating to see players from all levels coming out on Mondays and Fridays to participate in this new concept of playing. Definitely, this is the best way to complement your training and practices to get you ready for tournaments and competition. However, the championship is not only for players interested in competing in tournaments and such. This club championship allows you to measure your effectiveness and readiness in playing matches. If you haven’t been a t Cimarron lately, we encourage you to do so. Please remember Cimarron club hours are Mondays and Fridays from 6 top 9 PM. For club championship information, ask for Gary when you check in at the club. Thanks for participating and good luck as the championship continues! Please see the Gallery section for some pictures!

Table Tennis clinic at Southlake Carroll High School – On Tuesday, April 14 coach Daniel Rutenberg visited the Southlake Carroll High School for a table tennis clinic and exhibition. Over 6 0 kids from the 9th grade participated in this special activity as part of their PE class. Students and teachers engaged in the fundamentals of the fascinating sport of table tennis. The students were divided in various groups where different skills and table tennis related activities were performed. Here at DFWTT we hope that Southlake Carroll High School starts its own table tennis club and get involved with table tennis activities in the Metroplex. Rutenberg said that “he was impressed to see so much talent in just one grade.” Perhaps there is a new dynasty for the Dragons at Southlake Carroll HS in the Olympic sport of table tennis he added.

2nd DFWTT High School Table Tennis Tournament – On Saturday April 25, 2009 DFWTT is proud to host the 2nd High School Table Tennis tournament. This non-sanctioned tournament is an amazing opportunity for our youth in the DFW area to come out and compete representing their high schools. Last year, we had excellent participation and we hope that this year's tournament sets the foundations of a classic for future years in the Metroplex. The tournament will be opened to all students in High School regardless of their level and table tennis skills. More information and Entry Form to follow shortly. For information please contact Daniel Rutenberg or Donna Chen.

Need more practice games? – Come in to Cimarron on Monday and Friday nights and challenge advance & elite players in a friendly challenge system that allows you to enhance your game strategy. Every Monday and Friday nights we are organizing more formal challenge matches, close to tournament quality, so that you have an opportunity to put all your game, practice and strategy in place. This format may give you an opportunity to play in a more competitive environment while keeping the friendly and fun atmosphere. Ask for Donna or Gary when you check-in at Cimarron. 

Youth Development Programs – Once again in 2009, we continue with out on-going efforts with our Youth Development Programs. Our Junior program continues to grow strong. Our group lessons for Juniors at our Cimarron Club location on Friday nights has become very popular with our students. Week after week we continue to enjoy seeing the progress made by our players. In addition, our involvements at the JCC Maccabi games and Tzu Chi Chinese School programs allow us to continue promoting the Olympic sport of table tennis in different spectrums in the DFW area and also to provide quality training plus excellent service to our participants.For more information about our Junior programs please contact Coach Donna or Coach Daniel.

JCC Maccabi Games 2009 – In February, more than 25 athletes participated in tryouts for a spot for Team Dallas to participate at the JCC Maccabi Games 2009 later in August. Daniel Rutenberg is the Team Dallas table tennis head coach.

Charity Program – Thank you for helping us to make a difference in the future of children’s education! For each participant at DFWTT tournaments, DFWT is making a $2 donation to non-profit children’s educational organizations. SO far since the inception of the program, DFWTT has contributed $1,514! THANK YOU!

JJ Pearce High School Table Tennis Club – Last February 16, Donna Chen and Daniel Rutenberg did a clinic and exhibition at JJ Pearce HS. We’re delighted to have the presence of one of the Principals in addition to the students who attended. The support of the Principal and the school to the table tennis club is a strong sign of the commitment of the school to this extra curricular activity, said Rutenberg. Daniel and Donna also worked with the club members and participants. If your school has a ping-pong club or if you want to start a club at your school please let us know.

DFWT Table Tennis 2009 Texas Winter Games Tournament – Wang Shuai wins the 2009 tournament, congratulations!

On January 17th, DFWTT was delighted to host the 2009 Texas Winter Games Table Tennis Tournament at the Staley Middle School gymnasiums in Frisco Texas. With over 120 table tennis athletes from Austin, Houston, Wichita Falls, Oklahoma, California, Tyler and Dallas & Ft. Worth, this tournament continues to be a complete success for 3 years in a row!Sponsors, players, spectators, organizers and volunteers together with Tournament Director Donna Chen, Tournament Referee Scott Ryan and head coach Daniel Rutenberg, made once again a complete success of this very popular tournament.In particular, we want to thank the 2009 Texas Winter Games organizing committee and the Texas Amateur Federation (TAAF) and its sponsors for the continued support and help in making this tournament a reality. A special thanks to Bill Garrard for his help and assistance during the event. Also, we want to acknowledge and extend a special thanks to our out-of-town guest, to include our young visitors from Houston and Wichita Falls!

Following our on-going pledge to support other organizations devoted to children’s education, DFWTT has made a $2 donation for each player entered in the tournament to a non-profit children’s education organization. Thank you for your participation and for helping to make a difference for the benefit of the children!More than 120 players and over 200 spectators enjoyed this classic tournament, with competition in 19 Butterfly tournament tables in 16 different categories, which included both USATT sanctioned and non-sanctioned events.

Rating Event – In the Open Singles Class A, Wang Shuai and John Beaumont met in the final. Players and spectators were delighted with this duel, especially after watching the semi finals! Wang defeated Beaumont 3-0 in a very closed match, where we enjoyed watching very powerful shots from these offensive players. Loops and counter-loops dominated each rally, plus slight change in pace on Wang’s part, gave him the competitive edge to beat Beaumont each game 11-8. Yijun (Tom) Feng finished in 3rd place. In Class B – 1st place Liam Haveckin, 2nd place Lilly Qian and 3rd place Tim Wang. Class C – 1st Tina Wang, 2nd Grady Thompson, 3rd Eric Lee. Class D – 1st Blake Hirt, 2nd Lok Fung Law, 3rd Thomas Tsang and Class E – 1st Jordan Mason, 2nd Dustin Joubert and 3rd Chihyuan Wang. Congratulations!The unrated events were also very competitive and well diversified, going from 8-10 to Over 75 years old in the age categories. In addition, our doubles categories are becoming very popular in our clubs and area. Needless to say how much fun the kids had in the School event. Lastly, the coach’s event was fun and very competitive. Congratulations to the winner, runner ups and all participants. Gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded respectively.

For complete results, please go to http://www.dfwtt.com/Results_File/Results_2009.htm#2009WinterGames

DFWTT Table Tennis (DFWTT) is one of the leading table tennis membership organizations in the nation that promotes, develops and implements programs for the sport of table tennis regardless of the players’ experience or level through family values, excellence and quality in sportsmanship environment in the Dallas and Fort Worth Area. DFWT is a USATT sanctioned club and it was established in 1996.The Winter Games of Texas is the ultimate amateur athletic sports festival for Texas. Established in 1986 at the Summer Games, the Games are patterned after the Olympic Games and U.S. Olympic Festivals. The Games provide a forum for training and competition among Texas’ own Olympic hopefuls as well as both youth and adult recreational athletes, with participant’s age ranging from 6 to 70. The inaugural Winter Games of Texas was held in 2006 in Frisco, Texas.For tournament pictures, please go to Gallery or Results sections of website. 

Here is a sample…