ASTTA Table Tennis Tournament trying to attract new players to the sport

The Dept. of Parks and Recreation table tennis tournament was held with the support of the American Samoa Table Tennis Association, at the Tony Solaita Baseball field on Saturday. The tournament was to attract new players to the sport as well as prepare seasoned players for the upcoming Tri-Sports Competition, set to begin in February. [photo: Jeff Hayner]

The Department of Parks and Recreation, with the support of the American Samoa Table Tennis Association (ASTTA), held a Table Tennis Tournament this past Saturday at the Tony Solaita Baseball field, that had, according to the ASTTA president Ken Tupa, the best Table Tennis players on island.

“We had this tournament not only to ready our players for the upcoming Tri-Sport Competitions in February, but to try and get people interested in the game as well, such as the young school kids,” said Tupua. “We had a good turnout on Saturday, with great competition. We can always take in more players who want to learn the game. That is why the ASTTA in conjunction with the Department of Parks and Recreation is offering an after school table tennis class right here at the Solaita baseball field. It’s Monday through Friday from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. from beginners to advanced players starting at five years of age.

“We will be having more upcoming tournaments in the future. I encourage everyone, especially the youth, to take advantage of this training. For information you can contact me at 252-6659, or Dave Godinet at 258-9145,” he said.

Here are the results of the tournament from last Saturday:

1st                        Dave Godinet

2nd                      Alii Tupua

3rd                        Daniel Luki

4th                        Tione Tione

5th                        Ken Tupua

6th                        Vagana Saili

7th                        Isa’ako Tafiti

8th                        Ed Imo

At the 2011 Pacific Games host country New Caledonia dominated the game, where they  garnered 3 golds, 1 silver and 4 bronze medals.