Ping! 2012, the most successful and far-reaching of the Ping! initiatives so far will see five of the cities extend their deadlines so that they can keep their tables out on the streets for longer.

Such is the success of Ping! this year that London, Liverpool, Leicester, Bristol and Brighton & Hove will all be leaving their tables out on the streets for the public to enjoy until the end of August.

This year’s Ping! has taken on a special mantle with the Olympic and Paralympic Games soon to grace the capital with the world’s elite sportsmen and women arriving later on this summer.

Phil Smith, Director of Sport at Sport England said: “In 2005 when Sebastien Coe went to Singapore with the team to present the London 2012 Olympic bid we promised to do one thing in particular, which was to increase the number of people playing sport in this country. At the moment that’s going quite well and in table tennis that’s going very well indeed.

In the last four years the number of people playing table tennis regularly in this country has almost doubled and in the large part it’s due to this project.”

Ping! is truly an event for everyone with 700 tables being rolled out in Bristol, Liverpool, Brighton, Sheffield, Leicester, the New Forest and the capital itself. It’s broad spectrum of patrons covers young, old, abled, disabled, rich and poor alike.

Leon Thomson, a magician and table tennis player summed up what Ping! means to people all over the country: “This is an unbelievable way to promote table tennis; loads of tables in loads of streets in the whole of the UK and especially in London. It’s bringing it to the top of the tree in sport.

There is a dramatic difference between professional table tennis and social and the social is just as fun – we all love to play,”

To view pictures from the Ping! London 2012 Launch at Finsbury Square Avenue click here