Tom Jarvis is relishing the chance to test his skills against some of the best young players in Europe after being invited to the Europe Youth Top-10 event.

Jarvis will travel to Tours in France to compete at the event from October 3 to 5.

Among those he will face are Romanian duo Cristian Pletea and Rares Sipos, who are both ranked in the world’s top 10 under-15 players.

Skegness youngster Jarvis said: “I’m excited to attend Europe Top-10. As I am No 9 ranked I feel that I have no pressure and because of this I feel that I can pick up some good wins.

“I’ve played six of the players that I will be playing and have beaten three and lost to three, so I believe if I play my best I have a good chance against all the players.

“I will be training very hard in order to prepare myself for the tournament.”

Table Tennis England National Talent Development Coach Matt Stanforth said: “Tom’s had a fantastic season, winning the Spanish Open and getting to the quarter-finals in Poland.

“There’s no one there who is unbeatable, but they are all tough matches. Every win he gets there will be a good win.

“He’s ready for the challenge and he’s done everything in his preparation to give him the best chance.”

Jarvis is following in the footsteps of Sam Walker and Tin-Tin Ho, who competed at last year’s Top-10 event in Terni, Italy. Ho finished fifth and Walker seventh in their respective age groups.

Paul Stimpson
September 17, 2014