Table Tennis England has teamed up with Ping Pong Fight Club to promote female participation in the sport. Together the two companies are working to support, develop and encourage all-women teams to take up table tennis and compete on behalf of their companies across the country.

The popularity of ping pong has been growing in workplaces across England over recent years, helped along by Table Tennis England’s Loop At Work programme, which makes it easier to bring social table tennis into the workplace. Through this new partnership, it is hoped that even more women, who may have avoided playing in the past, will gain the confidence to pick up a paddle at Ping Pong Fight Club and then back at their office ping pong table.

As part of this new partnership, free, professional coaching sessions will be delivered at the offices of the all-women’s teams, teaching them to play from scratch and enjoy the game from the very first ball hit.

Keely Armitt, Head of Participation at Table Tennis England, stated:

Engaging more women and girls is one of our sport’s priorities and we are working hard with a range of partners to ensure more opportunities are available to them.

“Fight Club events are perfect for promoting table tennis to a female audience, as they are such great fun and women can join in without even thinking about some of the things that might normally stop them playing sport or being active.

Ade Leigh of Ping Pong Fight Club added:

We are all about inclusivity, having fun with your work colleagues and meeting like-minded people. Since we launched our all-female team initiative, we have been absolutely delighted with how popular the game has proven to be within the workplace and now with Table Tennis England’s support we have a partner that can help us raise the bar for more women to compete, party and play!

The first all-women team will be coached to compete at the next Fight Club taking place in London on June 14. There’s still time for others to get involved at London’s event, or at Manchester, Cardiff and Bristol in the coming months.

For those not yet ready to compete in front of a crowd, and preferring to cheer on their colleagues from the sidelines, the event offers a great spectator experience. Alongside the actual competition, there’s VR Ping Pong, a DJ, face painters on hand for ‘battle scars and butterflies’, a summer terraced ping pong BBQ, prizes including the chance to win a Tsingtao Beer pro tennis table, as well as the new ‘Style Awards’ and ‘Best Supporters’.

Any London businesses interested in entering a team and attending the Ping Pong Fight Club can do so by registering here.

Table Tennis England recently published a Good Practice Guide on Increasing Female Participation. The publication followed extensive research into the barriers that prevent females playing. This research highlighted the importance of social playing for helping to get women active. The publication can be found here.