A team of 16 athletes from the British Para Table Tennis Team will travel to France this weekend to compete in the ITTF World Para Elite Yvelines 2025 from October 26 to 30.
The squad is preparing for next month’s ITTF European Para Championships in Sweden and hopes to build on the 19 medals won at the World Para Elite Spokane 2025 in the US in August.
Two players looking to continue their winning streak are men’s Class 8 world No. 1, Aaron McKibbin (pictured above), and men’s Class Seven world No. 1, Will Bayley. Both players earned back-to-back gold medals in their respective singles events in the last two Elite tournaments with victories against highly ranked opponents.
BPTT athlete representative Jack Hunter-Spivey said: “The squad has been working a lot on match play and making sure we are prepared for what our opponents are likely to do so we can ensure we are ready in the best possible way.
“France is very good at preparing for the Europeans and we will be playing against many of the opponents we will face in Sweden. Because the country is so close to the Europeans, it is one of the biggest tournaments and will be a very good test for all the players.”
“The tournament in France is a great way to assess where the players are at and a final chance to ensure we are challenging for the top four placings for the European Championships,” said BPTT head coach Andrew Rushton.
“A few players are already there and some players are close. We will use the tournament to assess performance and strengthen partnerships in doubles, so we are in a strong position in Sweden.”
The British squad for the ITTF World Para Elite Yvelines is: Will Bayley (Class 7), Theo Bishop (Class 7), Rob Davies (Class 1), Ryan Henry (Class 8), Jack Hunter-Spivey (Class 5), Paul Karabardak (Class 6), Tom Matthews (Class 1), Aaron McKibbin (Class 8), Chris Ryan (Class 2), Martin Perry (Class 6), Felicity Pickard (Class 6), Megan Shackleton (Class 4), Billy Shilton (Class 8), Joshua Stacey (Class 9), Bly Twomey (Class 7), Grace Williams (Class 8)
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