The schools’ talented ping-pong aces are ready to compete at the top table

St Edward’s look to win the under-11 boys category again after reaching the final of the Butterfly National School Team Championships [Table Tennis England]

The capital’s leading ping-pong aces are planning their schedules at the training tables after securing an elusive place in the final of the Butterfly National School Team Championships.

Teams from University College School (UCS) in Hampstead and St Edward’s Catholic Primary School in Marylebone were among the ‘zone winners’ who triumphed in Bristol earlier this month.

St Marylebone CE School and St George’s Catholic School in Maida Vale also progressed – proving once and for all that central London is a hotbed of table tennis talent.

In the boys’ competition, UCS achieved double success as their under-19s saw off the challenges of Watford Grammar, Bromsgrove School and Bournemouth School, while the school’s under-13s saw off Millfield Prep, Bromsgrove School and King Edward VI Grammar. Chelmsford.

The UCS under-13 boys team are also in the nationals after defeating Millfield Prep, Bromsgrove School and King Edward VI Grammar from Chelmsford.

St Edward’s School’s under-11 boys are aiming to win their category for a third time in a row after being national champions in 2020 and 2022 – with the 2021 competition canceled due to the Covid pandemic.

They beat teams from St Andrew’s Prep School in Eastbourne, Millfield Prep in Glastonbury and Juniper Hill School in High Wycombe to win the regional finals.

St George’s Catholic School will also get the chance to defend the under 16 girls title they won last year when they beat Brighton and Rugby schools to win the regionals.

St Marylebone CE School, on the other hand, won the under 13 girls regional final, beating schools from Glastonbury and Brighton.

The finals will be played on Sunday 23rd April at WV Active in Wolverhampton.

Paul Stimpson, England Table Tennis, said: “It was great to see the great level of play and the great support the players received from their team-mates, coaches and parents.”

He added: “Hundreds of children across London gain access to table tennis every year thanks to the Jack Petchey Foundation. We are very proud that our partnership with the Foundation is helping them reach their potential and in many cases find a lifelong love of the sport.