By Rob Cook
Leeds ParkyPING!, a table tennis club for people living with Parkinson’s Disease, is opening for a second regular session in West Leeds after a successful first year.
ParkyPING! meets at St Stephen’s Church Hall, Kirkstall, on the first and third Monday of each month. The new Tuesday session will meet with the same pattern, starting on Tuesday, 6 August.
It’s now recognised that exercise is the best, perhaps the only way, of slowing down the symptoms of Parkinson’s. And table tennis is one of the best forms of exercise for that purpose. As well as being aerobic, table tennis help with balance, hand-eye coordination, reflexes, and making split second decisions.
Members of Leeds ParkyPING! meet to bat and chat together. The group includes women and men of all abilities, from complete beginners to people who play and used to play in Leeds Table Tennis League.
As well as playing table tennis, the group gets professional coaching, and members share informal, and invaluable peer support about experiences of living with Parkinson’s. Several partners of group members also attend regularly, giving them the opportunity to share information about how their lives are affected by the condition.
The group was started by local man Rob Cook, with friends Andrew and Hillary.
Rob was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2019. Having played table tennis as a teenager but only occasionally since, Rob quickly realised that he needed to get back to the table. In 2021 Rob took part in the first UK Championship for people with Parkinson’s, which was the first time he’d met other people with the same condition.
Rob has since played in PingPongParkinson’s World Championships in Croatia, and Austria, winning silver medals for mixed and men’s doubles respectively.
Leeds ParkyPING! is part of a growing Parkinson’s table tennis community across the UK, and globally. Rob said: “UK and world championships have been fantastic experiences, which I wanted to share at a grassroots level, with more people who could benefit.
“Several other people who have taken part in championships have also started local groups. I’m proud that Parkinson’s table tennis is being driven by people with Parkinson’s themselves.”
But Rob also acknowledged the vital support given. As well as ongoing support from friends, Rob is very appreciative of the funding received for ParkyPING! from Parkinson’s UK, Table Tennis England, Kirkstall’s councillors Hannah Bithell, Andy Rontree and Fiona Venner, Hey Neighbour!, Boost Charitable Trust and Sport Parkinson’s. They have also felt very welcomed by staff and volunteers from Kirkstall Valley Development Trust (KVDT), who manage St Stephen’s Church Hall. Leeds ParkyPING! is led entirely by volunteers.
If you or someone you know has Parkinson’s and would like to join the group, please get in touch via Leeds ParkyPING! website or by e-mail: parkyping@gmail.com.
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