WHAT started as just a pastime some seven years ago, today has developed into a serious sport for sixteen-year-old Miguel Wong, who earlier this week was singled out as the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) prospect for next year’s Youth Olympic Games (YOG).
Wong is particularly excited about his selection because of the opportunities it will open up for him to compete at a higher level.

Wong, who participated in the JOOLA North American Teams tennis tournament recently, was forced to step up his game as he came up against players of a higher calibre.
The memories left a lasting impression with Wong, who still yearns to continue playing at bigger tournaments to improve his game.
“I played a lot with players from all across the world, and it was the best, because I played against people way higher than me. To actually compete, and be able to give them a fight, it was good, and I was up there with them,” Wong said.
Wong started playing the sport when he was just 10 years old. However, he was encouraged to join a club and take up playing the sport competitively.

Wong recalls feeling encouraged after he finished in fourth place in his first match in 2011, without any prior training. He joined the Malteenoes Table Tennis Club, and later that same year made the national team to participate at the Caribbean Pre Cadet Table Tennis Championships.
That marked the start as Wong was selected almost every year to represent Guyana; he continued at the Caribbean Pre Cadet Table Tennis Championships until he aged into the Caribbean Junior Table Tennis Championships.
The Mae’s School fifth former is currently in the middle of writing his Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate Examinations, but he can’t wait to wrap that up and start putting more focus on his table tennis aspirations.
He left yesterday for the YOG Latin American Qualification Tournament in the Dominican Republic this weekend a compulsory event if Wong is to qualify for YOG.
But the past few months has been the toughest for Wong, who was curtailed in his training due to his academic demands.
Unable to train in the lead-p to the recently concluded Caribbean Cadet and Junior Table Tennis Championships, Wong did not make it far in the individual competition even though Guyana ended in third place overall.
“Sometimes I could only get in an hour or two hours work. It was until it came down to the final week that I really found time to train,” Wong explained.