Senior Corner

Nov/Dec 2006
By Olga & Stan Kahan,

Co-Chairs, USATT Senior Committee

949-830-6699 (ph) • naf@berkeley.edu

Interesting news has arrived from central California, where well-known senior competitor Byng Forsberg, now a young 80 years of age, has challenged Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to a game of table tennis.  And we have learned that Arnold has accepted.  It seems that Byng said he would play the “Governator” in Lodi, California, and contribute $100 to his campaign for re-election.  The $100, however, will be donated to a cancer foundation, started by Forsberg’s daughter.

At the moment we don’t know if they will be playing an 11- or 21-point game, or whether long pips will be allowed.  But Byng has told his friends privately, “If I lose, I’ll be back!”

We would like to share another amazing story with our USATT Magazine readers. This story of Jude Balazy’s Senior Handicap Tournaments has spread from Laguna Woods Village, California.  For the last three years Balazy’s Handicap Singles and Doubles tournaments have been attracting attention and enthusiasm from local senior member players every week on Thursdays and Saturdays.

In the 1960’s, Jude Balazy played table tennis at UCLA as a student and at the Hollywood Table Tennis Club which then was run by Mila Boscar.  Jude in his early 20’s was a very familiar face among those table tennis players who went to China under “Ping-Pong Diplomacy,” i.e. playing against Jack Howard, Glenn Cowan and others.  Later on Balazy played his beloved table tennis only occasionally until he reached his 50’s, resuming table tennis at various Senior Centers and clubs in Irvine, Costa Mesa, Laguna Beach, Anaheim, etc.

Despite his personal tragedy in recent years – open heart surgery for aortic valve replacement and later two cancer surgeries of tonsil and voice box removal – Jude created his own system for senior handicap tournaments which he has been directing personally.

Jude’s handicap tournaments – Singles and Doubles – are highly valued and appreciated by all those players who participate in his recreational events.  Club members not only improved their level of play but some of them joined USATT and started playing regularly in various competitive tournaments on local, state, regional and national levels.  Our deep gratitude to Jude Balazy for everlasting dedication to table tennis and the strong will to go ahead against all odds!

We are also glad to report on the news for recreational and competitive senior table tennis players.  According to Dana Schnell, USA Table Tennis Programs Coordinator, USATT has officially partnered with National Senior games Association (NSGA) in order to sanction a recreational Masters program for Seniors at USA Open, Nationals, State and local tournaments, starting in 2007.  Check her at programs@usatt.org for further information.

Remember – the older you get, the easier the competition becomes – or does it?