On the last day of the matches, and the PingPongParkinson World Championship, the PingPongParkinson family woke up to the sad news of the passing of Antonio Perrone on Friday night. Antonio was competing in the tournament during its first two days before he had to pull out due to health reasons. As the oldest participant in this year's championship at 84 years, we can say that his determination went beyond sportsmanship but carried forth the spirit of humanity.

For people living with a condition that has no cure yet, we know very well how fragile life is, and we continue in the fight even as we hope we are examples to the world that the fear of parkinson can be defeated - we do this daily. But when fate decides to act, then with grace one takes a bow. This year during the championship, we took some moments of silence to salute in loving memory our departed friends: 

Antonio Perrone from Italy (1939 - 2023) - May he rest in peace. To family and friends we would like to express our deepest condolences.

Ronnie Gilboa from Israel (1956 - 2023) - “ I believe in the power of the one. This individual who can make our society better, more just - and even healthier ". Ronnie Gilboa, 2018. 

Angela Hagman from Sweden (1956 - 2022) - Angela was a positive, sweet, happy, caring and popular person. 

Mirko Kozar from Slovenia (1954 - 2020) - Mirko was a big fighter at the ping pong table. With his humor he brought good mood in our group. He was a great man & our best friend. We did not expect him to give up. Mirko, you will always be in our hearts and memory.

Edmur Mesquita from Brazil (1954 - 2020) - Edmur’s time among us was short, his impact was profound. He demonstrated that the human spirit can triumph over physical limitations, leaving an enduring legacy of resilience, elegance and unwavering determination. In the world of table tennis and the fight against Parkinsons, Edmur Mesquita in our hearts you’ll stay.

This year’s PingPongParkinson World Championship is like nothing we have ever seen before! Matches begun on Tuesday with the singles preliminary rounds followed the next day with the doubles & mixed doubles preliminary rounds. Tough competition and surprises have kept everyone on their toes these last two days.

This year's event also includes some educative sport seminars, and a juggling and Rubik cube challenge. Did you know that juggling can be both a fun & therapeutic exercise for people with Parkinson? Together with the Rubik cube fun contest we get to challenge once more the brain & body. How did it go? These are the results: Juggling- Nenad Bach 69.44 seconds, Helmut Arends 20.89 seconds and Andreas Koch 13.00 seconds. Rubik cube- Gunnar Sahr 2:59, Andreas Koch 4:25 and Nenad Bach 13:48.

We wish all players the best & to have lots of fun.

Thank you country leaders & teams for the awesome team spirit and fair play. We have 23 countries participating this year.

The PingPongParkinson World Championship is just three days away. Being hosted this year in the lovely city of Wels in Austria, the local organizing committee is ready to welcome players, family and friends. This year 296 players will compete over five days in about 2000 matches.

We would like to say a special thanks to all our sponsors and partners, and appreciate in a big way SPG Felbermayr Wels table tennis club.

Watch all the fun on our youtube page and stay updated through the tournament website at https://pppwc.org.