Getting into the swing of Ping! London 2010
Forget Wimbledon and the Olympics – the real sporting action will be going on in Bristol this summer! From Friday, nearly 50 table tennis tables will be placed around the city, with passers-by invited to pick up a bat and have a game.
Ping! Bristol, backed by National Lottery cash, aims to get the city into the sporting swing of things, free of charge.
From Broadmead to parks, local landmarks, open spaces and tourist attractions, 46 table tennis tables – complete with bats and balls – will be available for a month for anyone to use.
The aim is to get as many people as possible across the whole of the UK playing – to bring about a sense of community spirit and get more people playing sport on the run up to the Olympics.
“We want to get people taking up and playing sport more regularly,” said Cabinet member Cllr Guy Poulteney.
“Table tennis appeals to lots of people of every age and background. And there will be the chance to play in some of Bristol’s best-loved parks and city centre spaces.”
In 2010 Ping! London brought 100 ping-pong tables to the capital’s landmarks – from Soho Square to Westfield Shopping Centre, Tate Britain to the British Library to Heathrow’s Terminal 3. In 2011, Ping! expanded to two cities; Birmingham and Hull.
Ping! Bristol launches with a ping pong bonanza on Friday, June 29 from 12pm to 6pm at Anchor Square.
Sport England Chair Richard Lewis, said: “Ping! has proved one of our most successful sports participation projects, attracting over 150,000 participants to date. Moreover, our research shows that once people start playing they don’t want to stop. We hope Bristol will build on this.”
