The ICC Table Tennis Center – A World Class Facility in Milpitas

By: Ashok Vaish

I walked into the ICC Table Tennis Center in Milpitas for the first time last week.

Wow! It was impressive – the well-lit facility with a high ceiling exuded energy and a feeling of space. There were ten active tables with room for more. You could hear the sound of balls being smashed, sneakers squeaking on the international-competition-grade floor, grunts as angled hard smashes were returned, and the shouts of coach Rajul Sheth yelling instructions to his brood of young stars.

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And young stars these were -  ranging in age from 6 to 16 years. There was Krish Avarri, 9, the best player in the land under 10 years of age, barely visible above the surface of the table, making a low, spinning serve that tried to veer madly off the table after bouncing on the receiver’s end. And there was Lily Ghang, a little older, flicking a low, screaming, back-hand return. She is a very talented player indeed who will be participating in the 2012 Summer Olympics!

Check out the video below of Krish Avari, 9, in a practice session with his coach.

I was mesmerized as I sought out Rajul, the head coach, to learn about this astonishingly advanced Center which is yet another wonderful facility that ICC offers its members.

I learned some mind-bending facts. Did you know:

More people play Table Tennis in the USA than Baseball?

ICC runs the largest Table Tennis Center in North America?

The Head Coach, Rajul Sheth, is the winner of the  USA Table Tennis 2008 Developmental Coach of the Year award?

We are well on track to have two National participants in the 2012 Summer Olympics from the ICC TT Center?

We have two under-10 top-rated players who are shoo-ins for the 2016 Olympics?

Yes, these are some of the amazing aspects of ICC’s Table Tennis Center (located at 1453 N. Milpitas Blvd in Milpitas). With your ICC membership access to the TT is free and you can play in this state-of-the-art facility and also get some world-class coaching.

I talked to Rajul Sheth about the Center. Here is a video showing portions of the interview followed by  some excerpts:

Rajul, how popular is Table Tennis in the Bay Area?

Rajul:

It is one of the fastest growing sports, not just in the Bay Area but in the entire U.S. To give you an idea: we had only 2 TT clubs in the Bay Area in 2004. In 2009 we will have 12! More people play TT than Baseball. Its popularity in India is growing as well. India are the current Commonwealth Games champs.

By the way, Steve Westly, the well-known former California State Controller and democratic candidate for governor, is an avid TT player and plays here regularly. 

I see you have a great club here. How do you rank?

Rajul:

We are the largest TT facility in North America. On any given day we have 100-200 people who come here to play, either informally or in serious programs. The next largest club probably handles about 30 people a day.

What is the Membership Structure?

Rajul:

All ICC members have automatic access and many take advantage of that. We also have a direct Club membership. The rates are $29/mo ($299/yr) for single memberships and $49/mo. ($499/yr) for family memberships.

We have 160 members already and hope to double our membership this year.

We offer free refreshments, volunteer scorekeepers, online instant scoring, access to USA TT approved tournaments and their ranking system and world-class coaching.

Tell me about your special programs for in-depth/competitive training.

Rajul:

Special Camps.

We run the largest Special Camps in the country. Cumulatively we enroll 500 kids each year in these camps! Our next Camp is April 13 – 17 when kids have their Spring break. We charge just $250 for the camp ($225 for our Center members) and divide the participants into Beginner/Intermediate and Advanced levels. They get 3 hours of coached playing every day. (See here for details). We expect to enroll 70 – 80 kids for this camp. Our coaches, like Gao Lin Tang, former head coach of Szechuan province in China, are some of the finest TT teachers anywhere.

In addition to the Spring Special Camp we have a Summer Camp that goes on for 11 weeks (June 15 – August 28, 2009). We also have a Special Camp at Thanksgiving.

Junior Training Program

We offer group training on weekends for the Juniors. We currently have 76 kids enrolled. Beginners/Intermediates get 1 hr of group instruction per week for $150 per quarter. Advanced Juniors get 3 hours/week and pay $250 per quarter.

Package Training for Talented Players

Last September we initiated a unique annual training package for serious, talented players who want to take their game to the top level. It is an unbelievable value proposition – it would cost you 10 times as much unbundled at competing centers. For a flat fee of $500/month we provide:

-       Free group lessons

-       Free access to all our Special Camps

-       Two private lessons per week with world class coaches

-       Enrollment in and coaching for two USA TT sanctioned tournaments/year

-       All equipment, including TT Robots, racquets, shoes, balls, T-shirts etc.

-       Snacks and recreational activities

-       Computer based scoring, player database and profiling.

Tournaments

We hold regular tournaments that are conducted according to USA-TT rules and accredited by them for official rating purposes. Our next tournament is the 2009 ICC Calif. State Spring Open (2/27/09 – 3/1/09). Entry fee is only $20/event. We expect over 1700 participants! There will be two more tournaments in 2009 (May 15-17; Dec. 4-6). We offer cash prizes and trophies for the 1^st and 2^nd place winners. But there’s something for everyone – free refreshments, comraderie and even T-shirts!

Seems like you have a lot on your hands. Do you get time for coaching and playing?

Rajul:

My time is indeed at a premium. I do, however, personally coach 12-15 hours a week in group classes. I am playing only sporadically tese days but retain a USA-TT rating of 2281 which ranks me among the 60-70 best TT players in the U.S.

You were recently named the winner of the  USA-TT 2008 Developmental Coach of the Year award. That is a singular honor. What did it take to get this award and how did you personally feel about this top-level recognition of your achievements?

The award was a great thing for me. Only one TT coach in the whole country is honored in this way and I feel very proud and humbled.

The award recognizes two things: first that we have built the largest Club in North America, offering the best TT experience in an accredited setting, and second that we have pioneered training techniques that are unique to unlocking the talent of serious players.

Thanks, Rajul, and  Congratulations on being the Best.

Thanks, Ashok

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