Forget Paris (for now): Table tennis elite at Von Braun Center

HUNTSVILLE – Paralympian Tahl Leibovitz is practically royalty among six athletes and their traveling party of Paris-bound elite table tennis competitors who first made their way to Huntsville this week.

Those athletes are here to play in the USA Table Tennis National Championship at the Von Braun Center’s South Hall. The tournament started Wednesday and will conclude Sunday.  

The aforementioned group of six players that includes three female and one male Olympic and two male Paralympic qualifiers will eventually head to France for the 2024 Paris Games. In the meantime, they’re among over 600 entrants playing on 71 tables seeking national championships. The higher-ranked players, including the Olympians, will likely be in action until late Saturday.

Meanwhile, it’s Leibovitz who sets apart from the others bound for Paris. Among the six, he’s qualified for the most Games (1996, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024). He’s also the lone gold medal winner and member of the USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame.

“I medaled in ’04,” he told 256 Today. “I’ve had some good battles. I was close in 2020, also.”

Like 90% of the field in town for nationals, the Paralympians and Olympians are from out of state. And like the rest of the Paralympians and Olympians at the tournament, this is  Leibovitz’s first visit to the Yellowhammer State.

From Long Island in New York City, he knew very little about it except through a song by a blues legend born in the19th century. Team members arrived Tuesday night and have yet to experience the city, but so far first impressions have been positive.

“The only thing I knew about Alabama before I got here is Lead Belly,” said. “He has a song called ‘Alabama Bound.’ Amazing song. Okay. He had to get on the train as long as the train is going well (and don’t turn around), so I’ve been here one day, and I will say it has been a pleasant surprise.

“I’m not just saying that. It’s really nice, actually. I think you never know what to expect, and some of the things you kind of look for is, first of all, the environment, the feeling, the people, you know, right away people are very kind, they’re very nice. The environment is really, really good. And also there’s a lot of amenities, a lot of things to do, a lot of great restaurants.’’

The 2024 U.S. Nationals features 115 events, including 31 open and age group championship singles events, which are headlined by the Men’s and Women’s Singles events presented by the Hsing Family Foundation, which hold a $7,000 payday for a first place finish. The 2024 US Nationals will also offer 38 doubles events.

Tickets can be purchased HERE.

Olympians and Paralympians:

• Tahl Leibovitz (Long Island, N.Y.): 6-time Paralympian; 3-time Paralympic medalist (1 gold, 2 bronze)

  

  • Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, 5th (Singles Class 9 – Men), 9th (Team Class 9-10 – Men)
  • Paralympic Games Rio de Janeiro 2016, 5th (Singles Class 9 – Men)
  • Paralympic Games London 2012, 9th (Singles Class 9 – Men)
  • Paralympic Games Beijing 2008, 9th (Team Class 9-10 – Men), 11th (Singles Class 9-10 – Men)
  • Paralympic Games Athens 2004, bronze (Singles Class 9 – Men), 4th (Team Class 9 – Men)
  • Paralympic Games Atlanta 1996, gold (Singles Class 7 – Men), bronze (Team Class 6-8 – Men), 17th (Open 6-10 – Men)
• Jenson Van Emburgh (Belleair Beach, Fla.): 1-time Paralympian; 1-time Paralympic medalist (1 bronze)
  • Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, bronze (Singles Class 3 – Men), 5th (Team Class 3 – Men)
• Kanak Jah (Milpitas, Calif.): Two-time Olympian

○ Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, 9th (Team – Men), 33th (Singles – Men)

○ Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro 2016, 9th (Team – Men), 65th (Singles – Men)

• Rachel Sung (San Jose, Calif.): First Olympics

○ Pan American Games, Santiago, 2023 (Doubles – Women, Team – Women)
○ World Junior Championships, Vila Nova de Gaia, 2021 (Doubles – Women, Team – Women, Singles – Women)

• Amy Wang (Sewell, N.J.): First Olympics

○ World Cup, 2024 (Singles – Women)

○ Pan American Games, Santiago, 2023 (Doubles – Women, Team – Women, Singles – Women)

• Lily Wang (Palo Alto, Calif.): 3-time Olympian;
  • Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, 9th (Team – Women), 17th (Singles – Women)
  • Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro 2016, 9th (Team – Women), 17th (Singles – Women)
  • Olympic Games London 2012, 9th (Team – Women), 49th (Singles – Women)