Fifty years ago George Meakin, while visiting relatives in Belgium, decided to look for a club in order to play a game of table tennis. He found TTK Schoten, in a town on the outskirts of Antwerp, where he was made to feel extremely welcome. The rest is history.

Over the many years since, despite George’s passing, firm friendships have developed, nurtured by biennial visits involving George’s beloved Windsor TTC (of Clacton-On-Sea, Essex) and TTK Schoten.

During the weekend of 7-9 June, Windsor TTC once again welcomed their friends from TTK Schoten, for the latest in the series of visits. The 17 Belgian guests stayed with their host families. This included Jenny Higgins, George’s daughter.

Over the course of a long weekend, the table tennis players and friends enjoyed both singles and doubles tournaments, a disco, karaoke and a friendly game of snooker, as well as much socialising, eating and drinking. Gifts including a Friendship trophy were exchanged. 

New friendships were made and old friendships renewed. It has been a wonderful example of people from different cultures and countries coming together, thanks to their mutual love of the game of table tennis. Windsor Table Tennis Club will hopefully travel, as invited, over to Schoten in two years’ time.