Hosting World Hopes Week in England once is a big boost, hosting it twice in successive years is a real feather in the cap of the GB performance pathway.

So why did the International Table Tennis Federation choose to bring its flagship development programme for under-12s back to the EIS in Sheffield?

Dora Jeler, Head of Operations, High Performance & Education at the ITTF said: “We had a fantastic experience last year. The feedback was amazing, I’ve not heard one bad word about anything from any of the coaches and any of the kids.

“The team behind the World Hopes Week here in Sheffield is amazing, everything is organised perfectly. It’s a fantastic venue as well, and we really have everything we need here and everything in such close proximity, so we’re very glad to be back.  

“The ITTF (celebrates) 100 years this year, and we had a major celebration in London in May (the World Team Championships). So it’s really great to have the little guys and the superstars of our sport in England in the same year.”

Nat Green, Head of Pathway (Interim) at Table Tennis England, said: “I think for us it’s very proud moment for the ITTF to ask us to host it for the second year in a row. I don’t think it’s ever been done before.

“But I think from speaking with Dora and Michael at the ITTF, they were really impressed with the set-up that we’ve got here in Sheffield and the job that the whole team did last year, and felt that it was such a success that they’d like to bring it back here.

“That’s a great privilege and a partnership that we’re looking to build on for future events as well.”