The club’s founder, senior Steven Deepee, said he played table tennis in high school and when he discovered that UNC did not have a team, he decided to change that.
“Carolina’s one of the largest universities in North Carolina and there were plenty of players who were interested in playing,” Deepee said. “I kind of got them together, kind of found people who were interested, and since then we’ve only been growing as a club.”
The club is made up of a variety of people who love pingpong and enjoy spending time together.
“This isn’t just students in the undergrad, it’s also a lot of grad students, a lot of international students, a few PhD students and even some faculty members,” he said. “Basically we create a place where students of all pingpong levels can come play and learn to get better.”
The club’s vice president, junior Alex Gartland, said he loves representing UNC in the sport through tournaments.
“We get to go to the tournaments and meet lots of people from different schools and exchange stories and phone numbers and stuff like that and what table tennis has been for them and get to play,” he said.
The club is not just for competitive players like Deepee and Gartland — it provides a place for people of all skill levels. Gartland said there are about 25 people on the competitive team, but 50 to 60 people come out to play in the recreational club throughout the year.
“It’s not dependent on how skilled you are, it’s more about enjoying playing table tennis and having that as common ground,” Gartland said.
