Foster says inexperience,lack of training affected Jamaica

Robert Bailey, Gleaner Writer

National table tennis women's champion, Yvonne Foster, said insufficient training and lack of experience contributed to the hosts poor showing in the just-concluded Caribbean Region Table Tennis Federation (CRTTF) Championships, which ended on Friday night at the University of Technology Auditorium.

"I think we need a lot more training from different coaches and we also need to go to Cuba or Europe, where the table tennis system is better advanced, so that we can get better training there," said the 15-year-old Foster, who attends Meadowbrook High School.

Outplayed opponent

Foster won the girls Under-21 singles crown when she outplayed Ashley Quashie of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) 11-8, 12-10, 11-7 for the title.

However, she was beaten by the eventual champion, Rheann Chung of T&T, in the semi-final of the open event (11-3, 11-4, 11-4, 11-1).

Despite the home advantage, the Jamaicans also failed to secure a spot in both the male and female open singles finals, respectively.

Jamaica's Kane Watson also lost out in the Under-21 men's final when he went down 3-2 (11-5, 9-11, 11-4, 5-11, 9-11) to Anderson Carrington of Barbados.

"I think the lack of experience and training also cost us to lose out in the team section because Trinidad (and Tobago) players are a lot more experienced than us," Foster said.

"I think that Rheann Chung has a lot more experience than me because she has been training with her father in France and table tennis is also good over there," she said.

Foster also pointed out that her preparations for the championships was severely hampered because of her schoolwork.