Thomas Rhys Hepburn - Para Table Tennis Athlete

I am Thomas R. Hepburn, a British Para Table Tennis Athlete, wheelchair user, 21 years old from Dorset.

I am mainly self/family funded and need to raise funds to cover my travel, accommodation, local club and coaching fees, sports clothing and table tennis equipment. The Journey to be a professional athlete is long and expensive, easily £10,000+ per annum with all the Coaching Fees, Equipment Costs, Competition Fees, Travel Costs, and Accommodation.

I am on the pathways squad for British Para Table Tennis, Wheelchair Class 4. I aim to compete internationally, and like most athletes, with the dream to compete in the Paralympics.

A lot of my training and competitions are at the British Table Tennis HQ in Sheffield, which means a round journey of 540 miles and several nights' accommodation each time I attend national training or competitions.

I am hoping to get support from grant-making bodies, companies, charitable organisations and individuals. Any support you can give will be appreciated. Thank You!

My Journey:

At 9 years old, I had a bad fall on the way home from our local park. From this, I developed neurological problems leading to the inability to control my muscles below the waist, as well as high sensitivity and constant extreme pain known as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome or CRPS.

A few months before my injury, I had taken up table tennis as an able-bodied player for a school challenge and as I wanted to learn a new sport.

Having table tennis when I was faced with the disabling condition helped me have something to focus on and remain active, as well as helping me cope and deal with losing function and as a distraction from the pain.

To help stay active and increase my freedom, I also took up sailing, being in the best place for it on the south coast. After a few years of determination, I managed to win and become the national champion in my class. I was devastated that sailing was dropped from the Paralympics, despite significant efforts of the “back the bid” campaign, and hence I would not have any chance of competing as a Paralympic sailor.

At the same time, my table tennis, at this stage almost entirely against able-bodied players (with me as a wheelchair player), was improving, and I was playing at county and regional level, so my efforts moved fully towards table tennis and setting my sights on competing nationally.

After some competition successes, I was selected for the British Para Table Tennis Pathways Squad and have competed at 2 Para Nationals and 2 England Nationals.

I am now within the range of the top 5 wheelchair players in the country and am currently ranked number 1 ranked in my disability class, Class 4 Men's.

My next steps are to prepare myself physically and mentally to compete on the international circuit, to get formally classified and end up with a world ranking in my class.

Please support me in any way you can to help me in my journey to compete internationally and hopefully at the Paralympics.

Extra Facts about me:

• 100% Wheelchair dependent, CRPS, paralysis, waist down

• Table Tennis National Team (BPTT) Athlete, Men's Class 4

• Starting to coach young players locally, entering table tennis

• Sailing National Champion in 2022

• Sailing skipper/instructor volunteer for charity Chesil Sailability, which provides disabled people with sailing opportunities and gives them freedom

• UK's Association of Colleges (AoC) Young Student of the Year 2022-2023

• Qualified Design Engineer

• 3D Printing Enthusiast

Find Me:

Instagram - TomRHepburn