This Specially Designed Ping Pong Table Highlights the Challenges Faced by Para-Athletes

In Japan, only 1% of the population watch Paralympic sports. One reason these sports struggle to reach mainstream audiences is because people don’t understand the challenges faced by individual athletes and therefore don’t fully appreciate the immense skill involved to compete. 

With the aim of helping people visualise and comprehend the challenges of Paralympians, the Japan Para Table Tennis Association (JPTTA) has produced special ping pong tables, exhibiting how some of their national athletes experience the sport. 

There is a wide variation in the disabilities of individual athletes and therefore the physical obstacles faced by each player is different. Even while playing on the same rectangular table, the shape they feel as they move around the table is personally unique. 

The ‘Para Ping Pong Table’ replicates the world seen through the athletes’ eyes and was designed based on interviews and sketches from members of the Japanese national team.

Created by TBWA\HAKUHODO, the tables are part of a holistic rebrand for JPTTA – from developing a new name and logo, to designing and producing a dynamic new website concept. 

The campaign also serves as a new intuitive communication tool that helps graphically profile players based on their perspective of the table. This better informs viewers about each athlete’s unique challenges, adding greater depth for new spectators. 

“We aimed to create an icon that would make these athletes’ differences immediately appreciated with one look. I hope this profound twist on the traditional ping pong table will serve to embody the belief that ‘abilities may be limited, but possibilities are unlimited’ and enable para athletes to get the respect they deserve,” said Masaya Asai, senior creative director at TBWA\HAKUHODO.

The Para Pin Pong Tables promote diversity and allow for better appreciation of the physical obstacles Paralympians face every day in their pursuit of excellence in the sport. They are available to be rented by commercial facilities, event spaces, and schools that want to experience it.