A man who is 92 is teaching others the secrets of living a long, healthy and fulfilling life by engaging in one activity he truly cares about. Ivan Pedley loves the game of ping-pong.
A man who is 92 years old is not only still competing in his activity of choice, he’s teaching others the secrets of how to live a long, healthy and fulfilling life.
Ivan Pedley, a retired toolmaker, plays ping-pong twice a week and said he has no plans to stop any time soon.
The grandfather of three took up the paddle sport when he was 14, news agency SWNS reported. Now, 78 years later, he’s still playing.
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The retiree plays roughly 14 games a week at the Great Wyrley Table Tennis Club in Staffordshire, West Midlands, England.
He often goes up against opponents who are much younger, SWNS said.
And while he may have slowed down a bit over time, Pedley said he rarely gets knocked off the table and that success at the sport is all about “technique.”
He said regular ping-pong playing helps him stay fit and healthy and that continuing to play it well into his senior years is the best thing he’s ever done.
“I enjoy every minute of it.”, said Pedley, who lives in Walsall, West Midlands.
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“It’s the best thing I’ve ever done. I don’t know anyone older than 92 playing.”
He said that while others who play might be “faster” than he is, “it’s all in the technique.”
There are “a lot of people in their 60s” who play, he said, “but I play the younger people, too. I try to play everybody at the club.
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“I’ll keep going for as long as I can, as long as my health stays. Sitting on your backside is no help to anyone.”
He said he first found his passion for ping-pong while he was a teenager and let it go for a while when he was in his 20s.
But once he reached his 60s, he rediscovered his love of the sport after a chance game with a friend while on vacation, he said.
He then started playing regularly again while also continuing to stay involved in bowling, swimming and judo. He’s a brown belt.
Pedley said he believes he’s gotten better at ping-pong because of the standard of skill in those he’s playing against these days.
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He added, jokingly, “I do let these [them] win sometimes, though, because I don’t want to dishearten them.”
Pedley goes to the club on Tuesdays and Fridays, he said, spending up to three hours each time.
“I don’t want to sit here and do nothing,” he said. “I like to keep myself healthy. … I keep going. It makes me get up and do it.
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“Once you’re committed, you have to try and turn up. I’d tell anyone to join a club to start with.
“I’ve done amateur competitions. I’ve got certificates from what I’ve achieved at table tennis.”
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“He’ll always put his heart into it,” club Secretary Tony Reeds told SWNS about Pedley/.
He said Pedley will play against “anyone” who comes into the club to play ping-pong.
“He’s part of the furniture now. He’s had some good games.”
Pedley tells people, “If you want to keep fit, this is the way to do it,” Reeds noted.
Older people are wise to stay active, eat well, remain connected to others and take care of themselves both physically and mentally in other ways as well, health and medical experts have long said.
