The 2026 World Table Tennis for Health Festival will kick off in Shanghai on Oct 20, marking the first Asian edition of the ITTF Foundation's flagship health event as the International Table Tennis Federation marks its 100th anniversary.
Running until Oct 25 at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the festival will feature the World Alzheimer's table tennis championships and the World Parkinson's table tennis championships, with 226 athletes from 24 countries and regions competing in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. Pre-event training camps will be held from Oct 17 to 18.
"One player had trouble walking and his hands were constantly shaking, but once he picked up the paddle, his movements were excellent," Yan Sen, a former Olympic table tennis champion and the festival's ambassador, said.
"This event will be a huge help for Parkinson's patients. Table tennis is more than competition — it should reach people of all ages and support their physical and mental health."
Beyond the competition arena, the festival opens to the public with a fun table tennis zone, a charity art exhibition and eight health-themed game stations, making the sport accessible to people of all ages and physical abilities. The World Table Tennis Health Conference will run from Oct 23 to 24, delivering 14 keynote speeches across four themes to share cutting-edge research and best practices in table tennis for health, creating an integrated model of sports, medicine, research and public welfare.
Shanghai already has a strong track record in this field. Its local Ping-Pong vs Parkinson's program is widely recognized as a national model of sports-medicine integration for patient rehabilitation. As part of the festival's legacy initiative, competition equipment will be donated to relevant institutions to support regular table tennis rehabilitation training for special groups, turning the event's impact into lasting public health benefits.
