Member Associations | 3 Jan 2021

EU level KSI venue awaits players in Hungary

The KSI’s table tennis hall was opened, after renovations, in the last days of 2020 . Head of Hungarian men’s sector Gyula LAKATOS was almost in tears after seeing his plan coming to life.

The players have top conditions to play in the renovated venue, commonly known as the Ice Theater. The former construction which was in poor conditions was dismantled , the space is now covered with sports flooring, and the walls were repainted with a new color (dark green). The restrooms and the bathrooms, and the lighting system all have been renewed, and the doors and windows were also replaced.

“The Ice Theater, which serves as the center for youth men’s education, has become the rental property of the Hungarian Table Tennis Association, so this infrastructure is rented by the association from the National Sports Centers” said Roland NÁTRÁN, President of the HTTA. “This has finally removed all obstacles from the association to develop this infrastructure from its own resources. The second phase of the development is expected to take place next spring, when the Ice Theater’s locker rooms, community spaces and the restrooms there will be renovated from the association’s infrastructure development resources.”

The hall received a much better-than-average lighting system with more than 3,000 lux.

“I was the one who requested this. The lighting system is divided into four categories: there is average light, training light, competition light, and when it works at its maximum level, the television can broadcast the matches in a very good quality” explained Gyula LAKATOS.

“I have been managing KSI’s department for twenty-six years now and I can honestly say that I cried when the renovation work was finished. I am very happy, it is a huge thing for me to be able to achieve this” added the head of department.

The kids and coaches have already entered in their home in its new robe.

“We have been working here for a long time, so we know exactly what it was like,” said Ferenc PÁZSY taking the break from the gluing process of the taraflex, and who, like the others, took an active part in the renovation works. "It's like entering a whole new room. I think it got an atmosphere, one can see how the kids enjoy the trainings more in this new hall. Everyone has worked a lot in the last six weeks, and many thanks to Gyula LAKATOS for being able to achieve all this. The stand was completely useless, without it the space is much bigger. Because of the bigger space the room became a little slower, a little more echoed, but one can get used to that, this way we can set up a lot more tables.This great development is highly supported by the Hungarian government and carried out by the National Sport Center the valued partner of the Hungarian sports as well as the Hungarian Table Tennis Association."