My World Cup Life

 At some times and about some topics, some people reflect...

In 1966, while living in London, at age 8, my team (England) won the World Cup. I watched it on a blurry black and white TV with my cousin Joanie and with Jennifer (the au pair). England beat Germany in the final. Goals were scored at the last minute of regular time and in the last seconds of overtime. At that time, I was playing on the 10 and Under team for my school, Herewood House.

Living in London in the Mid 1960s

In 1974, I was in London with my cousin Geoff during the Cup. We watched a ton of games on TV mostly being astounded by Gert Muller's ability to turn, move the defense man out of place, and to shoot and score. He was predictable but unstoppable and led the Germans to victory. At the time, I was playing high school soccer.

Bethesda Chevy Chase
High School Soccer

In 1978, my Dad took my brothers and me to Comsat Labs, which he ran, to see the World Cup final. At that time, it was not broadcast in the USA but Comsat had a direct satellite feed and lots of international types committed to see the game.  The TV was small and blurry, there were maybe 50 of us trying to watch the game.  Argentina beat the Netherlands who were pioneering the Total Football strategy.  At the time, I was playing college soccer.

 In April of 1981, while in the Peace Corps, I travelled with my team - St Colombe de Sangmelima - up to Yaounde to watch the Cameroonian team - The Indomnitable Lions - play their final qualification match against Zaire. They won and qualified for the 1982 World Cup and as many locals said to me after they qualified for the finals: While you come from the USA - a military superpower - we come from Cameroon which is an International Football Superpower!

St Colombe de Sangmelima
L'Equip de 1981

In 1986, with Bill and Jose, I spent a month in Mexico travelling to Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara to watch the 1986 World Cup.  What a blast! Somehow, there aren't any pictures that I can find of us in the stadiums.  Back then,  I was playing on my business school soccer team.

Mexico 1986

HBS Indoor Soccer Team 1986

Mexico 1986

 

In 1994, the  World Cup was in the USA, I had tickets with my two brothers to all the games at the Stanford Stadium. Ironically, it looked at one point that since my job had changed and I was now responsible for international, I would have to skip a game to host an important international meeting. Instead, I surprised the heck out of my new colleagues by jiggling the schedule with them and taking them to see a World Cup game. At the time, I was playing in rec leagues and my company - SGI - had a team.  

SGI team ~1990

In 1998, I started watching the Cup while living in England.  That was one of England's best chances to bring the Cup home. Sadly, it was not to be. France beat Brazil in the final with Zazu (Zidane) as the star. At the time, I was playing on the Argonaut Games soccer team (no pictures?).  But I moved back to the US that summer and I watched the French win the final on a wall size high res TV (really cutting edge back then) at George Ligeti's house in Boca.

Like so many, I watched my first women's world cup in 1999. The USA won! The winning goal scorer's celebration made the cover of many magazines.  Her name is Brandi.

Brandi Celebrating the W!

 A few weeks after it, I had dinner with Brandi Chastain and Julie Foudy.  Was that her reward for winning the Cup?

Brandi Chastain, John Edelson, Julie Foudy

If you're a World Cup fan, you should see the Copa 71 film (2023). It tells the story of the pioneering 1971 Women's World Cup held in Mexico, which drew crowds of over 100,000. FIFA subsequently erased erased it from official sporting history but it's quite a story!

So the last Cup that I attended was in 1994 but I have followed all the Cups since then avidly. France won in 1998 in France. I watched the final at George's. Brazil (with Ronaldo) beat Germany in the final in 2002. I think I was back at George's.  Italy beat France (Zazu's last game) in a shoot out in 2006 in Germany. I watched the final at Harry's. In 2010, Spain beat the Netherlands in the final in South Africa and again, I was up at George's. Germany beat Argentina in 2014 in Brazil. France beat Croatia in the 2018 final held in Russia (How times change! Russia - since attacking Ukraine - has not been allowed to play in the Cup). And Argentina beat France in Qatar in a thrilling final in 2022. I was at a watch party in my condo building's common room. Mbappe scored a hat trick (3 goals), Messi scored 2 but the game was won by Argentina in a penalty shoot out. Astounding!

I watched on these on big screen TVs and in the comfort of my home or friends' homes or in a bar.  I surprise myself this year that with the Miami games within driving distance, I do not get off my duff and go to the games.  I think about it...

But then I think about the high resolution TV that I have at home,  my zero gravity chairs, and all the traffic and heat involved in going to the games and... at age 68... I'm good watching the games from home. To make me feel better, a truck with a large cup replica stopped by this week for a photo op with me. And I keep track of the cup on a poster and I buy a few national jerseys to wear around the house.

  

And why do I reflect on this? I don't really know but during recent cups, I find myself thinking thru the many cups that I've watched remembering the different people that I've watched with, and the various restaurants, pubs, and bars where I've watched games.  It's a sort of life inventory. 

Most importantly, by writing it down rather than talking it thru with my kids, wife, and friends, I avoid being the biggest bore of all time.  Writing (journaling or blogging if you will) is a way that I can semi-privately express my gratitude for a lifetime full of wonderful world cups.

That's John Edelson's World Cup life so far.  

Did I mention that at the 1986 World Cup, I ran into Pele in 1982 at 2 in the morning? He was coming into a club when I was leaving.  We made eye contact: He smiled beneficently, I went down on one knee and bowed. As everyone else did.

 Also, I ran into Messi recently in a local parking lot here in Ft Lauderdale. I saw him but I don't think he looked at me. He didn't bother me and I didn't bother him. But I sure would have liked that selfie...

One more thought, this time about the professional club teams that I've seen in my hometown of DC. Anybody else remember?

The Washington Whips
The Washington Darts
The Washington Diplomats - I particularly liked the Diplomats since they played in a high school stadium and we could get close to the field and players.  Pele and tons of other Greats were playing for the Cosmos so we could watch them play up close and personal.

My Health Data at Home: Iphone & Iwatch

I'd like to see an article that explains all the ways that the iphone and watch can be used to measure key health metrics.  Many people seem fascinated by having a target number of steps.  I'm looking for more than that.  

 What can I see and do?

Heart Rate. Instant Heart, iPhone - app on phone gives me, after some seconds with my finger over the camera (middle lens). My heart rate: 54-57 bpm 10/24/25

Heart Rate. iWatch - Clicking on iWatch app for BPM: Heart Rate. 53 bpm 10/24/25

ECG app. iWatch with iPhone.  Put finger on crown for 30 seconds. watch gives BPM (51). On the phone, there's info from it on Sinus Rhythm, Atrial fibrillation

Blood oxyogen. App on phone called Blood Oxyogen.  99%.

Weight. Renpho

Best way to measure blood pressure?  Need a cuff that talks to the phone.

Data Flow

Anyway to get my weight and other data sent from Renpho into Apple Data flow?

Any comprehensive reports?

Workouts. I'll try to keep the iwatch on and activate it when I exercise. I tried today when I spent some time on a tennis court but I don't seem to have activated it until after I had finished. Typical. ;-<

So I asked AI. Here's the key points:

The Apple Watch tracks a range of metrics, such as heart rate, activity, sleep, and blood oxygen, which are all sent to the Apple Health app for a comprehensive overview. 

Heart health

Your Apple Watch monitors your heart rate throughout the day and can alert you to irregularities.

• Notifications: Receive alerts for unusually high or low heart rates. On supported models, you can also be alerted to irregular heart rhythms that could be a sign of atrial fibrillation (AFib).
• ECG app: On newer models, take a single-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) at any time to check for signs of AFib. You can share the reading as a PDF with your doctor.
• Hypertension alerts: On Apple Watch Series 9 or newer, you can receive alerts for potential hypertension based on heart data. 
  
  
  Activity and fitness
  The Apple Watch and iPhone automatically track your movement.
  • Activity rings: The Activity app on both devices helps you track your progress toward your Move, Exercise, and Stand goals.
  • Workouts: The Workout app on your watch lets you track specific activities like running, cycling, or swimming, collecting detailed data on your performance.
  • Steps and distance: Your iPhone and Apple Watch automatically track your steps and distance. All the data is aggregated in the Health app.
  Sleep tracking

  By wearing your Apple Watch to bed, you can monitor your sleep patterns.

  • Track sleep: Set a sleep schedule in the Health app to track your sleep duration and time spent in different sleep stages.
  • Vitals app: This app provides a consolidated look at overnight metrics, including heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, blood oxygen, and sleep duration.
  • Sleep apnea notifications: On supported models, your watch can monitor for signs of sleep apnea, a condition that can interrupt breathing during sleep. 

  Other important metrics

  • Blood oxygen: On supported Apple Watch models, you can measure your blood oxygen saturation using the built-in sensor.

Table Tennis Skills - Slowly Building

 Here's me working on my forehand in November 2025 (can you see what I'm doing wrong?  The video was shot to show me):

And here is what I look like playing at the Butterfly tournament at BTTC - Broward Table Tennis Center -  against Jorge Santiago. July 26, 2025. My performance is certainly nothing to write home about but it's better than it was.  I've stopped making videos at tournaments since I think it's distracting.

Here's (below) my rating after the Jan 2026 Tournament at BTTC. I was 5-3 on the Friday night. I feel that I'm still underperforming and that I belong at about 1200 at this point but of course, I need to do more winning (and less losing) to get there. 

My plan (or ambition) is to add 100 points per year to 1400-1500 (in three years) when I suspect that I'll max out (ie I'll lose my intensity, find further progress really hard, and of course, I'm not likely to be getting any younger).  So the goal (assuming I belong at 1200 now) is to get to 1300 in Jan 2027.  

First step: Fix my back and regain cardio so I can play for more 90 minutes at at time.

My rating late Jan 2026 (after Jan tournament)

Here's my rating at the start of 2026. It had dropped :-<

Here's where one logins to see the ratings: https://usatt.justgo.com/ 

The old places to see ratings don't seem to work anymore.

- https://www.usatt.org/usatt-ratings

- https://usatt.simplycompete.com/info/ratings

Where do I play table tennis? I play everywhere I go!

One aspect of table tennis that I like is that when I travel, I can usually find a place to play.  

I'll list here both of my home clubs (BCC - Beach Community Center and BTTC - Broward Table Tennis Club) and all the different places that I've played in the last few years.  Often when I travel, I call up the local club and take a table tennis lesson or try to fit in a game. 

I mostly play in the Ft Lauderdale Beach Community Center. It's about 5 minutes from home. I play three times a week there. There are a few exceptional players who play there.  Most of the crowd are good players. I've made it in the last two years from the bottom of barrel up to just a bit better than the average player there.  It's social so sometimes, I'm playing in doubles games with mixed levels.  But I'm more into the intense training these days. 

Ft Lauderdale Beach Community Center

I also go to the Broward Table Tennis Center where I both take lessons and play with different people. It an amazing table tennis center run by Carlos Rodriguez. It's near the corner of University Blvd and Sterling Drive (more info) so it's a full 45 minute drive. My sometimes coach is Terese Terranova, the lady in pink below.

In the building where I live (Auberge, Ft Lauderdale), there is a table but it's not really set up for competitive play. There's space but depending on the sunlight, the lighting can be be a problem. 

Travel and Table Tennis

My wife likes to travel and do touristy things. She likes to shop much more that I do.  So when we travel, I often visit a club. 

 

Here's a quick list of my ping pon travel visits so far.

Ft Lauderdale,  Florida - My home club, where I've entered a few tournaments, Broward TTC. Terese Terranova. 

Washington DC , WDCTT - The DC Table Tennis center is in NW DC and is owned by Khaleel Asgarali. I visited in 2022, 23, and 25. 

 

  

https://youtube.com/shorts/7AymMIqGAQ4

Gaithersburg Maryland -  The Maryland Table Tennis Center.  2022 

NYC -  A ping pod center around W 48th street in Manhattan.   2022 

London - Eli Baraty and Guy Ben-Aroya in London. March 2024, Sept 2025. eBaTT in Oxgate (West London)

Paris, TT16 - Nicolas Brocard in the 16th arrondisement on the Blvd Lannes. Played March 2024 and March-April 2025. Nicolas has a 15 table facility for table de tennis at  the Muette centre sportif.  I also try to indulge in my other sports when I travel. In Paris, where we go frequently, I have a boxing trainer, a yoga studio, and a gym right next to where we stay in the 7th.  

Girona Spain - Maestro Elizabeth Granados Artacho (who also helped me with my Spanish) and Tennis Table Girona have their own articles on this blog.  July 2024

San Sebastian, Spain.   La Escuela de tenis de mesa, Club Atlético San Sebastián. July 2024  

Kendell (Miami) - Ping Pod, a session with Neslihan Özdemir (girlonthebikeNY),  Oct 2024

Charlotte, NC TT - a session with Bill Englebreth. He's widely travelled as both a TT referree and umpire. Oct 2025.

 

Khaleel Asgaral of WDCTT - Wash DC

WDCTT has 5 tables and a robot
Washington Table Tennis Club

Guy Ben-Aroya - eBaTT London

Charlotte Table Tennis Club
Bill Englebreth - President

- - - - -Notes from a Lesson at eBaTT with Guy in W London  ---- - - - 

Backhand: Much more wrist. Cock it fully and hit with the wrist. Less arm.  
Forhand: Open up at the waist and legs with paddle down, arm straight down and behind the leg. Move from the waist with a salute motion (much less arm). Mind the distance between my body and the ball. Spin the ball (don't hit it). Shift weight to right leg as set up, back as part of the hit.

- - - - -Notes from Playing in Brickell PingPod  ---- - - - 

I was down in Brickell, a part of Miami, this week for a few things and rather than sit around, I booked into the Pingpod center in Brickell, it was a nine minute walk from my hotel. In reality, it was longer since the center is not exactly where the address suggests it should be and the signage is not so clear.  But once I found it, very nice.  Small, only four tables but a great space. 

I had booked a coach for beginners, Neslihan Özdemir (girlonthebikeNY). I told her I just wanted to practice. We  mostly played games.  She  ran me through some drills and reminded me, as everyone does, to stay low, to get ready for the next shot, to hit forehands with my body (not just my arm), and that the more reliable shot is usually cross court (not down the line). 

She taught me a new serve which was great. I had been hitting my slice serves pretty hard with tons of spin. She showed me that a much more understated serve with just a little backspin, hit short, and with a shorter softer stroke was also possible and often effective. Cool!

At one point, I did ask her about serve returns since it was on my mind. She made two points, neither of which was new to me.

1.  Watch their paddle at the point of contact with the ball,
2.  Stare at the ball and you can actually see the spin on the ball. I've tried this and so far, I have not made any progress. But I'll keep staring at the ball and see if it comes into focus soon...

At the ping pong, we only hit the record button only once, that's the video point above. 

I would have hung out for the social hour  that was a little later except I had a previous commitment.  

 

Brickell PingPod Center, Miami

 

--------------

Elisabeth Granados Artacho, Girona Spain

Paris - Nicolas Brocard (old Center - pre 2025)

West London (Oxgate) - Eli Baraty eBaTT

Want to read more?
Getting Started playing Table Tennis (includes videos of me playing in 2023)
Playing Table Tennis when I travel and at home - This article
Returning Serves and Dealing with Spin
Table Tennis in Girona with Professor Artacho
My TT Tournament Performance as of 2023 

nice lists of shots: 

https://youtube.com/shorts/Gyhx5iCQXKs?si=0D5f075P-FQ9vL3j
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/C_E9XPqqKDA  (returns of short shots)

Tai Chi -Ten Form Yang Tai Chi by Vijay Son

In my condo building, I've got a chance to learn some Tai Chi since we have an onsite course. I'm looking forward to it.  Here's the first form that we are learning (updated 2/1). 

The instructor is Vijay Son, Tai Chi Master / Insight Mediator.

 

(to see this full screen, try double clicking on the Youtube logo)

Here's the steps with some of the key elements explained.

1. Starting. Stand feet together, balance, step shoulder width left (still facing forward), balance, and slightly bend knees. Bring arms up with hands facing down (like a zombie), then dip hands.

2. Repulse monkey. Swing left hand back behind (like a windup) and then punch forward with an open hand while the right hand (hand facing up) pulls back as if elbowing a monkey who is behind us. The shoulders twist to follow the two hands. Now punch forward with the right while left arm elbows backwards.

Repulse Monkeys
Hit forward, elbow back

3. Brush knee, push. Step out to the left (foot points to left) and open hand punch with the right to the left while left hand (face down) pulls back to near body. Shoulders stay square. Step back to the middle facing forward. Same to right.

4. Pat the Horse's Mane (or Big Ball). Hold imaginary ball with left arm over it, right arm under. Step left (foot points to left) with right hand slowly launching ball while left hand releases early (face down). Watch ball depart. Reverse to right.

5. Cloud Hands. Right pushes clouds across (inward block) with palm facing towards face, repeat with left, both hands continuing circle while moving back to front position. Step left (foot facing forward) doing Cloud hands again. Step in so facing forward with another cloud hands rotation. Same to right.

6. Golden Rooster. As return to center, lift right foot forward with right hand put like a rooster's comb over the head and other hand pushes down to the side. Hold. Repeat to other side.

7. Heel Kicks. Cross hands over the body and raise them to neck height (palms facing out) while lifting left leg. Then, snap kick (ie straighten knee) while extending hands to each side. Then bring foot down (bending at knee) and place foot back on ground while dropping hands. Do the same to the right.

8. Grasp Bird's Tail. This involves three pushes to each side, each different. This starts with a repeat of Pat Horses Mane (or throw ball) so you push to the left. But then, bring hands close together as if grasping a rope and pull it, putting weight back on the right foot and turning slightly towards the right. Flow back to the left a 2nd time to the left this time with the hands together (left hand further out, right hand behind it). Flow back to center without turning. The hands started straight out and then pulled back with both elbows bending. Now flow to the left a 3rd time as if you are pushing a beachball down into the water. Flow back to center and repeat to the right.

Grasp the Birds Tail:
Three Pushes to Each Side

9. Cross Hands. Come back to center crossing hands (palms facing back, left closest to the body) at neck height.

10. Close. Step in with right foot and uncross hands by circling them down, out to each side, back into chest, short pause, and then push down and exhale.

You're done. You might be refreshed, relaxed, strengthened, grounded, and with your yin and yang back in balance. If not, repeat the form more meditatively trying to bring your full chi into play.

Cross Hands and Close

  

 Note that there is another video is of him when he is teaching and he is presenting it backwards (left to right) so students can follow. it only goes to Golden Rooster :  Video link - https://youtu.be/zOJiLQS9G48   

(Also learned: sword strike forward, rotate,...?)

Returning Serves: Dealing with Spin

In table tennis, returning serves with a lot of sping: it's very hard for everyone. Here's my thinking about learning how to return super spinning serves.  It's beginner (competitive) level. 

Brickell PingPad Center
(more about this at the bottom)

I think of the spin on serves as having two axis: Up/down (top or bottom spin), left/right.  Some serves combine the two axis.

Up/Down
So if the server cuts the ball on the serve (ie undersping), the return will tend to go low and hit the net. So I need to angle it up to get it over the net. Probably, I should cut it back to keep it low and hard for my opponent to hit. So a cut serve is best returned with a cut return.

If the server brushes upward and applies topspin to the ball, a return will tend to popup and fly off the end of the table. I must close the angle of my racquet to keep it down. If possible, I should put topspin on it by brushing up behind the ball.

Left/Right. Note: as the returning server, I think in terms of my left and right. And for this primer, I'm assuming we're all righties.

If the server uses a back hand serve and brushes the ball from MY right to left, a return will tend to fly off to my left and miss the table. So I hit the ball back toward the right side of the table. Simply, I return the ball towards the side that the server racquet's come from.

On the tomahawk serve and others where the racquet comes straight forward brushing one side of the ball. Here's the rule. I should return the ball away from the side that the racquet brushed.  They brush the left side, I hit to the right. They brush the right side, I hit to the left (all from my POV).

Both Axis at once!

If the server uses a forward serve brushing the ball from my left to right, my return will tend to fly off to my right, so I hit back towards my left to keep it on the table. Again, I hit towards where their racquet came from.

BUT, in competitive table tennis games, the server is adding a lot of deception and hitting the ball in such a way that it's hard to see which axis they are on (this is a great line from Ping to Pong's video). And good players, to make it even harder to follow, will throw the ball high in the air so in watching ball, you cannot see their paddle's position until the ball falls back down.

Here's a video which shows another way to put the spin on the ball.

 

 

More experienced players and coaches don't talk (or think) in the simple axis concept that I do, they seem to categorize by the type of serve. Here is "Ping to Pong"'s (film author) categories of spin:

Here's his video which analyses the tomahawk, pendulum, hook, reverse pendulum, and so on.

 

One great point that he makes: Look at the contact point between the server's racquet and ball: ignore all the fake  movements before before and after the contact point. Great advice. Nicely said.  Effing hard to do.  

So now I need to recognize a reverse pendulum serve and send it back to the server's backhand. Also, the hook and tomahawk. And send them back to the server's backhand.

And I need to recognize the pendulum and send it back to the server's forehand.

Another point, many people talk about the TT ball having a clockwise or a counterclockwise spin.  Opinions please: Do other players really think that way? It seems so abstract to me and I can't seem to get my head around it. Many players seem to talk about watching the spin on the ball. This seems impossible to me....

 Pingpod center in Brickell,

Neslihan Özdemir  

Want to read more?
Getting Started playing Table Tennis (includes videos of me playing in 2023)
Playing Table Tennis when I travel and at home 
Returning Serves and Dealing with Spin - This article
Table Tennis in Girona with Professor Artacho
My TT Tournament Performance as of 2023 

Table Tennis in Girona with Elisabeth Granados Artacho

 This is one my travel visits to Table Tennis Clubs around the world.... 

I spent five days in Girona and had hoped to play ping pong every day. There was  a good looking club, the Tennis Taula Girona.  I contacted them well in advance and it seemed like they had a group that I could sign up for the week. When it got closer, I was told that they had cancelled the group since there were not enough signups. I was very disappointed.  After a series of emails where I tried to sign up for daily private lessons, they found an instructor for a private lesson on my last day. Oh well.  

I went to a huge public gymnasium in Girona, Catalonia, Spain.

My teacher was the talented, charming, and multilingual Elisabeth Granados Artacho.  She was a top player in her region for years but is now a teacher. She retired from competition sometime in her 30s. I think she is still in her 30s. 

Elisabeth Granados Artacho, Mi Maestro de Tenis de Mesa

The facility was fantastic and I really enjoyed the lesson  especially since I hadn't played or exercised in two weeks. Specifics:

Just like every teacher, she saw me failing to reset after every shot. I seem to watch my shots and wait. I should be resetting.  And like other teachers, she drilled me on short shots to be sure to get my foot forward under the table.

Slamming.  She drilled me on the difference between an aggressive top spin shot and a simpler slam. This was particularly new on forehand but she pushed it both on forehand and backhand.

My follow through tended to be a little exaggerated. She showed me how to keep it under control.

However,  she also pushed a few ideas that are a little different from what I have heard so I've got more to think about.

Forehand. She wanted me to turn more on my forehand. Drop my right leg further back and rotate my shoulders more. 

Backhand. Again, she pushed more body, not just arm. She wanted me to rotate my shoulders. It's more of a drop of my right shoulder and a rotate back of my left one. Then the body supports the shots so it's not just with the arm.

For off the side short backhands, she had be take a big step around the top.

I really enjoyed my lesson with her. I would have loved to have had one lesson daily for the week I was in Girona.  I'd like to say "next time" but honestly, how often do I get to visit Girona?

And I am working on my Spanish including  Las Palabras de Vocabulario de tenis de mesa. 

Want to read more?
Getting Started playing Table Tennis (includes videos of me playing in 2023)
Playing Table Tennis when I travel and at home 
Returning Serves and Dealing with Spin
Table Tennis in Girona with Professor Artacho - This article
My TT Tournament Performance as of 2023 

Table Tennis Status: A Year or so in...

John Edelson's competitive table tennis career has not gone great.  Click to see my (John Edelson's) current ranking.

I had been under the impression that if I took a few lessons and played hard / trained three times a week, I would become a competitive player.  Here's what that approach has yielded so far:

Quick summary - My ranking started low and rather than improving, has dropped. I'm at the very bottom of the competitive rankings.  

John Edelson's Table Tennis Rankings

 A Solid Start.  I played in my first tournament in March of 2023 and I was encouraged by having a few wins. I was awarded a player rating of 1110 which I thought was a  respectable rating. I played again in May and did about the same and my rating increased to 1118. I was thrilled. 

But then a lot of losing. Unfortunately. since then, I have been matched against a more competitive crew  and I fear my current rating is a better illustration of where I fit in the competitive table tennis world. Basically, at the bottom.

In my next tournaments, I have not done so well (in one tournament I didn't win a single match) and so my ranking is now down to 977.  In retrospect, my initial scores might have been a bit of a fluke since I was matched against several players with no ranking at all and I beat them. Their names might have been Mo, Curly, Larry, and Shemp.  

Opponents from First Tournaments?

You can see my rating as it evolves here. 

You can look up any competitive table tennis player's ranking on the USATT website, here's a shortcut.

Improvement Feels Inevitable. BUT, I am still working at it and my technique is improving. There's also the question of my fitness. When I watch myself playing, I am surprised to see that I appear very low energy on the court. I look tired. I feel like I'm being intense but compared to the others, not so much. So I'm trying to also get more in shape by generally improving my workout schedule, diet, weight, and mentality.

Stay tuned. For more background and to see what I look like as a player, here's another article  about me getting started in table tennis . (It includes some much requested videos of me playing table tennis)

BTW, I do still do a bit of martial arts in the form of doing boxing-based circuit training at 9 Rounds in Ft Lauderdale. I hit pads but no longer spar. Here I am with the speed bag.

Getting Started playing Table Tennis (includes videos of me playing in 2023)
Playing Table Tennis when I travel and at home
Returning Serves and Dealing with Spin
Table Tennis in Girona with Professor Artacho
My TT Tournament Performance as of 2023 - This article

I play often at Beach Community Center. It's a mixed group but there are some truly excellent players:

Top Players: Micheal Walk, Chris Georgakopoulos <?>, Casear (Peru), Alex (Polynesian)
Next Level: Willy, Paul