(by Steve Hopkins)

This week, PINGPOD held a launch party celebration at their facility in Manhattan.  The event was to help promote Dora Kurimay’s new table tennis book and video series, My Stories of Mental Toughness On and Off the Table.

The event marked a milestone in Dora’s life.  It was a celebration of her personal growth and as part of the event, she encouraged other coaches to share.  Those present, coaches and players, exchanged their stories and experiences.

Max Kogler (co-founder of PINGPOD along with Ernesto Ebuen) was the moderator.  The whole event was filmed and they plan to release the edited video in a few weeks. Adam Bobrow, who wrote the Forward of the book, was unable to attend but sent in a video for the event.  Samson Dubina provided a video message where he shared a stories with the audience, and a recorded exchange between Matilda Ekholm and Dora was played for the group as well.  Matilda’s stories were about her mental toughness and her transition from a junior to an Olympian. Ernesto Ebuen shared his heart-warming experience during the pandemic and how he opened PINGPOD while coping with the loss of his uncle during the pandemic. Jennifer Wu shared her mental toughness training experience with Dora.  Tahl Leibovitz shared his personal experiences and his connection with Dora’s book.  Yasiris Ortiz and Luis Dias shared one of their success stories where they used mental toughness techniques to achieve victory. Kaz Yokayama even put on a show in costume – demonstrating how to distract players. Lastly, Thomas Hu talked about coaching and mentorship at AYTTO.

It was a unique book and video launch party where storytelling and mental toughness were the main themes. As Dora noted – It’s important to increase the knowledge and awareness of mental toughness, mental skills, and mental health in general.

Attendees included: Dora Kurimay, Ernesto Ebuen, Max Kogler,Tahl Leibovitz, Jennifer Wu,

Luis Diaz, Yasiris Ortiz, Kazuyuki Yokoyama, Thomas Hu, and James Budenholzer

Click Here for more information about Dora’s Book

Click Here for more information about the Butterfly WAB Club, PINGPOD