(BY MATT HETHERINGTON)

He might be the lowest seeded player on the entry list for this month’s US National Team Trials but Richard Perez, President of Cape Fear Table Tennis Club is no less passionate about the sport than any of his opponents. Inspired in part by 93 year old Bill Guilfoil of Kansas who participated in the US Olympic Team Trial for the 2016 Rio Games, Richard has heartily adopted the phrase, ‘Why Not?’

Rich started a fundraising campaign to help sponsor his way to the trials which will be held at the Triangle Table Tennis Center, 23-26 March in North Carolina. What started as a pipe dream quickly became a reality as friends and family backed the cause. Rich says when his cousin donated a generous $100 to get him over the line it felt like a train crashing into his chest and many emotions came together, disbelief and astonishment among them. At that time Rich and talented video hero Tony Murnahan created quite the artistic video piece to capture the real meaning behind Richard Perez’s desire to compete in the National Team Trial. Title ‘Why Not?’ he has described it as a video for the greater base of players across the USA who should continue to fight for aspirations and to have fun in this sport.

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