THE sport of table tennis has a long and storied history here in Hamilton, with current Olympian and Paralympian, Melissa Tapper, being the obvious name that springs to mind, but now youngster, Ruby Rankin, is progressing through junior pathways.

Rankin has just completed five tough days of training and competition in Geelong at the Table Tennis Australia (TTA) Hopes Challenge, where the best young players from across Australia are brought together to train and play at higher standards.