With the conclusion of the prize-giving ceremony on Wednesday, 30 September 2026 at 5.05 pm, the 7th PingPongParkinson World Championships also drew to a close. Over the course of the five days, 757 players from 34 countries competed in at least one of the three events – singles, doubles and mixed doubles – and thus took part in the competitions. A number of other registered players had travelled to the event but subsequently decided not to take part in the competition, instead watching the matches at the Sportpark Hannover near Lake Maschsee, where 90 tables were set up across three halls. A total of 230 volunteers worked in various roles to ensure that the tournament ran smoothly and would be a memorable experience for the participants.
The most successful participant, as a three-time world champion, was Petra Heidemann from Germany, who took first place in all three events in the Women’s 3 category. Maria Osorio from Spain won two titles in the Women’s 2 category, whilst Dorin Gabudean from Romania claimed two titles in the Men’s 1 category. Both secured the singles and doubles titles in their respective categories. For the fourth year running, Silke Kind and Thorsten Flues (Germany) won the Class 1 mixed doubles title. There was a second title defence in the Women’s 1 doubles for Melanie Jeska and Agnes Jan (Germany/Austria), who thus won this title for the third consecutive year. In the main class, there were many new, strong players, resulting in new title-winners in both the men’s and women’s events. In the women’s competition, Monika Hussmann (Germany) won the singles title at her first attempt, just as Dorin Gabudean (Romania) did in the men’s event.s.
The 8th PingPongParkinson World Championship will take place in Switzerland. From 12 to 17 October 2027, the National Sports Centre in Magglingen, north-west of Bern, will host the PingPongParkinson community..
