Table Tennis Otago's work in development is beginning to pay off.
Six players from the region were this week selected for New Zealand training squads, the latest success for the sport which is going through a boom in Otago.
Tom Henderson was chosen for the senior men's squad in his first year out of age-grade play, while Kaitlin Perry was selected in the under-18 girls team.
Ruby Anderson and Molly Newell made the under-15 girls squad and Cody Brocks and Alex Clarkson were chosen for the under-12 boys.
As the sport continues to grow in popularity, more youngsters are making it their first-choice sport and looking to play at a high level. That has helped systems to be put into place which are allowing the region's players to flourish.
''We've been putting a lot of work into junior development and it's starting to pay off,'' Table Tennis Otago vice-president Ben Duffy said.
''Some of these kids are starting to step up on a national level, which is cool.
''There's a few [players] that didn't make the national squads that were pretty close. It's their first year out of their old age-group and into the new one. So there's some other really good players who didn't make the squad who could in the future.''
Each squad consisted of 10 players, the top two from each of the country's three regions, alongside another four who were selected.
Of the Otago players, both Tom Henderson and Cody Brocks were ranked in the top two in the Southern region, while the others were chosen based on results and performances.
The under-12 and under-15 squads would meet in Hamilton for a training camp in January, while the under-18 and senior squads would have their own camp.
From there, the players would get the opportunity to trial for national teams to go to international competitions.
