European University Games: Ryan Henry wins table tennis silver

Ryan Henry, 22, from Ardrossan, claimed second place at the tournament held in Lodz from the middle to the end of last month.

The athlete was part of Britain’s largest ever delegation of universities, 251, to compete in the games.

He also became one of the first ever British Para athletes to compete in the games, which are a flagship event of the European University Sport Association (EUSA).

The games take place every two years, hosted in different cities across the continent, and the over 6,000 athletes taking part make them the biggest multi-sport academic event in Europe.

Henry, who studies Sports Coaching and Development at the University of the West of Scotland, suffered defeat in his first match of the games, falling 3-1 to Norwegian Christian Pablo Pereira Jacobsen in the class eight match.

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Though he avenged the defeat to secure silver as he overcame another Norwegian player, Fredrik Johansen, 3-1.

Henry said: “I’m happy with how I played, and to come home with a silver medal. I’m a bit disappointed that there weren’t as many matches as I’d hoped but it was great to experience a multi-sport Games like this and I’ve enjoyed the experience as a whole.”

It is another medal added to the athletes growing collection from the last couple of months.

Little over six weeks prior to this event, he came home from Mexico with two bronze medals from the Copa Cristina Hoffmann, a Paralympic Table Tennis competition held in Cancun.

Then at the beginning of July, the North Ayrshire Table Tennis Club star came back from the European Para Youth Games in Finland with another bronze medal from the class 8 singles.

Henry went one better on this occasion, and will no doubt have his sights set on a first place prize in the near future, as he continues to battle in this remarkable summer for the athlete.