News
2026 Costa Victorian Closed Veterans Championships Review
Published Mon 27 Jul 2026
The 2026 Costa Victorian Closed Veterans Championships took place on Sunday 26th July at Melbourne Sports & Aquatic Centre with over 190 players entered.
With 34 tables set up to accommodate the record entries, it was an absolute massive day of competition with some incredibly close matches played across all age groups.
Interim CEO Sarah Pisterman was in attendance and shared her thoughts about the day stating,“It was fantastic to see so many of Victoria's veteran table tennis players come together for another outstanding Costa Victorian Closed Veterans Championships.”
“The atmosphere throughout the day was exceptional, with plenty of competitive matches, great sportsmanship and a wonderful sense of community both on and off the court.”
“I'd like to thank all of our players, officials, volunteers, supporters and our naming rights partner Costa for helping make the event such a success.”
“Congratulations to all of our champions and finalists, and to everyone who contributed to what was a memorable celebration of Veterans table tennis in Victoria" added Pisterman.
Finalists:
| Event Name | Winner | Runner-up |
| Over 40 Men's Singles | Pandya, Zankar | Salem, John |
| Over 40 Women's Singles | Huang, Cheryl | James, Kim |
| Over 60 Men's Singles | Brand, David | Huang, Scott Q |
| Over 60 Women's Singles | Bennett, Belgin | Liang, Hong |
| Over 70 Men's Singles | Berry, Brian | Geller, Mikhail |
| Over 70 Women's Singles | Bellion, Anne | James, Judy |
| Over 80 Men's Singles | Klaf, Igor | Wright, Bernard Mick |
| Over 30 Men's Doubles | Carter, Craig, & Palmer, Sam | Anstey, Zachary, & Thomas, Rhys |
| Over 30 Women's Doubles | James, Kim, & Zhou, Yunzhu Zyana | Huang, Cheryl, & Liu, Lydia |
| Over 40 Men's Doubles | Johnson, Simon, & Warr, Mick | Pandya, Zankar, & Salem, John |
| Over 50 Men's Doubles | Brand, David, & Huang, Harrison | Huang, Robert, & Huang, Scott Q |
| Over 50 Women's Doubles | Bennett, Belgin, & Brindley, Aviva | Cawood, Melisa, & Xu, Chunyang Ruby |
| Over 60 Men's Doubles | Cornell, Andrew, & Keshishian, Jack | Katsipis, Robert, & Websdale, Phillip |
| Over 60 Women's Doubles | Carruthers, Vicki, & Wilson, Debbie | Liang, Hong, & Zheng, Guo Mei |
| Over 65 Men's Doubles | Greaves, Wayne, & Pattison, John | Anderson, Gary, & Bricknell, Andrew |
| Over 65 Women's Doubles | Rigot, Genevieve, & Welbourne, Paulina | Huynh, Anh, & Phan, Chieu |
| Over 70 Men's Doubles | Carruthers, Phillip, & Kumar, David | Dever, Jeff, & Edwards, Graeme |
| Over 70 Women's Doubles | Bellion, Anne, & James, Judy | O'Bryan, Daisy, & Woolcock, Jane |
| Over 75 Men's Doubles | Klaf, Igor, & Wright, Bernard Mick | Dawber, Kenneth, & Nguyen, Phuc |
| Single Mixed Doubles | Keshishian, Jack, & Leyden, Danny | Marrollo, Robert, & Tung, Jackson |
| Over 30 Mixed Doubles | Liu, Lydia, & Thomas, Rhys | Carter, Craig, & James, Kim |
| Over 50 Mixed Doubles | Brindley, Aviva, & Huang, Scott Q | Huang, Harrison, & Zhang, Fengmei May |
| Over 60 Mixed Doubles | Bennett, Belgin, & Huang, Robert | Greaves, Wayne, & Wilson, Debbie |
| Over 65 Mixed Doubles | Carruthers, Phillip, & Carruthers, Vicki | Prior, Geoff, & Rigot, Genevieve |
| Over 70 Mixed Doubles | Bronstein, Paul, & James, Judy | Bellion, Anne, & Dever, Jeff |
| Over 30 Men's Singles | Pandya, Zankar | Anstey, Zachary |
| Over 30 Women's Singles | Zhou, Yunzhu Zyana | Liu, Lydia |
| Over 50 Men's Singles | Huang, Scott Q | Edlund, Stefan |
| Over 50 Women's Singles | Brindley, Aviva | Bennett, Belgin |
| Over 65 Men's Singles | Berry, Brian | Bricknell, Andrew |
| Over 65 Women's Singles | Carruthers, Vicki | Phan, Chieu |
| Over 75 Men's Singles | Bowler, Bob | Dawber, Kenneth |
| Over 85 Singles | Klaf, Igor | Fischer, Maureen |
| Under 2000 Singles | Thomas, Rhys | Nakamura, Sota |
| Under 1700 Singles | Palmer, Sam | Huang, Robert |
| Under 1400 Singles | Dubey, Projjwal | Sharma, Tarun |
| Under 1200 Singles | Mahbub, Syed | Hussain, Asif |
| Under 1000 Singles | Vernekar, Vishal | Gaur, Hemant Singh |
| Under 800 Singles | Fernandes, Diana | Marchesi, Nicky Glenys |
Full results can be found by clicking here!
To view all livestreamed matches on Table Tennis TV please click here.
Stay tuned for the release of all presentation photos as well as the availability of all action shots for purchase which will be released when available in the coming days/weeks.
A massive thank you goes out to Costa Farms for generously sponsoring the event this year, contributing not only to increased prize money for the players but also the growth of the sport and the event.
We would also like to thank our partners at Affordable table tennis for having a great equipment stall onsite throughout the day as well as JJ's Photography for capturing all the great moments from the event.
Lastly, we wouldlike to congratulate and thank all players, officials and volunteers on contributing to a fantastic competition.
The next Veterans competition to look forward to on the calendar is the Dandenong Veterans Open on August 15-16. To enter please click here!
