Alice toughs it out in Sweden

ALICE LOVERIDGE had a tough time at the weekend's ITTF Safir International in Orebro, Sweden. Guernsey's 12-year-old table tennis star took part in her largest international tournament to date as part of the British Table Tennis Federation Olympic training squad.

'It was a lot harder than anything I've been to, but it was really good,' said the Grammar School student.

The two-day tournament started with the under-15 and under-13 age groups.

Although Loveridge was knocked out in the first round of the under-13, she managed to reach round three at the under-15 level, defeating Sweden's Clara Erlandsson in the first round and Germany's number three, Paloma Ballman, in the second.

However, Stephanie Loeillette ended her good run in the next round when the French player won the final set 11-9.

Day two saw the Sarnian defeated in the second round of the under-12 by the Russia's top seed in this age group, Victoria Melnikova, when she lost the fifth and final set.

Loveridge achieved her best result in the under-14 group with her placing of joint ninth overall.

On her way, she defeated two top Swedish players, one of whom she had lost to the previous day, and Katharina Sabo from Germany.

But she eventually went out to the Russian number two, Yana Noskova, once again only in the fifth set.

Noskova was the champion of the European tournament in which Loveridge competed in August and to whom she went down 3-0.

Taking her to five sets showed the vast improvement in Loveridge's game but she realises that there was still work to be done.

'This tournament has made me realise that I will have to train and work a lot harder in order to achieve results at this high level of table tennis,' she said.