Ping Pong League brings together 141 young people from temporary camps

Published at: 25/08/2026 09:11 PM

With the participation of 20 temporary camps and 141 boys, girls and young people, the inauguration of the Ping Pong League took place at the facilities of the “Elizabeth Popper López” table tennis gym in Caracas, as part of the Venezuela Renace 2026 Sports Games.

The day brought together representatives from La Guaira, Caracas and Miranda, with 13 camps registered by La Guaira, five by Caracas and two by Miranda; this created a space for meeting, recreation and training through sports.

Presidential Initiative

During the activity, the Minister of Popular Power for Sports, Franklin Cardillo, stressed that this initiative responds to an instruction from the president in charge of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, aimed at bringing happiness, joy and sports activities to families who remain in temporary camps.

“This project, which began about a month ago, is an instruction from our president, Delcy Rodríguez, to bring happiness and joy, because sport has the capacity to reach everyone, regardless of race, creed, religion, ideologies,” he said.

The holder of the sports portfolio said that the objective is to accompany families affected by the seismic event and provide them with tools to cope with a complex situation, especially children and young people.

“We want to bring a smile to these children, to these girls, to these young people who are here today, because what we Venezuelans have had to experience has not been easy, it has been very strong, very painful,” said the minister, who stressed that spaces are created that are different from the daily dynamics of the camps.

Integration space

Cardillo also highlighted that the Elizabeth Popper López gymnasium, as a high-performance center, opened its doors to promote exchanges with athletes and representatives of Venezuelan table tennis.

“The best tennis players in Venezuela play here, but so do all our boys and girls from the homeland, from our country, from Caracas, from La Guaira, from Miranda, so that they can relate, get to know each other, make new friends, because in sports there are values that mark us for life, such as companionship, teamwork, solidarity and discipline,” he said.

Sports revival

For his part, the president of the Venezuelan Table Tennis Federation, Danir Balbás, highlighted the beginning of this project as a new phase in the sports program of the temporary camps.

“Today a great project was born, the great project, the project of temporary camp leagues, is reborn, and today it is truly a reality,” said Balbás.

The sports leader stressed that the Ping Pong League initially has 20 temporary camps, integrated into the Venezuela Renace project, and that its participants have a tool in the sport to share, enjoy and strengthen their ties.

“Sport is joy, sport is only one heart,” said Balbás, who assured that all the boys and girls present are champions simply because they participate and share in this day.

This Ping Pong League becomes a new space for integration within the Venezuela Renace 2026 Sports Games, using table tennis as a tool to promote recreation, coexistence and sporting values among children and young people in temporary camps.

Mazo News Team