Vale Cecil Shaw

Cecil Shaw, one of the great contributors to Australian table tennis, passed away this morning 5 March 2022, aged 100.

Cec began playing table tennis in the 1940s and up until his passing he was still involved with his local club as a player and an administrator. From his humble beginnings hitting balls around the dining room table, Cec’s passion and talent for the sport brought him to become a Queensland representative throughout the 1950s, where he won multiple National titles, before taking on a long lasting commitment to the development of table tennis.

Throughout his life Cec gave back to the table tennis community at a state and national level as an administrator, holding a variety of roles both in Queensland and for the Australian Table Tennis Association (now TTA). Cec was awarded TTA Life Membership in 1967 in recognition of his significant contribution to Australian table tennis.

His longevity in the sport was remarkable and many years later, in 2007, he was still going strong when he partnered with Gil Tauris to win the Over 75 Men’s Doubles at the National Veterans Championships.

TTA CEO Scott Houston commented, “Cec’s work as an administrator at a national level was crucial to lay the foundations for the table tennis community and shape it into what it is today. His dedication and passion for the sport is an example for the entire table tennis community.

“It is extraordinary to see that even at 100 years of age he was still involved with the South Tweed Table Tennis Club as a player and an administrator, which was testament to the respect and affection that the local community had for him,” Houston said.

Cec celebrated his 100^th birthday on 27 August 2021. At the time both TTA and Table Tennis Queensland presented Cec with a shirt in recognition of the milestone.

Rest in peace Cec.