Our Team

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Justin bookey  🏓   ceo & Chairman

Justin grew up in Seattle, WA, digging a lot of clams, and playing a lot of ping pong in the family basement. He found world-class coach and Olympian Wei Wang in L.A. in 2005. He has trained with her ever since, and has won medals at the U.S. Open and the U.S. National Championships. Justin holds a B.A. in Communications (UCSD), an M.S. in Public Relations (Boston University), and law degree (Boston University). He loves to travel, and has played table tennis on seven continents. Justin is a USATT-certified coach.

 
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vladimir samsonov  🏓  elite athlete advisor - global

Vladimir’s historic credentials will not fit in this space! Major highlights include six Olympic Games representing his native Belarus, advancing to the Bronze Medal round in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. His smooth and steady style has helped him capture the second-most ITTF World Tour titles in history (27), trailing only legendary Ma Long. He was ranked in the top 10 in the world almost continuously from 1996 to 2016. Vladimir’s resume also includes Four Euro Top 12 titles, three World Cup titles, and a trip the World Championship Finals. He speaks five languages, and despite all of his success remains a genuinely down-to-earth guy. He’s been awarded the Fair Play Trophy at the World Championships a record three times.

 
Kanak Jha

KANAK JHA 🏓 ELITE ATHLETE ADVISOR – U.S.A

He was born in 2000 but already has dazzling credentials. Kanak started at age five, emulating his older sister Prachi (who played on the U.S. Women’s National Team). He competed in the Table Tennis World Cup at 14, the youngest ever to do so. At age 16 he was the youngest American to play in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. He’s a four-time Men’s Singles U.S. National Champion. He recently cracked the World Top 25 ratings, and he’s now playing in the top German league. Through all this fierce competition Kanak maintains a sense of cool composure and sportsmanship. PongFit couldn’t have found a better young role model.

 
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Wei wang  🏓  elite athlete advisor - u.s.a.

Wei's long list of achievements starts with her getting selected at age nine, from her small school in China, to pursue training and a career in table tennis. Years of six-day weeks, training six hours per day, ultimately paid off. She rose to be ranked #5 in China. She then emigrated to the U.S., where she won the U.S. National Championship in singles and doubles. In 1996 she represented the USA in the Olympic Games in Atlanta. Inducted into the U.S. Table Tennis Hall of Fame in 2002, she has now played and coached in California for three decades.    

 
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Adam Bobrow  🏓  Audience Outreach Advisor

Adam clearly has fun with the sport, as a player, ITTF commentator, and overall table tennis ambassador. His flamboyant playing outfits match his unconventional playing style, which produces not only many wins but much admiring laughter. His adventures as a player and/or commentator have brought him to many ping pong hotspots throughout the world: From Budapest to Qatar to Tokyo and many places in between.

 
Coach

“Coach Steve”  🏓   Head of Training

Steve has a long list of players that look to him for training at all levels. His experience in the game runs deep, as a competitive player and now a highly respected professional coach. His wide range of coaching skills includes various fundamental and advanced training techniques, plus competition preparedness, both mental and physical.

 

Board of Directors

JUSTIN BOOKEY (Chairman)

JOHN BENUN – Veteran financial services advisor, philanthropist

JOSH BORNSTEIN – Family Law attorney, global traveler, competitive table tennis player

CHRIS BUCHANAN – Technology marketing leader, robotics mentor

BRUCE JUGAN – Insurance brokerage CEO, former elite fencer, current fencing referee 


KEY contributors

ALEX FIGUEROA – Table tennis coach, Parks & Recreation liaison

TRISH PHAN – Graphic design & production

DIEGO SCHAAF – Table tennis industry consultant

Questions, comments, flattery? Contact us!