Table tennis not just hobby for Greeley's Ross

For Greeley's Nancy Ross, table tennis isn't just a hobby.

And, the 67-year-old Ross certainly doesn't view table tennis merely as a method for killing time during empty parts of her day. Instead, many of Ross's days revolve around table tennis.

Ross felt right at home playing an activity she has a true passion for Friday at the Greeley Recreation Center in the table tennis singles portion of the Rocky Mountain Senior Games. She finished with a bronze medal and qualified for next year's National Senior Games.

Ross began playing table tennis competitively seven years ago and now spends an average of three days a week playing and also spends time practicing at home.

"It's a big part of my life," Ross said. "I have a machine at home that spits balls, so I can practice at home."

Ross has been an avid athlete all her life, regularly playing in numerous sports, including tennis, in her younger days.

She casually played table tennis since she was a child but got serious about the activity in 1999.

Table tennis resembled a way for Ross to fulfill her desire to begin to compete in a competitive atmosphere.

Ross said there is more to table tennis than bouncing a ping pong ball across a table. It's a very challenging, physical activity, Ross said.

"It looks real easy, but it's harder than what it looks like," Ross said. "It's a fast sport. It takes a lot of energy."

It takes an extra amount of effort and energy from Ross, who suffers from arthritis and is also still recovering from a broken and dislocated left shoulder she suffered during an accident last year.

However, the discomfort Ross may feel at times when playing table tennis doesn't stop her from competing.

Ross has a look of determination and focus on her face when she plays a game of table tennis with a lot on the line.

"It's competitive when something is at stake. Right now what's at stake is trying to get to Nationals," Ross said, in between matches Friday.

Ross got her wish, finishing the day with a bronze medal after a third-place finish in the 65-69 age group. The top 3 finishers in each age group will move onto the National Senior Games next year in Louisville, Ky. Nationals are held once every two years.

Ross also qualified for last year's nationals but was forced to sit out because of her shoulder injury, which she suffered just a few weeks prior to competition.

She hopes to make up for her absence last season with a strong performance at next year's nationals.

With a nationals-qualifying performance in the singles competition behind her, Ross hopes to keep it going and qualify for nationals during today's doubles and mixed doubles competitions at the Recreation Center.

Ross will compete with Chloe Childers of Greeley in doubles and Bob Stucklen of Loveland in mixed doubles.

In the two events, Ross hopes to not only equal her bronze-medal-winning performance of Friday's singles tournament, she hopes to surpass it.

"I want to win gold," Ross said about today's competition.

Living legend: A table tennis legend made her presence felt at Friday's singles tournament.

Thelma Thall Sommer, 82, won a gold medal in the 80-84 age group.

The Scottsdale, Ariz. resident was inducted into the U.S. Table Tennis Hall of Fame in 1980 and was the co-recipient of the lifetime achievement award, along with her late sister, Leah Thall Nuberger.

Sommer also won a world championship in mixed doubles along with Dick Miles in 1948. The world championships that year were played on a frozen swimming pool in Wembley.