Nepal’s para table tennis players train on borrowed gear but dream of Asian Games medals

The players have had to finance much of their preparation themselves, navigating costly equipment, limited facilities and a system that offers little recognition for their achievements.

Every evening, a hall just inside the main gate of the Nepal Disabled Association’s Khagendra New Life Home in Jorpati, Kathmandu, hums with activity. Except on Saturdays, when the routine shifts to the morning, the space is filled with the rhythmic percussion of training—the sharp click of balls meeting rackets, their quick pop against the tables, and the clatter across the concrete floor whenever a shot is missed.