Paris 2024 Paralympic Games: ParalympicsGB Martin Perry's journey from the stands to the Paralympic stage
In the sprawling ParalympicsGB apartment block in the Paralympic Village, decorated with Union Jack facades and surrounded by the vibrant colours of competing nations, Para table tennis player Martin Perry is living the dream.
Not just any dream, but the one he's nurtured since he first sat in the stands at London 2012.
Fast forward to the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, and Perry isn’t just another face in the crowd. He’s set to compete in the MS6 singles event and will share the MD14 doubles table with none other than Rio 2016 Paralympic champion Will Bayley — a man he once cheered for from the stands.
Olympics.com spoke to the debutant Paralympian about his journey, motivations, and his fun-loving approach to Paris 2024.
Martin Perry: From summer camp to table tennis champ
Martin Perry’s journey into table tennis started with a dash of serendipity and a lot of determination.
The youngest of four brothers from Paisley, Scotland, Perry was always on the move, playing any sport he could, from football to rugby to basketball.
But his life took a sharp turn in 2011 at a Scottish Disability Sport summer camp when, at 16, Perry picked up a table tennis bat for the first time — strapped to his forearm with Velcro.
"I literally had the bat strapped to my forearm," Perry told Olympics.com. "I just fell in love from that day. I didn't think I was going to become a Paralympian, it was about going to have fun and make new friends. Then it slowly took over my life."
What began as a casual pastime quickly evolved into a serious love affair. And, when Perry found himself in the stands at London 2012, watching his future Paralympic teammates and roommate compete on the grandest stage of all, he was hooked.
"As soon as I left the Excel Arena in London, I was like, I'm going to be a table tennis player. I was so inspired, blown away, and captivated by it all. And that was all from London. I watched Aaron [McKibbin] win a bronze medal, and now we're sharing a room together at the Games. It's pretty surreal. The Games definitely do have a lasting impact."
Just a year later, Perry decided to make his love affair with table tennis official and joined the GB Pathway Programme. From there, he went on to prove just how much he could bring to the table, literally.
“I just made a nuisance of myself,” Perry laughed. “I didn’t let the coaching team forget about me. I turned up at every event, worked incredibly hard, and made sure they knew I was serious about this.”
And serious he was.
The Road to Paris: Blood, sweat and some tough love
Perry’s journey to the Paris Paralympics was anything but straightforward.
Despite missing out on qualifying for the Rio 2016, he quickly demonstrated his potential by winning his first international title at the US Open that same year, a victory that signalled his arrival on the global stage.
He then embarked on a competition tour around the world, playing in every tournament he could enter — Italy, Spain, Poland, Mexico, Thailand, People's Republic of China — the list goes on.
Perry’s determination bore fruit in 2017 and 2019 when he secured world and European medals in the men's class 6 singles and team events.
Things seemed to be lining up for Perry's trip to Tokyo. Yet, despite his best efforts, he fell agonisingly short, edged out in the quarter-finals of the 2021 World Qualification Tournament by Japan’s Kazuki Shichino.
The disappointment of missing out on the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games was a devastating blow. Perry now faced a difficult question: Was this the end of his Paralympic dreams?
"It was really tough mentally not qualifying for Tokyo,” he said. “I was playing the best table tennis I had ever at that point. It took a lot of strength to get back on the table and enjoying it," he told BBC Sport.
But with some tough love and encouragement from his wife, Siobhain, Perry found the motivation to push forward.
“My wife basically told me to stop moping and get back to work,” Perry laughed. “She knew how much this sport means to me. It's more than just a game; it's my life. It's something that I've worked so hard for."
Even then, the road back to competition was not smooth. Perry faced another setback by not qualifying for the 2022 World Championships. But a wildcard qualification reignited his resolve, and he was on a mission to shake things up.
"When I was awarded the wildcard, I was like, I am going there to upset some people and sure enough, that's what I did. I managed to get a bronze medal, and I just went absolutely crazy. I remember the final point when the ball went past me and missed the table from my opponent and I let out a massive roar. Finally getting over that hurdle of winning a major medal, this was a very special feeling."
Mission accomplished.
The Scotsman carried this momentum into 2023, taking bronze in both the singles and doubles events at the European Championships in Sheffield.
Perry: The birth of my daughter was "the extra fire I needed just to keep going."
With the shiny new world and European medals hanging around his neck and an encouraging wife by his side, Perry is on the brink of his Paralympic dream. And, as he prepared for the challenges ahead, a new source of strength emerged.
Enter his baby girl, Beira.
"Eight months ago, we had the joy of welcoming a beautiful little girl into our lives, and it's been so much motivation. The extra fire that I needed just to keep going."
Perry finds comfort in the fact that his family will be in the crowd cheering him on in Paris. And, for the first time ever, his daughter Beira will see her ‘dadda’ compete on the grandest stage of all. What a way to make a spectator debut.
“Beira is just the best ever, and this last week, actually, she started clapping,” Perry said in an interview published earlier this month in Table Tennis England. “It’s just so much fun trying to teach her how to clap for the Games. And, she started saying ‘dadda’ as well, so every time she does that, I just feel I feel so much joy."
"It's something that I'm going to cherish forever. Having my loved ones around me doing the thing that I love the most. And it just happens to be on the biggest stage."
The Paralympic dream: Pride, pressure, and PlayStations
Perry’s focus is completely on Paris 2024. As the stakes soar higher than ever, he faces a fresh challenge: the Para table tennis competition will now follow an immediate knockout structure, making every match critical.
The 30-year-old will compete in both the Class 6 Singles and the Class 14 Doubles, the latter alongside Will Bayley, the very man he cheered for in the stands 11 years ago.
“Will’s won it all — table tennis, he’s completed it!” Perry said. “So it’s going to be a great experience playing alongside him. We’re both passionate players who play with our hearts on our sleeves, and I think that’s going to work really well for us.”
Despite the magnitude of the occasion, Perry's approach to his Olympic debut is refreshingly light-hearted. His apartment in the Paralympic Village is a hub of activity, filled with his GB teammates, a PlayStation, and plenty of banter.
“We’ve got a great bunch of guys,” Perry says. “Aaron McKibbin and I are roommates — we’ve been sharing for years, so it’s just easier that way. We’ve got a massive apartment, it’s got a PlayStation set up, a coffee station, everything. Just something sporty where we can unwind and chat to each other. We’re home.”
Perry is doing his best to balance the enormity of the occasion with his natural sense of fun. He’s even already amassed a sizable collection of commemorative pins, before the Paralympic Games have even started.
"I’m going to enjoy myself. I’m here to have fun and soak up every moment of this experience. I’ve worked half my life just to get to this point. To me, that's what the game's all about, having that experience that you may never have again."
Although Perry will have to sit out the Opening Ceremony on 28 August, which takes place the day before his competition, rest assured that he and his teammates will still make the most of the experience.
"We're going to get into our Opening Ceremony tracksuit because we've got some pretty snazzy tracksuits. We're going to get dressed up and congregate in the Paralympics GB hub. We've got some TVs, and then we'll sit together and watch the Opening Ceremony as a team. And then early to bed because we've got matches in the morning."
Perry on Paris 2024: "Have fun, express myself on the table, and hopefully make my country proud”
But his fun-loving attitude is not just about enjoying all that the Paralympics have to offer, it's also about staying calm and dealing with pressure, so he can play his best table tennis.
"This is the pinnacle of sport. There's no getting around that. I think throughout my career, when I’ve put too much pressure on myself in big matches, it’s been almost too much. But when I go out there and just enjoy it, I play my best. So that’s what I’m going to do — have fun, express myself on the table, and hopefully do my country proud.”
And if things go his way, maybe he’ll come home with more than just memories and pins — perhaps a medal or two to show his daughter when she’s older.
“It’s the closest I’m ever going to have to a home Paralympic Games,” Perry reflected. “I just feel so privileged, and I can’t wait to get out there and give it everything I’ve got.”
But even if things don't go as Perry has planned, "then, no pun intended, I'll go down swinging."
As Perry steps up to the table in Paris, the echoes of the London crowd still ring in his ears. Whether he leaves with silverware or not, one thing is clear — his journey from the stands to the stage is already a golden story in its own right.