The NeuroPong™ Journey
NeuroPong™ harnesses the power of table tennis to improve physical, cognitive, and emotional well-being for those living with neurodegenerative conditions. Join us in creating a community of hope and healing through play.
The Founder
Antonino Barbera - Bridging Science, Sport, & Humanity
Antonino is a physician, recently retired after 31 years of practice. After his diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis in 2017, he returned to playing table tennis. Based on the benefits that table tennis can offer to people with neurodegenerative conditions, he decided to raise the awareness of this port for everybody, regardless of age, gender, religion, ethnicity or physical and mental capability. He wants to provide solid scientific knowledge behind the benefits that table tennis provides to our brain, our body and our soul. He sees himself as the liaison among multiple experts: neurologists, teachers, parents, behavioral counselors, physical and occupational therapists, table tennis coaches and table tennis players. With the contribution of all these experts, he wants to acquire objective information that will improve the quality of life for many individuals.
The Board
Meet the Board Members
Enhance cognitive skills and strategic thinking with NeuroPong—where board members sharpen their minds through gameplay.
Antonino Barbera,
Founder and CEO
Antonino is a physician, recently retired after 31 years of practice. After his diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis in 2017, he returned to playing table tennis. Based on the benefits that table tennis can offer to people with neurodegenerative conditions, he decided to raise the awareness of this sport for everybody, regardless of age, gender, religion, ethnicity or physical and mental capability. He wants to provide solid scientific knowledge behind the benefits that table tennis provides to our brain, our body and our soul. He sees himself as the liaison among multiple experts: neurologists, teachers, parents, behavioral counselors, physical and occupational therapists, table tennis coaches and table tennis players. With the contribution of all these experts, he wants to acquire objective information that will improve the quality of life for many individuals.
Randy How,
Secretary
Randy attended Colorado State University and received a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture, with an emphasis in GIS and Remote Sensing. For the past 20 years, he has developed geospatial applications using Satellite Imagery for Airbus Defense and Intelligence. He enjoys the Colorado outdoors and table tennis has become one of his favorite pastimes.
Quincy Meisman,
Treasurer
Quincy started playing table tennis in 2018 when she moved to Fort Collins. She soon fell in love with it; let's now call it a healthy obsession! She is always working in making herself into a better player. This has been incredibly gratifying to her and has fueled her motivation to become a better person as well. She is currently a student at Colorado State University studying computer science and linguistics. For Quincy, table tennis has become a vehicle not only for physical and mental exercise, but also for greater social interactions.
Edward Norman,
Consultant
Dr. Norman was diagnosed with Parkinsonism in 2016 and retired from practice in 2017. He fully believes that physical activity is a pathway to slowing down the progression of numerous medical conditions, so why not Table Tennis and Neurologic disorders? Dr. Norman has picked up the racket he toyed with as a kid and looks forward to improving!
Dongfen Pan,
Consultant and Coach
Dongfeng Pan grew up in China playing table tennis in primary school. After graduating from college with a bachelor's degree in applied math, he taught math more than five years in China. He then moved to the United States to pursue a master’s in applied math and computer science at Colorado State University and the University of Colorado at Boulder. He is a retired software engineer, and spends his free time playing table tennis, hiking, and taking photos. After learning of the benefits table tennis can offer to people with neurological disorders, he has started guiding people with Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson's to discover the sport and its positive effects.
Timeline of Key Moments in the NeuroPong™ Journey
March 18, 2016
First MS Attack & Initial Recovery
“Less than 12 months after my first attack, I had another one. The date was March 4, 2017. And this time, I lost all sensation and motor control of my left arm. The so-called ‘disease-modifying drug’ I was on did not prevent another exacerbation. Since recovery was not progressing as fast as my leg, I had to end my 31-year career as an Obstetrician and Gynecologist. After nine months, I was able to partially recover the function of my left arm and felt hopeful starting another medication. Among the many Multiple Sclerosis discomforts, the worst symptom of my condition is a sensation of chest compression, known as the ‘MS hug.’ This ‘hug’ feels like an uncomfortable, sometimes painful feeling of tightness or pressure around my chest. The peculiarity of this sensation is its constant 24/7 presence, changing location in my chest and never disappearing. Sometimes I talk about it as ‘the elephant sitting on my chest,’ changing position at its own pleasure.”
November 2019
Rediscovering Table Tennis
“Since this sport was relieving my discomfort, I started researching if it could be integrated into the lives of other people living with MS. I learned that if we challenge our brain, one specific area called the ‘hippocampus’ is able to produce new cells (a process called neurogenesis) and these cells may create new neuronal pathways, new… connections (a phenomenon called neuroplasticity)! I found some scattered information coming from a neurologist and from some people with MS who love table tennis and had found benefits themselves. Furthermore, I learned a few groups in the world were using table tennis to help people living with Parkinson’s and Dementia.”
2020
Development of the NeuroPong™ Program
“Experiencing what table tennis was doing for me, I started wondering if it could provide a challenging stimulus for others to similarly help their neurogenesis. I became the Founder and CEO of a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization called ‘Table Tennis Connections.’ The uniqueness of our organization is promoting fun while playing table tennis. The core of our activity is the NeuroPong™ Program, a table tennis program designed for and tailored specifically for people with neurodegenerative conditions.”
“I couldn’t move my right leg. It was completely paralyzed, and I lacked any sensation. The date was March 18, 2016. I went from being an active 55-year-old Obstetrician and Gynecologist to someone who had lost his physical capabilities. After three months of intense physical therapy, I was lucky enough to drop the cane I had started using. These months were very hard though, as I had to learn how to walk again! If you have ever experienced the functional loss of a limb (like after an accident or major surgery), you can understand how intense this kind of recovery can be.
Something that was such a ‘natural activity’ was now requiring an intense physical and emotional effort, and full recovery was neither known nor guaranteed. Even though I had no idea how to engage my right leg for a long time, I was very fortunate in recovering my function. Since that day, I made a conscious decision to no longer use elevators. I plan to never take for granted the use of my leg again.”
March 4, 2017
Second MS Attack & Career Transition
I played table tennis at the age of 16, and only for a few months. It was not until late November 2019, some 40 years later, that I started playing some table tennis in my garage with my son. After a few days, to my surprise and pleasure, I realized that, when playing this sport, my elephant was leaving my chest and sitting in a corner; my mind was able to forget about my chest discomfort, at least temporarily.”
2019-2020
Research & Discovery of Therapeutic Benefits
“We are proposing table tennis as a form of prehabilitation and neurorehabilitation to be offered at any stage of Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, and Dementia; to recover from an acute attack; to prevent future episodes and to avoid a progression of the condition itself. The aim of our activity is to improve the whole quality of life of each individual involved.”
2021
Founding of Table Tennis Connections
March 18, 2016
First MS Attack & Initial Recovery
“I couldn’t move my right leg. It was completely paralyzed, and I lacked any sensation. The date was March 18, 2016. I went from being an active 55-year-old Obstetrician and Gynecologist to someone who had lost his physical capabilities. After three months of intense physical therapy, I was lucky enough to drop the cane I had started using. These months were very hard though, as I had to learn how to walk again! If you have ever experienced the functional loss of a limb (like after an accident or major surgery), you can understand how intense this kind of recovery can be.
Something that was such a ‘natural activity’ was now requiring an intense physical and emotional effort, and full recovery was neither known nor guaranteed. Even though I had no idea how to engage my right leg for a long time, I was very fortunate in recovering my function. Since that day, I made a conscious decision to no longer use elevators. I plan to never take for granted the use of my leg again.”
March 4, 2017
Second MS Attack & Career Transition
“Less than 12 months after my first attack, I had another one. The date was March 4, 2017. And this time, I lost all sensation and motor control of my left arm. The so-called ‘disease-modifying drug’ I was on did not prevent another exacerbation. Since recovery was not progressing as fast as my leg, I had to end my 31-year career as an Obstetrician and Gynecologist. After nine months, I was able to partially recover the function of my left arm and felt hopeful starting another medication. Among the many Multiple Sclerosis discomforts, the worst symptom of my condition is a sensation of chest compression, known as the ‘MS hug.’ This ‘hug’ feels like an uncomfortable, sometimes painful feeling of tightness or pressure around my chest. The peculiarity of this sensation is its constant 24/7 presence, changing location in my chest and never disappearing. Sometimes I talk about it as ‘the elephant sitting on my chest,’ changing position at its own pleasure.”
November 2019
Rediscovering Table Tennis
I played table tennis at the age of 16, and only for a few months. It was not until late November 2019, some 40 years later, that I started playing some table tennis in my garage with my son. After a few days, to my surprise and pleasure, I realized that, when playing this sport, my elephant was leaving my chest and sitting in a corner; my mind was able to forget about my chest discomfort, at least temporarily.”
2019-2020
Research & Discovery of Therapeutic Benefits
“Since this sport was relieving my discomfort, I started researching if it could be integrated into the lives of other people living with MS. I learned that if we challenge our brain, one specific area called the ‘hippocampus’ is able to produce new cells (a process called neurogenesis) and these cells may create new neuronal pathways, new… connections (a phenomenon called neuroplasticity)! I found some scattered information coming from a neurologist and from some people with MS who love table tennis and had found benefits themselves. Furthermore, I learned a few groups in the world were using table tennis to help people living with Parkinson’s and Dementia.”
2020
Development of the NeuroPong™ Program
“Experiencing what table tennis was doing for me, I started wondering if it could provide a challenging stimulus for others to similarly help their neurogenesis. I became the Founder and CEO of a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization called ‘Table Tennis Connections.’ The uniqueness of our organization is promoting fun while playing table tennis. The core of our activity is the NeuroPong™ Program, a table tennis program designed for and tailored specifically for people with neurodegenerative conditions.”
“We are proposing table tennis as a form of prehabilitation and neurorehabilitation to be offered at any stage of Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, and Dementia; to recover from an acute attack; to prevent future episodes and to avoid a progression of the condition itself. The aim of our activity is to improve the whole quality of life of each individual involved.”
2021
Founding of Table Tennis Connections
Our Purpose
The Values and Mission of NeuroPong™
The NeuroPong™ Program is grounded in core values that drive our mission to enhance the quality of life for individuals living with neurodegenerative conditions
We value diversity, recognizing and honoring the unique differences among individuals. We value inclusion, embracing and respecting everyone—regardless of age, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, or intellectual and physical abilities. And we value connection, working toward a more meaningful and enriched life experience for all. Its mission includes:
- Enhancing physical and cognitive health by using table tennis to boost motor skills, promote neuroplasticity, and support overall well-being.
- Fostering an inclusive community that celebrates diversity, equality, and connection through the shared joy of the sport
- Raising awareness and breaking stigma surrounding neurodegenerative conditions like MS, Parkinson’s, and Dementia.
- Advocating scientifically-backed benefits of table tennis as a tool for physical activity, social engagement, and slowing cognitive decline.
The program invites people to join a community where something as small as a 2.75-gram ball and a paddle can make an extraordinary difference in their lives.
