The NPHT is saddened to hear of the death of Philip Lewis MBE, Paralympic Athlete competing at the Games in Tokyo 1964 and Heidelberg 1972, winning silver in the Table Tennis doubles. After his sporting career Philip was very much a pioneer in the disability sport world setting up the Windsor and Maidenhead Sports Association for the Disabled (WAMDSAD), known as SportsAble after 2011, sat on the National Sports Council for six years and was Chairman of the British Sports Association for the Disabled (BSAD), which  now known as Activity Alliance and was an honorary member of the Sports & Recreation Alliance (formerly the CCPR). 

Philip was a Vice President of Table Tennis England, formerly the English Table Tennis Association (ETTA) and a former President of the British Table Tennis Association for the Disabled (BTTAD), renamed British Para Table Tennis in 2020.  

In 1983 he worked with Stan Eldon to enable the inclusion of wheelchair racers in the Reading Half Marathon one of the first town races to include wheelchair athletes. Later the same year, he worked with Chris Brasher, organiser of the London Marathon, to include wheelchair racers for the first time. 

Philip worked with John Jenkins and several others representing several disability groups, to create one organisation to represent disability table tennis which led to the British Table Tennis Association for the Disabled (BTTAD) being established as the governing body in 1993.

Philip and the late fellow paraplegic Mike Mackenzie set up a charity to raise funding for a commemorative statue of Dr Guttmann which was initially unveiled in June 2012 at the Stoke Mandeville Stadium, to coincide with the London 2012 Paralympic Games. The sculptor, Mark Jackson, also created a bust of Dr Guttmann which was taken to the Olympic Stadium for the Paralympic Games where it was handed over to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Philip was also a torch bearer for London 2012 Paralympic Games.

Philip was generous with his time with NPHT, sharing stories and experiences recognising the importance of history and the need to safeguard and share it and will be sadly missed, our best wishes go out to his family.

To read more about Philip's incredible life and career, click here: Philip Lewis: Paralympic Pioneer