A former Paralympian and talented administrator he helped to transform the landscape of disability sport through his tireless advocacy for equality and inclusion and his legacy as one of the founders of the British Table Tennis Association for the Disabled, now known as British Para Table Tennis, will never be forgotten.
Chair of British Para Table Tennis Adele Stach-Kevitz said: “Philip Lewis was the foundation of the sport and will be sorely missed. Our deepest condolences go to his family, and we will always be grateful for his incredible and enduring legacy.”
Born in 1938, Lewis suffered a broken neck in a car crash in Oxford in 1962 which resulted in a level C6/C7 spinal injury that later became a C8/T1 complete spinal injury. At the National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville he came under the care of Dr Ludwig ‘Poppa’ Guttman and as a keen sportsman he took up archery and table tennis to aid his rehabilitation. A year later he competed in the National Stoke Mandeville Games and in 1964 he represented Great Britain in the Paralympic Games in Tokyo in the swimming and table tennis events.
Table tennis was the sport in which Lewis achieved the greatest success and he went on to win gold in the doubles with Paul Lyall and bronze in the singles at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Jamaica, a silver medal at the 1972 Paralympic Games in Germany with Derek Williams, gold in the doubles with Dave Ellis and silver in the singles at the 1974 Commonwealth Games in New Zealand.
Having been working as a trainee solicitor at the time of his accident Lewis went on to practice law and took on a number of administrative roles in disability sport. In the early 1970’s he was elected Chairman of the British Sports Association for the Disabled (BSAD) Southern Region where he started a programme to establish multi-sport, multi-disabled clubs in all the major towns in the south, including the Windsor and Maidenhead Sports Association for the Disabled, later known as SportsAble, which provided a pathway for many athletes into the Paralympic movement.
He went on to become Chairman of BSAD, which is now known as Activity Alliance, and was an honorary member of the Sports & Recreation Alliance. Lewis also sat on the National Sports Council for six years and his service to disability sport was recognised in 1981 when he was awarded the MBE.
In 1983 he was instrumental in the Reading Half Marathon becoming one of the first town races to include wheelchair athletes and later the same year, he worked with Chris Brasher to ensure wheelchair athletes had a place at the start of the London Marathon—a tradition that continues today.
Lewis was founding Chairman of BTTAD from 1993 until 2003, becoming President in 2015 and also served as Vice President of Table Tennis England.
Peter Taylor, Vice President and former Chairman of BTTAD, said: “Philip was not only the founding Chairman of BTTAD, now BPTT, he was the main instigator in its creation which brought all disabilities into a sports-specific organisation. This was no mean feat given the friction between wheelchair and standing table tennis organisations at the time. He played a leading part in the rise of wheelchair table tennis and under his leadership – along with his vice chairman John Jenkins – BTTAD became a united and effective organisation. I learnt a lot from Phil – there were times when we did not agree but when that occasionally happened, we respected each other’s point of view.”
BPTT Vice President & founding Vice Chairman of BTTAD John Jenkins MBE paid this tribute: “My great friend, Philip Lewis MBE, was a real force in the development of disability sport, his dogged tenacity following his belief in the principle of ‘Sport for All’, disabled or not. He will be remembered for the many successes he championed and in 1993 he led a small team of table tennis athletes to unify the various disability groups involved in table tennis which is now known as British Para Table Tennis. Philip was a great achiever. He changed the lives of multitudes of disabled people in sport for the better and will be remembered as the champion for disability sport that he truly was.”
Lewis never forgot the debt that he and so many others owed to Sir Ludwig Guttmann and together with fellow paraplegic Mike Mackenzie, he co-founded the Poppa Guttmann Trust, raising funds for a commemorative statue and bust of the pioneering doctor. These were unveiled in 2012 at Stoke Mandeville Stadium to coincide with the London 2012 Paralympic Games and the statue later became a permanent fixture outside the National Spinal Injuries Centre. The bronze bust was presented to the International Paralympic Committee during the London Paralympic Games, ensuring Guttmann’s legacy and contribution to disability sport would be recognised worldwide.
“Philip was an inspiration to all who knew him,” said Mike Smith, Vice President and former Secretary of BPTT, “and his achievements live on in the British Para Table Tennis of today and the future.”
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