YOUNG table tennis star Stephen Denny is celebrating his selection to take part in the Junior World Championships.

Fifteen-year-old Stephen, a member of Oakbank Table Tennis Club, will compete with the English Schools Table Tennis Association team.

The World Schools Championships are for Under-17 players and are to be held at Sener in Slovakia from April 5-12.

Teams from throughout Europe, Asia and North and South America have entered the event.

Stephen joined the City Junior Development Scheme when he was just nine years of age and has gone from strength to strength winning many titles over the years. He was also one of the founder members of Oakbank Table Tennis Club in 1997.

"Stephen has worked very hard and kept a positive attitude throughout. He has kept to his long term technical development plan, and it is starting to pay dividends," said coach Hans Soova.

He added that part of the coaching plan was to aim for long term development rather than short-term victories.

"As a coach it is not every year that you have a player selected for a world class event and these championships are the biggest for junior players.

"Stephen has developed steel and stamina in his game and we are all delighted that he has reached this level after many years of hard work," he said.

Stephen, who is sponsored by Teesport, Butterfly Equipment and Yorkshire Electricity is the only person from Yorkshire to be selected to attend the championships.