HOUSTON — There’s a lot of skill developing at the Houston International Table Tennis Academy, but for a lesson in perseverance, look no further than Jimmy Butler, an exercise more than two decades in the making.
It starts with his signature shot, which earned its own nickname: "The Butler Backhand."
“It's a name that everyone else came up with," Butler said. “I hit it so hard ... probably one of the hardest in the world ... that people came up with that name.”
Butler has been named to an Olympic team and the Hall of Fame. As a young man, he won three national singles titles.
Manny Velazquez is the Houston International Table Tennis Academy's general manager.
“Jimmy Butler would be at the level, in my opinion, of Rafael Nadal or (Novak) Djokovic in tennis in their country,” Velazquez said.
Butler was that kind of star.
But suddenly, he stopped playing. During his prime, Butler said, his body quit on him.
It's how he ended up in Houston. He moved here from Georgia after finding a specialist who was able to relieve and ease the pain that had developed in his muscles.
After he was treated, Butler rediscovered his love of the game.
It all came back to him at 43 years old. He even went on to win another national championship -- 21 years after his last title. No one had ever won more than seven years after their previous one.
"I went from a crippled human being that couldn't do anything back to at age 43 I can defeat 21-year-old Olympians again and become US champion," Butler said.
Now 50, Butler mostly plays local tournaments. He does, however, still have his trademark shot and his trademark style (he wears mismatched sneakers).
There's nothing boring about Butler. He's a story of perseverance with a paddle.