Matti Launonen


Matti Launonen was a Finnish para table tennis player who competed until his sudden death in 2019. He was one of the first table tennis players to win a world title in the para table tennis championships in Assen, Netherlands and a European title in Salou, Spain.
Launonen was seriously injured aged 18 in a car accident while travelling at more than 80 km/h, the car he was driving had handbrake fault and he couldn't stop the car: the car suddenly turned and rolled around.
He had a fall at his home and suffered a leg injury but died at hospital aged 74 in Florida.