In the words of his doubles partner Martin Perry, Will Bayley has “completed table tennis”.

Paralympic champion in 2016, world champion in 2014 and 2022, European champion in 2011 and 2023, world No 1 and a host of other tournament golds decorate his CV.

His success earned him the MBE and a host of television appearances, notably on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing.

That appearance ended in near disaster as he suffered a serious knee injury in rehearsal, which would have put him out of action had the Tokyo Paralympics happened as scheduled in 2020.

But he bounced back to take silver in the Men’s Class 7 Singles the following year, repeating his achievement from London 2012, and added the Men’s Class 6-7 Team silver alongside Paul Karabardak.

That took his total of Paralympic medals to six, having also won Class 6-8 Team bronze in both London and Rio. He will have two chances at his fifth Paralympics in Paris – the Class 7 Singles and the Class 14 Doubles with Perry.

And if he were to win singles gold, he would simultaneously hold the European, World and Paralympic titles.

“It’s every player’s Everest, every player’s dream to play the Paralympics,” said the 36-year-old. “I’m just so excited. I think I’ve worked really hard for the last few years to get to this position where we’ve got a chance to do really well and I’m excited, I can’t wait.

“Sport is sport and anything can happen, but I think I’m at the best level that I could be and I’ve given myself the best chance. I feel as fit as I’ve ever felt before. I feel younger than I did in 2020.

“Obviously I’m going in as world champion and European champion, world number one. So I’ve got a really good chance.

“I think that there are many players that could be really difficult for me. I’m not deluded to think I’m just going to get a bye to the final, it’s going to be extremely hard from the very first round this time.

“And there’s people outside the top 10 that are very, very good, from the first round. So I’m expecting it to be an absolute battle, I’m expecting it to be very hard. But like I said, I’m the most well-prepared I’ve ever been for a Paralympics and I’m the most relaxed I’ve ever been, so I’m excited for the opportunity.”

The doubles gives Bayley a new chance to add to his medal haul and he said of his partner: “To play with Martin is just an honour.

“Anyone who’s seen Martin play, is just amazed by what he can do, with his disability. He’s just incredible. I believe he’s a big-match player. He’s always played well on the big stage and he’s got everything you want in a team-mate – very charismatic, very driven, he wants to win. And I think we’re quite similar in that way.

“We’ll be hard to beat because we’ve got a lot of energy and we’ve got a lot of fight.

“Expectation-wise, I think we’ve got a free hit, which makes us really dangerous. I think we’re eighth seed and we’ll definitely be a threat because of our fighting spirit and our will to win.”

The return of the crowd is naturally an exciting moment after competing in empty arenas in Tokyo, but Bayley has particular reasons to relish that opportunity.

As a member of Brighton TTC, he and club-mate Bly Twomey will have more than 120 supporters travelling to get behind them.

Not only that, but his family, including his two young daughters, will also be cheering from the stands.

He said: “I don’t think it’s unfair to say that this will be the most special moment of my life because Brighton are coming, because my children are there and my family and my mum, my dad.

“My girls are three and six and to have the opportunity to play in front of them is just a dream come true. I never thought I’d ever do that, so I’m excited for that and it definitely spurs me on to try and give them my best performance.

“To share that moment with people is what it’s all about. They’ve had to put up with me for years trying to train, not turning up to things and having ups and downs in my life because of table tennis, so to give back to them would mean a lot, to perform and to share that moment.

“I mean, imagine if one of us wins a gold medal, can you imagine the Brighton crowd?!”

Having “completed table tennis” means Bayley now qualifies as a role model and an inspiration to others.

His message to those aspiring to follow in his medal-laden wake is simple: “Never give up on your dream.

“There’s always going to be people saying you can’t do this or you’re not good enough and people are knocking you down – or even yourself, there’ll always be doubts. And there’s been doubts in my life.

“If you get through that and you keep working at something, give it everything you can. “If I can give back to people and if I can inspire people, that makes me so happy and it’s a reason why I play.”