It was three and a half years after her diagnosis in 2013 that Elisabeth Yldal, now 64, decided to found the Danish Parkinson’s disease organization Cure4Parkinson. After attending the World Parkinson’s Disease Congress in Portland, Oregon, USA in September 2016, she spent several weeks at an exercise rehabilitation center in Montebello, Spain.
“In three weeks, my level of functioning improved by 22%. I was completely convinced that there was something in training that could help with Parkinson’s disease, so when I returned home in November I wanted to help and founded Cure4Parkinson. did.”
In 2016, Ildal, who has been passionate about table tennis since the age of 13 and is currently a medalist at the World Parkinson’s Disease Table Tennis Championships, decided to open Denmark’s first private exercise center exclusively for Parkinson’s patients. “It was really great. People with Parkinson’s disease can do fitness, table tennis, boxing and cycling. Now the center has moved to Rudersdal, another district in Denmark. Peter Zimmerman and Rashid It is run by Haji and we have renamed it Rudersdal Neuro Table Tennis Center. On Mondays and Thursdays we have table tennis, and on Mondays and Wednesdays we have fitness, boxing and yoga.”
Elizabeth wears the medal she won at the World Parkinson’s Table Tennis Championships held in Crete, Greece in November 2023
There’s also a social aspect. “They have coffee and cake. They also have Christmas parties and summer parties,” says Ildal.
In the future, Ildal hopes there will be enough resources to open the center to people with other neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Ildal outlines what she and the other four Cure4Parkinson board members and their supporters are doing as an organization. “We hold events, go to meetings with politicians and aim to raise awareness, especially in Denmark, because many people still don’t know what Parkinson’s disease is,” she said. say. “We held the Light of Day 2023 concert in Copenhagen on November 27th to raise funds for research.
“There’s a little sunny island in Denmark called Bornholm. Once a year, there’s a conference where all the politicians come to the island and it’s a big event, so we go there. I’ve been in the media a lot. I write letters, talk to politicians, and try to get my city council to listen.
Rudersdal Mayor Anne-Sophie Orth (front row, center) with Elizabeth and her fellow executives and exercise trainers Rashid Haji (front row, left) and Peter Zimmerman (back row, back row) at the Rudersdal Neurological Center Second person from the left)
“Cure4Parkinson also runs a movement to make rehabilitation centers and table tennis available to Parkinson’s patients with prescription needs. We are here to help in any way we can. Specialist Rehabilitation Center for Parkinson’s Patients We just donated a table tennis table to Sano in Denmark,” says Ildal.
Believing there is power in numbers, Cure4Parkinson recently joined Parkinson’s Disease Europe and the Danish Parkinson Society as members.
Ildal is running for the European Parliament this summer, and if elected, Parkinson’s disease will be one of her priorities. “For me, running in this election is a platform to talk about Parkinson’s disease. That’s my motivation – I want to have a platform to talk about Parkinson’s disease and table tennis.”
return