Young Paddlers Pile Pressure on Veteran Stars
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22 TUESDAY FEBRUARY 27, 2007 SPORTSCHINA CHINA DAILY Guo Yue, winner of three ITTF Pro Tour tournament titles this year, is considered one of the best of a new generation of Young paddlers Chinese table tennis players. Xinhua pile pressure on veteran stars the quarterfinals have been Competition for places on scratched, with instead four round-robin groups that will 2008 Olympic team heats up as yield the four semifi nalists. Many believe the changes are youngsters rise to the challenge aimed at limiting China’s domi- nance, but Liu believes they By Zhao Rui who clinched the Croatia Open won’t make any difference. in January. “I don’t care if changes are “We will try hard to push designed for us, it doesn’t both- World No 1s Wang Liqin and the veterans,” said Hao. “All of er us that much,” he said. “No Zhang Yining are widely consid- us are fi ghting for spots at the matter how the format changes, ered shoe-ins for spots on China’s Beijing Olympics and I think I our goal is to fi nish at the top table tennis team for the 2008 have a chance of getting one.” of the group and then become Beijing Olympic Games, but both champion. paddlers know that this could not Tough road “On the other hand, we have be further from the truth. Head coach Liu says his to play as solidly as we can With less than 18 months target for the Games is crystal and try to win all round-robin until the Games start, a crop clear – sweeping all four gold matches at the Games. That’s a of emerging youngsters are medals very big requirement for us.” cranking up the pressure on The Table Tennis Adminis- According to Liu, six players the veteran duo. trative Centre, led by Liu and – world top three Wang Liqin, The new generation, led by Ma Lin and Wang Hao, as well 18-year-old Ma Long and Guo as teenagers Hao Shuai, Chen Yue, 19, have dominated com- All of us are fi ghting Qi and Ma Long - will be in the petition so far in 2007, in the men’s Olympic team, but only process proving their status as for spots at the three of them will compete. legitimate medal contenders. Beijing Olympics On the women’s side, world No “This is no surprise,” said 1 Zhang, veteran Wang Nan, Guo national team head coach Liu and I think I have a Yue, Guo Yan and Li Xiaoxia will Guoliang. “The rising young chance of getting be fi ghting for the places. players keep on putting a lot one. China has long been a force of pressure on the world title in table tennis, but dominance holders. That’s a reason why HAO SHUAI reached a peak in the late 1990s China is a success in the world Table tennis player when the team swept all titles at of table tennis.” the Atlanta and Sydney Games, Ma outclassed Wang Liqin as well as the 2000 World and world No 2 Wang Hao to women’s coach Shi Zhihao, has Championships in Tianjin. win his fi rst ever International even signed a letter of guaranty The ITTF became concerned Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) with the State General Admin- that China’s dominance was Offi cial: We must do more to nurture talent trophy at the Kuwait Open in istration for Sports promising effecting the international By Li Wei national team head coach. the situation is different now. I their time at the table.” January. Meanwhile his wom- a sweep. competitiveness of the game, “With the joint efforts of cannot see any youngsters like “That’s a reason behind our en’s teammate Guo has pock- “Whenever we come to a tour- and in 2000 they stepped in professional staff and re- Wang Liqin and Ma Lin, who move: Get young players to eted three out of four titles in nament, gold medals are what we with new rules enlarging the On top of the world and deter- nowned universities, we want really shocked me when I saw the table and guarantee them 2007 in Slovenia, Croatia and chase the most. The Olympics is ball and slowing the speed of mined to stay there, China’s to get more kids and families them in their early careers.” the country’s best education. Kuwait respectively, beating no exception,” said Liu. “To clinch play, one of the Chinese players’ table tennis chief Cai Zhenhua involved and show them they China’s traditional training I think this is best idea that I Athens Olympic gold medalist all the golds is not only the dream biggest advantages. is not about to rest on his have a chance to compete for system sees children going could come up with.” Zhang Yining twice this year. of Chinese players and coaches, These changes appeared laurels. the national team.” through State-funded amateur According to Cai, the Chi- Despite winning six ITTF it’s our responsibility. I know to make little difference as Facing an increasing chal- Despite China’s dominance sports schools and provincial nese Table Tennis Association titles in 2006, 28-year-old the whole country has very high China won all medals at the lenge from European and of the sport, Cai believes the teams before joining the na- (CTTA) is in talks with Peking Wang Liqin has struggled to expectations, but we don’t have 2001 World Championships Asian rivals, Cai plans to team quality of young players is tional side for international University and Beijing Universi- deal with the challenge from any excuses for missing out on in Japan. In response, the ITTF up with the country’s leading declining. tournaments. But Cai says the ty of Physical Education, as well younger teammates and has a gold when the Olympics is on introduced shorter 11-point universities in a bid to attract China lost to South Korea in three-level pyramid doesn’t as universities in Shanghai. failed to win an ITTF title so our doorstep.” games and, crucially, a ban on more youngsters into profes- the Asian Youth Championships work as well as before, and The CTTA has had strong far this year. However, format changes by the “covered serves” used by sional table tennis. last year and his paddlers only expects the new institutes to links with universities in re- Added to this, he has yet to the International Olympic Com- the Chinese players. “We are going to cooperate narrowly won the team title at solve the problem. cent years. The Grand Final of confi rm his spot at the World mittee (IOC) are sure to make Then world No 1 Liu was with a number of universities the Three-Nation (with Japan “Very few parents want to the International Table Tennis Championships this year in Liu’s mission harder. forced to retire after failing to establish table tennis train- and South Korea) Challenger. send their kids to professional Federation (ITTF) was held in Zagreb, Croatia, after finish- Men’s and women’s team to adapt to the new serving re- ing centers on campus. We call “This is where the problem teams because it’s very risky the Capital Institute of Physi- ing fourth in the team’s fi rst events will replace the doubles, quirements, and at the Athens them ‘ping pong institutes’,” lies. We have fewer and fewer for families,” he said. “The most cal Education in 2004, with a internal qualifi cation tourna- which China had won each time Games in 2004 Rye Seung-min said Cai, assistant to the direc- promising athletes,” Cai said. talented kids will not play table number of exhibition matches ment. That event was won by since the Seoul Games in 1988. of South Korea won the men’s tor of China’s General Sports “We used to have the best re- tennis because they have other staged in universities around Hao Shuai, an emerging star In the new team event gold medal. Administration and former serves of talent in the world, but options and won’t spend all the country. SCOREBOARD SOCCER Standings Reggina 8 7 9 29 33 20 Toronto 31 25 .554 - Eastern conference 69-69-63-72 Belgian league W D L Gf Ga Pts Messina 4 8 12 24 39 20 New Jersey 27 30 .474 4 1/2 Atlantic division 274 - Kevin Stadler 66-69-71-68, Jeff BRUSSELS: Belgian league results on Schalke 04 15 4 4 40 22 49 Parma 3 7 14 20 43 16 NY Knicks 25 32 .439 6 1/2 W L Otl Gf Ga Pts Sluman 67-70-69-68, Pat Perez 71-69-65- Sunday: VfB Stuttgart 13 6 4 41 26 45 Ascoli 2 8 14 18 38 14 Philadelphia 18 38 .321 13 New Jersey 39 18 6 170 149 84 69, Alejandro Canizares (ESP) 68-68-69-69, Lokeren 1 Anderlecht 1 Werder Bremen 13 4 6 55 32 43 Spanish league Boston 13 42 .236 17 1/2 Pittsburgh 33 19 9 211 193 75 Mark Brooks 69-65-68-72 Zulte-Waregem 3 Ghent 2 Bayern Munich 12 4 7 35 27 40 MADRID: Spanish league results on Central division NY Islanders 31 23 8 183 174 70 ... Nuremberg 8 12 3 32 19 36 Sunday: Detroit 36 19 .655 - NY Rangers 29 27 6 180 178 64 275 - Paul Gow (AUS) 68-68-72-67, Steve English Premiership Hertha Berlin 9 7 7 33 35 34 Cleveland 32 24 .571 4 1/2 Philadelphia 16 37 9 161 235 41 Elkington (AUS) 69-71-69-66 LONDON: English Premiership results on Real Betis 0 Recreativo Huelva 0 Hanover 9 6 8 32 34 33 Celta Vigo 2 (Baiano 27-pen, Bamogo 35) Chicago 32 26 .552 5 1/2 Northeast division 276 - Fabrizio Zanotti (PAR) 71-63-70-72 Sunday: Bayer Leverkusen 9 5 9 36 34 32 Indiana 29 26 .527 7 Buffalo 41 16 5 234 182 87 277 - Ryuji Imada (JPN) 70-66-72-70, Jim Blackburn 3 (Nonda 1, 25, Warnock 50) Racing Santander 2 (Munitis 59, Christian Dortmund 7 7 9 27 32 28 Alvarez 79-pen) Milwaukee 20 37 .351 17 Ottawa 36 22 4 215 171 76 Rutledge (CAN) 69-71-67-70 Portsmouth 0 Mainz 05 6 9 8 21 33 27 Southeast division Montreal 32 26 6 186 192 70 278 - Jarrod Lyle (AUS) 72-65-71-70, Tottenham 4 (Keane 11, 22, Jenas 19, Len- Levante 0 Real Zaragoza 0 VfL Wolfsburg 5 10 8 23 28 25 Osasuna 0 Espanyol 2 (Coro 12, Raul Washington 31 23 .574 - Toronto 30 23 9 198 200 69 Daisuke Maruyama (JPN) 71-67-70-70, non 90) Bolton 1 (Speed 37-pen) Energie Cottbus 6 7 10 25 32 25 Miami 27 28 .491