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Malaysian girl pursues table tennis dream in SW China’s Sichuan Province

(People's Daily Online) 14:14, June 14, 2022

Yilynn Tang, a Malaysian girl, is pursuing her table tennis dream in Chengdu, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan Province.

Tang practices table tennis. (Chinanews.com/Zhang Lang)

Tang, who began to play table tennis at the age of seven and was a member of the Malaysian national table tennis team, chose to study at Chengdu Sports University after finishing high school. She is now a junior student at the university.

Tang was shocked when she took part in a district-level table tennis competition in the city. She only ranked seventh in the competition and found that the top six winners were all senior citizens.

“I felt a little awkward at first when I lost out to older players, but I have been getting used to it because table tennis is a ‘national sport’ in China, where you find that even children may be highly skilled at playing table tennis,” Tang said, admitting that her rivals in the competition were more experienced.

Tang receives training at the Chengdu Sports University in Chengdu, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan Province. (Chinanews.com/Zhang Lang)

Tang has not only improved her table tennis skills at the university, but also learned theoretical knowledge such as table tennis tactical analysis and refereeing. Whenever she is free, she watches videos on members of the Chinese table tennis team playing at international competitions to analyze their tactics.

Tang said it’s difficult for her to analyze the tactics of top-ranked Chinese table tennis players because they are so extraordinary.

Tang learns calligraphy at the Chengdu Sports University in Chengdu, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan Province. (Chinanews.com/Zhang Lang)

Tang plans to pursue a master’s degree in sports management. She explained that studying in Chengdu made her realize that sport has no limits and everyone can find a suitable sports program to practice and keep fit.

“I believe that I will achieve more goals in table tennis, the sport that I love,” Tang said.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)

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