Feature: Scout China's strength in table tennis under overpass

HARBIN, June 24 (Xinhua) -- Go to any park or overpass in China, and you may find out why China is a powerhouse in table tennis.

Zhang Zhijian was a high school teacher in the northeastern city of Harbin. After his retirement, he often goes walking under an overpass. Seeing some people play table tennis there, he decided to take up the sport and bought his first bat three years ago.

"I like to watch table tennis matches but seldom play," Zhang admitted.

Also under the overpass, Zhang met his coach Zhou Shengqi, who is at the same age as Zhang's son.

Zhou is an accountant. When he is available, he often takes part in amateur competitions.

"I started playing table tennis at 15, but without any professional training," Zhou recalled. "I have competed with many table tennis enthusiasts, and they are all my teachers. I have won many competitions, so I am well known here."

Zhang and Zhou play table tennis almost every night. After three years of training, Zhang has developed a lot.

Every evening, you can find several people play table tennis under this overpass. They have formed a team that participates in amateur competitions.

In local events, Zhang often meets 70-year-old Song Jiangcheng, who learned table tennis in a park near the Songhua River.

"I started playing table tennis at the age of 40 and trained in the park over these years. I am very healthy and all my joints are good," he said.

"We take the competitions very seriously as if we were playing international events," Song added.

You should not underestimate the level of street table tennis in China, as you may find some retired internationals play with amateur players in the parks.

Once a member of China's national table tennis team, Huang Chen now has millions of fans on the short-video platform Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. He has posted some videos of competing with amateur enthusiasts in the parks, where the amateurs often hand a tough game to the former pro.

For world and Olympic champion Deng Yaping, an important reason for the supreme position of China's table tennis lies in high-level grassroots coaching. So, if you see a grey-haired enthusiast playing table tennis in the streets in China, don't underestimate their strength.