SPORTS> China
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SPORTS> China
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Star power needed to promote table tennis - coach
By Tang Yue (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-09 09:57 Chinese men's national table tennis head coach Liu Guoliang believes the sport is losing fans at the grassroots level and is urging its stars to help promote the game. "Table tennis is extremely popular among the older generation. A lot of officials and cadres like playing it and that's good," Liu said.
"But we also notice that there are less and less kids playing table tennis than before," the coach told China Daily on Sunday after winning a prize as one of the 60 most influential Chinese athletes since 1949. He was among eight table tennis players honored, the most of any sport at the gala event. "Of course, that's not what we want to see. We should seek different ways to promote the sport at the grassroots level." One effective approach should be to cash in on the popularity of the game's stars, he said. The China Table Tennis Association made a recent effort to win back fans through the 2009 Europe-Asia All Stars Table Tennis Challenge last month in Beijing. "This tournament brought the world's biggest and most popular stars to China," Liu said. "It was a great help in spreading the sport's popularity among young people." Jorgen Persson, the former world champion from Sweden who played for Europe in the Challenge, voiced the same concerns as Liu. "There is fierce competition between different sports out there. Kids are going for soccer and basketball, that's the reality in Europe, I think also in China," the 43-year-old told China Daily. "We need more promotions for the sport and the key is the stars; we need Beckhams in table tennis. That would be of great interest to the youngsters."
The love story hit the headlines of local papers and has been a hot topic on-line. While badminton's champion couple, Lin Dan and Xie Xingfang, has enjoyed heavy media coverage over the past few years, love affairs between players within the national table tennis team had been discouraged. The 26-year-old reigning world champ Wang fell foul of the administration six years ago when he engaged in a romantic liaison with fellow national team player Fan Ying, who was subsequently dropped from the squad. Wang's romance was given the green light this time around and has helped Liu to realize the importance of the top players in promoting the sport. "I know stars play a big role in the promotion of the game and they could draw great attention. It could help attract more people to pick up a paddle. "I think we are changing and it is the trend but it also can't go too far. We can't overuse the star effect. "China's table tennis team has a tradition of collectivism and team spirit, we have never advocated individualism and we will not in the future." |
