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Chinese players for the upcoming table tennis championship
26/4/2005 16:18

Following are factfiles of Chinese players for the world table tennis championships:

Ma Lin
Date of birth: Feb. 19, 1980
Height: 175cm
Ma Lin plays with pips-in rubbers in penhold grip and possesses a deadly forehand drive. His serves vary in speed, spin and directions. However, his forehand isn't as strong as that of Olympic champion Ryu Seung Min although both have world-class footwork.
Results:
1st in doubles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 1999
1st in mixed doubles in the 45th world championships in 1999
2nd in team in the 46th world championships in 2001
1st in singles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2001
1st in team in the Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, in 2002
1st in doubles in the 2002, 2003 and 2004 ITTF Pro Finals
1st in mixed doubles in the 47th world championships in 2003
1st in doubles in the Athens Olympics in 2004

Wang Hao
Date of birth: Dec. 1, 1983
Height: 176m
Wang, playing with pips-in rubbers, is unable to block like other penholders and uses the reverse side of the racket for backhand instead. Albeit inconsistent, his forehand drive is strong and lightening.
Results:
1st in singles in Egypt Open in 2002
1st in singles Dutch Open in 2002
1st in singles in Croatian Open in 2003
1st in singles and team in the Asian championships in 2003
1st in singles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2003
2nd in doubles in the 47th world championships in 2003
1st in the 47th world team championships in 2004
2nd in singles in the Athens Olympics in 2004
3rd in World Cup in 2004

Chen Qi
Date of birth: April 15, 1984
Height: 174
Chen plays with pips-in rubbers in left-handed shakehand style and boasts brilliant serves. As a flamboyant player, he is better in offense than defense and tends to lose composure in clutch moments.
Results:
1st in doubles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2003
1st in doubles in Korea Open in 2003
1st in doubles in Japan Open in 2003
1st in doubles in ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2004
1st in doubles in the Athens Olympics in 2004

Liu Guozheng
Date of birth: March 1980
Height: 169cm
Liu started out at six and joined the provincial team in 1991, the
national youth team in 1994 and the national team in 1995. With strong nerves, Liu plays a consistent topspin game. He saved seven match points to win a classic attacking game against South Korean veteran Kim Taek Soo in the deciding match of the team championship final in 2001.
Results:
1st in singles in China Open in 1999
1st in singles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 1999
1st in singles and doubles in Swedish Open in 2000
1st in team in the 45th world championships in 2000
1st in team in the 46th world championships in 2001
1st in team in the Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, in 2002
1st in singles and doubles in Malaysian Open in 2003
1st in mixed doubles in the 47th world championships in 2003
1st in mixed doubles in the Asian championships in 2003
1st in the 47th world team championships in 2004

Niu Jianfeng
Date of birth: April 3, 1981
Height: 164cm
Niu plays with pips-in rubbers in shakehand style. She started to play table tennis at five and joined the national team in 1996. Niu is evenly good in forehand and backhand and has brilliant serves including a squat serve which easily sets up her follow-up attack.
Results:
1st in doubles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2002
1st in singles and doubles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2003
1st in team and singles in the Asian championships in 2003
2nd in doubles in the 47th world championships in 2003
2nd in World Cup in 2003
1st in the 47th world team championships in 2004
3rd in doubles in the Athens Olympics in 2004

Guo Yue
Date of birth: July 17, 1988
Height: 162
Guo, playing with pips-in rubbers in shakehand style, started out at six and joined the Liaoning team in 1996 and the national team in 2000. She is fast and has a good touch.
Results:
2nd in doubles in the 47th world championships in 2003
1st in doubles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2003
1st in the 47th world team championships in 2004
3rd in doubles in the Athens Olympics in 2004
1st in singles in the ITTF Pro Tour Finals in 2004

Guo Yan
Date of birth: June 1983
Height: 171cm
Guo plays with pips-in rubbers in shakehand style and started the game at seven. She made it to the Beijing team in 1996 and the national team in 1998. With a superb physique, she plays a manly game.
Results:
1st in singles in Croatian Open in 2001
1st in singles in Swedish Open in 2001
1st in doubles in Korea Open in 2002
2nd in team in the Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, in 2002
1st in singles in Korea Open in 2003
1st in team and doubles in the Asian championships in 2003

 



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