As the World Table Tennis Championships draw closer, table tennis enthusiasts around the world are once again turning their attention to this world-class tournament that will kick off in Busan from February 16 to 25. Recently, table tennis associations from various countries have announced their respective lists, and the Chinese table tennis team, as a strong force in previous competitions, has naturally become the focus of attention.
Prior to this, the national table tennis had announced a preliminary list of participants, and 5 athletes from each of the men's and women's teams attracted much attention. In the men's team, familiar names such as Fan Zhendong, Wang Chuqin, Ma Long, Liang Jingkun, and Lin Gaoyuan appeared in the list again; The women's team is composed of Sun Yingsha, Wang Yidi, Chen Meng, Wang Manyu, and Qian Tianyi. Qian Tianyi was automatically included in the participating teams according to his excellent performance in the world rankings, but all this has not yet been finally confirmed by the national table tennis officials.
Finally, on February 6, the national table tennis official released the final list of participants, which attracted widespread attention and heated discussions. It is worth mentioning that Qian Tianyi failed to qualify for the final competition in the fierce competition with Chen Xingtong, while Chen Xingtong became the last member of the women's team with her stable performance and rich competition experience. This change in the list undoubtedly brought a great impact to Qian Tianyi's mind, and the dream of a world champion that was originally within reach became unattainable in an instant.
From the interpretation of Ma Lin, the head coach of the national table tennis women's team, we can feel that the selection of the entry list is full of strategic considerations. Ma Lin pointed out that the five female team members who participated in the competition this time performed the best in the preparation for the entire Paris Olympic cycle, and both results and experience were the best choices. This also shows from the side that although Qian Tianyi's performance in the 2023 season is eye-catching, compared with Chen Xingtong, he is still lacking in stability and experience accumulation in the entire preparation cycle.
In a high-level, high-intensity competition like the World Table Tennis Championships, stability and experience are particularly important. Chen's successful selection is based on her solid performance throughout the Paris Olympic cycle and her rich experience in competitions. And Qian Tianyi's regrettable defeat has also added new impetus and challenges to her future struggle.
For Chen Xingtong, this selection is not only an affirmation of her past efforts, but also a new expectation for the future. For Qian Tianyi, although a short-term loss is inevitable, as long as he maintains his perseverance on the road ahead, he still has the opportunity to realize his dream of becoming a world champion. For national table tennis, such competition and selection is undoubtedly an optimization and improvement of the overall strength, and it is also in order to send the strongest lineup in the upcoming World Series and achieve better results.
With the World Table Tennis Championships approaching, we look forward to the wonderful performance of the national table tennis players on the field, whether it is a veteran who continues to write a legend, or a new star who shines on the stage, it will be another demonstration of the charm of table tennis. Let's cheer them on together and look forward to those remarkable moments that will shine on the world stage again.