In the past five years, the national table tennis team has been lacking female coaches, which is really shocking once you look closely. During this period, the national table tennis performance as a whole has been excellent, except for the loss of a gold medal in the mixed doubles event of the East Olympics, other competitions have achieved remarkable results.
However, in a team where the number and value of female players dominate, is the lack of female coaches really the most reasonable and ideal?
Since Director Zhang Qin left the coaching staff of the national table tennis team in February 2019, no female coach has joined the team for five years. Zhang Qin, a native of Nanfeng, Jiangxi, joined the national team at the age of 16 and was a group of national players with Deng Yaping and Qiao Hong.
Although she failed to reach the pinnacle of achievements, during her service, Zhang Qin was definitely a core member of the national table tennis women's team, and once ranked 7th in the world.
At the age of 23, Zhang Qin chose to retire from the national team, returned to her hometown after four years in the Japanese league, and began her coaching career, starting with the Jiangxi provincial table tennis team.
In 2015, through competition, Zhang Qin became the coach of the second national table tennis team, responsible for guiding outstanding players such as Sun Yingsha, and later Sun Mingyang, Wu Yang, Li Jiayi, etc. This experience has shown that female coaches can also play an important role in developing outstanding players.
Sun Yingsha was only 14 years old at the time, an innocent little girl. Whether she misses her hometown, is sick or tired, she always sheds a touch of immature tears at these times.
And Zhang Qin not only gently coaxed Sun Yingsha to sleep when she needed comfort the most, but also criticized and strictly reprimanded her without hesitation. In the process of Sun Yingsha's rapid growth, a deep relationship like a mother and daughter has been established between the two.
In 2017, Zhang Qin and Sun Yingsha, the mother and daughter master and apprentice, entered the first team of national table tennis together. Subsequently, Sun Yingsha quickly emerged and flew forward all the way. However, when Zhang Qin said goodbye to the national team in February 2019, Sun Yingsha shed deep tears.
Since Zhang Qin left, the national table tennis team has not introduced a female coach. From the beginning of 2019 to the present, the coaching structure of the national table tennis team has undergone three great changes.
In the process, some familiar faces withdrew and some fresh ones joined, but the only thing that remained constant was the male-to-female ratio, which has always been n:0.
In general, the current coaching lineup of the national table tennis team includes: Li Falcon (head coach), Wang Hao (head coach of the men's team), Ma Lin (head coach of the women's team), Xiao Zhan (head of the mixed doubles team), Qiu Yike, Cui Qinglei, Xu Hui, Sun Xun, Liu Zhiqiang, Li Dacheng, Liu Heng, Ma Junfeng, Zhong Jinyong, Chen Zhenjiang, etc. (coaches). This big formation is all male coaches.
While these male coaches have different ages and experiences, the most significant difference is in their coaching styles. Some are as caring as "loving fathers", while others are more like "ruthless fathers", stern and firm.
Female athletes have a unique delicacy and sensitivity, as well as special physiological characteristics. So, even if a male coach is as concerned as a loving father, it is difficult to achieve subtle consideration.
Taking Sun Yingsha as an example, when she was a girl, she was able to feel her mother's love in Coach Zhang Qin, which had a crucial impact on her growth and transformation. This is an effect that is difficult for any male coach to achieve.
Even in adulthood, there is a good communication relationship between the female athlete and the male coach, and the athlete shows an air of candor without so many pretentious lines.
Moreover, the principle of opposite-sex attraction between men and women can also give rise to some tacit understanding of cooperation. However, in those subtle, sensitive and intimate aspects, female athletes are more eager to receive warm and considerate care in their hearts or subconsciously, like an aunt's love.
When it comes to the care and specific care of female athletes during their menstrual periods, it is difficult to expect a rugged male coach to be perfect. Appropriately staffing some female coaches can obviously be more coordinated and make the team more balanced and complete.
What's more, there is no shortage of high-level female coaches in the Chinese table tennis world. As long as the superstructure has this will, the excellent female coaches hidden in the mountains and fields (enough to reach the national team level) will definitely be able to embellish the team, like a random flower that gradually charms the eyes.
Considering the long-term development of team building, the first national table tennis team should appropriately increase the introduction of female coaches. This may not be an absolute necessity in terms of ensuring grades, but it is certainly a reasonable choice at the level of scientific development. Such adjustments will help the long-term healthy development of the team and provide more possibilities for the overall strength improvement.