In July p>196, the State Sports Commission selected 18 young table tennis players from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou for training to prepare for the 26th World Table Tennis Championships.
Time flies. Half a century later, the "18 Generals" meet again in Beijing. They visited the Bird's Nest together, revisited the Workers' Stadium, and visited Shichahai Sports School, which is known as the "cradle of national players" ... On the 15th, the veterans came to the State Sports General Administration to watch and interact with the national players in table tennis, and took photos in front of the previous world champion trophies of China table tennis team. Zhang Xielin, an old world champion with silver hair, wrote a testimonial: "Old friends are especially close together, and one hundred singles will gather in Beijing to talk about friendship, and friendship will last forever."
Li Guangzu, who came back from Indonesia at the age of p>19 to serve the motherland, was one of the initiators of this commemorative activity. When attending the big training camp, the team asked him to imitate the style of Hungarian players and help the main players practice the ball. He had no complaints. He recalled: "At that time, the material conditions of the country were not very good, but the players were bent on doing whatever the motherland asked them to do and the party did whatever it wanted." Li Guangzu is a microcosm of the unsung hero in "18 Generals". At present, there is still a slogan hanging high on the honor wall of the national table tennis team training hall: the honor of the motherland is above everything else!
Zhuang Zedong, who won the men's singles championship in the 26th World Table Tennis Championships, is nearly 7 years old. He recalled that in order to deal with the secret weapon invented by the Japanese table tennis team, teammates Hu Bingquan, Xue Weichu, Yu Changchun, Liao Wenting, etc. relied on their years of playing experience, imitated the Japanese loop game and helped the main players adapt to the loop game. At that time, there were few athletes who pulled the loop ball, and there were many athletes who needed to adapt to the loop ball. They worked hard and insisted on sparring. It's hard to sparring with teammates for fame and profit, for the sake of national honor. When Zhuang Zedong stepped onto the podium to win the cup, he said from the bottom of his heart: I accept the prize on behalf of our collective!
Qiu Zhonghui, who won the women's singles championship in the 26th World Table Tennis Championships and the first women's world champion in China, is 74 years old this year. When she recalled the course of winning the championship that year, she said, "I wanted to fight ball by ball at that time and win glory for my country." Before the world championship trophy, Qiu Zhonghui took a group photo with his teammates at that time, and the old friends got together and were particularly excited.
A life-long love affair with table tennis
After the 26th World Table Tennis Championships, many of the "18 Generals" have been engaged in table tennis-related work and have formed an indissoluble bond with table tennis. As Li Guangzu said, "Table tennis is indispensable in my life."
Li Lianyi, who has made outstanding achievements on behalf of China for many times, taught in Guangdong team after retiring. He has trained world champions Jiang Jialiang, Lin Zhigang, Marin and Liu Guozheng, and now he teaches in Hong Kong Club, and he has also trained Li Jing and other key players. Qiu Zhonghui retired as a female table tennis coach in 1964, engaged in sports science research from 1973 to 1996, and later founded Qiu Zhonghui Sporting Goods Company, specializing in table tennis equipment.
Li Guangzu's career has always been closely linked with table tennis. After retiring, he served as the coach of the National Youth Team and trained a number of outstanding athletes. In 1972, he went to Hong Kong, playing games and being a coach. Later, he began to work as a sales agent for table tennis equipment. Li Guangzu played an important role when the national brand "Double Happiness" opened up overseas markets. He served as the general manager of China Sports Equipment Trading (Hongkong) Co., Ltd. and Tianjin 729 Sports Equipment Development Co., Ltd., and also developed a patented product that can adjust the center of gravity of the racket independently. He said: "The spirit of being a table tennis player has always been with me. I have to fight hard, don't care about so many gains and losses, and consider the interests of the other side and friends. We must concentrate on the country, have a sense of collective honor, and cooperate with individuals and collectives, which are all reflected in my business management philosophy. "
The impressive achievements made by the China table tennis team are the results of hard work from generation to generation. The "18 Generals" are the cornerstone of the long-lasting table tennis in China. The table tennis spirit-hard work, dedication, and the honor of the motherland above all else always shines on their life journey.