Ai Fukuhara, a hugeTable Tennis Star

Ai is a huge star not only in Table Tennis in her country, but is a celebrity overall. She is an Olympian and a contender at major championships.

She has featured in two Table Tennis video games - Ikuze! Onsen Takkyū!! (Do it! Hot Spring Table Tennis!!) and Fukuhara Ai No Takkyū Icchokusen (Ai Fukuhara's Table Tennis) for Play Station 2.

She has carried the Olympic flame in Tokyo in 2004 and in 2008 at Beijing (where she was the nation's flag bearer).


Ai speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese. Such is her popularity, that she has featured in events with Chinese Premier Hu Jintao and Jackie Chan.