Zhang Jike tattoo Persistence

Zhang Jike personifies the word persistence, which he has tattooed prominently on his back. He was out of the China team for disciplinary reasons, but came back with a vengence to claim the World and Olympic championship Table Tennis titles.

Michael Maze beats Sharath Kamal

Sharath Kamal keeps India's stamp in the Professional Table Tennis world. He recently faced Michael Maze of Denmark in the Euro Asia all stars tournament at Vendée, France. Although Sharath lost 7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-9, he put up a good fight and had chances to equal it at 2-2.

Asia emerged the overall winners in the contest held over 2 days (11-9).

Results:

Saturday 27th October 2012:  
EUROPE 4-1 ASIA
Michael Maze v Sharath Kamal Achanta 7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-9
Adrian Crisan v Kazuhiro Chan 11-6, 8-11, 11-6, 11-4
Dimitrij Ovtcharov v Jiang Tianyi 11-8, 9-11, 11-2, 11-5
Vladimir Samsonov v Ryu Seungmin 11-6, 8-11, 12-10, 11-7
Adrien Mattenet v Li Ping 4-11, 5-11, 9-11

Sunday 28th October 2012:  
EUROPE 2-3 ASIA
Michael Maze v Li Ping 6-11, 10-12, 6-11
Adrien Mattenet v Kazuhiro Chan 12-10, 9-11, 9-11, 5-11
Vladimir Samsonov v Jiang Tianyi 8-11, 7-11, 11-13
Dimitrij Ovtcharov v Ryu Seungmin 11-8, 11-7, 11-6
Adrian Crisan v Sharath Kamal Achanta 11-8, 11-7, 9-11, 11-6

Burning Karma - Sharath Kamal art by Mike Mezyan

Now Zhang Jike wants to learn English!

We all know that the all time great Table Tennis player Zhang Yining enrolled for English lessons in the United states last year. Now it's Zhang Jike's turn to learn the language. Is he inspired by Zhang Yining? Unlikely but possible. After all, he is one of the very few to have won the Grand Slam of Table Tennis, Zhang Yining is one of them. Liu Guoliang, Kong Linghui, Wang Nan are others who've done it.

Wang Hao latest update

Wang Hao is still playing as much as he can in the Chinese premier TT league even after losing out on a gold medal on his third attempt. Zhang Jike praised big brother Hao right after he won the Gold. Liu Guoliang too showered praise. 

If anything, Wang Hao's won more fans even after losing. Evidence - the Chinese media going ga-ga over a hit of a streak of golden hair!

Table Tennis Girl Stina Kallberg, a prodigy

This girl was born in 2000 and is a huge Table Tennis prodigy from Sweden. 


Stina Kallberg, for her young age, she is terrific. She has a rare gift of exquisite stroke selection. If you see her lobbing, you immediately understand that her anticipation and attacking attitude belie her age!

Cocktail Table Tennis anyone?

Ping Pong bars are the new craze everywhere in the Western world with celebrities taking to the Table like never before. It's party time, with a twist - Table Tennis.

One of the recent big waves to hit America has now spread to the United Kingdom. Susan Sarandon, Mike Myers, Elle Macpherson and Scarlett Johansson are some popular names patronizing the sport. Susan even owns a chain of Table Tennis cum entertainment spots in North America which go by the name SPiN.

Photo courtesy: mirror.co.uk


SPiN LA AT THE STANDARD
550 SOUTH FLOWER STREET
LOS ANGELES, CA  90071

SPiN MILWAUKEE
233 EAST CHICAGO STREET
MILWAUKEE, WI  53202

SPiN NEW YORK
48 EAST 23RD STREET
NEW YORK, NY  10010

SPiN TORONTO
461 KING STREET WEST
TORONTO, ON, M5V 1K7

SPiN GALACTIC (Go figure!)
SOME FAR BEYOND PLACE THAT YOU CAN'T REALLY IMAGINE, BUT TRUST US, IT'S OUT THERE.

Bounce, London

Zhang Jike back in form?

Zhang Jike's rough patch on the Table has probably ended. He lost in the Chinese Nationals recently to Zhou Yu. But in the Chinese league, in the very next encounter against Zhou Yu, Jike scored a comprehensive victory and is playing a leading role for his Table Tennis team Shandong.

Photo: Courtesy zimbio.com.
Zhang Jike jumps the arena blocks and runs to kiss the Gold medal podium at the London Olympics.

Pavlovich retains European Women's Table Tennis Title

Viktoria Pavlovich retained the Women's title at the European Championships.

In the finals, she beat Xian Yifang 11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 11-5, 13-11 in a long match between two defensive players.

Timo Boll adds another European Championship title

Timo Boll wins another European Championship title beating Tanrui Wu. He does not fail to mention that he would readily swap the prestigious title for an Olympic medal!