Host: The last day of the Marvellous 12. Let's have our coach and players to talk about today's match.
Coach Liu (Liu): I have mentioned in the award ceremony. Let's open the floor for questions.
Host: This is the Q&A session. Please raise your question.
Journalist: 2 spots are set, how do you select the remaining 3?
Liu: The coaches haven't decided yet. We thought we would decide two spots first. We give 2 spots in this trials because we have no time. We have the Qatar Open before the trials and the Prelims of the Chinese National Games after the trials. The Chinese National Games is important for the provincial team. It will be late-March after the National Games and we will start the closed training on 3rd April. We will select players based on the team's needs and the potential of the player.
Journalist: Have you ever thought of Lin Gaoyuan earning the spot?
Liu: Gaiyuan, have you ever thought of that?
Lin Gaoyuan (Lin): Yes.
Liu: You think of it every day or occasionally?
Lin: I think of that more and more.
Liu: What are you thinking now?
Lin: The next competition.
Journalist: 2 spots are set, how do you select the remaining 3?
Liu: The coaches haven't decided yet. We thought we would decide two spots first. We give 2 spots in this trials because we have no time. We have the Qatar Open before the trials and the Prelims of the Chinese National Games after the trials. The Chinese National Games is important for the provincial team. It will be late-March after the National Games and we will start the closed training on 3rd April. We will select players based on the team's needs and the potential of the player.
Journalist: Have you ever thought of Lin Gaoyuan earning the spot?
Liu: Gaiyuan, have you ever thought of that?
Lin Gaoyuan (Lin): Yes.
Liu: You think of it every day or occasionally?
Lin: I think of that more and more.
Liu: What are you thinking now?
Lin: The next competition.
Liu: Starting thinking of the Worlds. I think Gaoyuan thought of that every day and I thought of that occasionally. I think besides of the top players, Gaoyuan, Fang Bo, Zhou Yu and Liang Jingkun, they are at the same level. It is hard to say. When we played the team internal competition in Beijing (in February), Gaoyuan did not qualify. We chose 8 players and he was at 9th place. He took the wild card from the coaches. We gave the wild cards to the 9th and 10th place. Therefore attitude and mentality are important. Gaoyuan not only earns his tickets to the Worlds in this competition, does he grab the chance to be the main player in the national team. From now on, we will treat him as the first-tier main player of the national team and prepare him for the Worlds in Düsseldorf. He did a good job in Stage 1 of the Marvellous 12. It was a pity for getting so close in Stage 1. He made it in Stage 2 and correct the mistakes he had made in Stage 1. He is more consistent and mature in Stage 2 as compare to the previous stage. I thought he might face some difficulties after winning Xu Xin, playing against Zhou Yu. Lin might have some changes in terms of mentality. It is not an easy match because he had lost Zhou Yu twice before. But Lin managed well. I hope he can grab this opportunity. He is a hard-working player. It is a long-term effort. But it is not easy to secure your spot as a main player. All eyes on you.
Journalist: Ding Ning, you mentioned your endurance problem, what do you actually mean?
Ding Ning (Ding): I haven't got a thorough training after the Olympics. There is not much training early in the year. And I injured my ankle before the trials. There is not enough training, I feel like I am not that consistent in the later part of the competition. I need more training after the trials.
Liu: I thought you were going to fall.
Journalist: We find the Marvellous 12 is interesting, but what ares the reason for organizing the Marvellous 12 for the players?
Liu: The duration of the competition is long, it is a challenge to the players' ability and their persistence. Some players may have an emotional breakdown when they lose. For a strong player, he can play well consistently. Another point I would like to make is that, the competition format is exciting. There is a reason for the Marvellous 12. It can challenge main players like Ding Ning and Liu Shiwen. After the Olympics, they seldom need to go all out. It is a great training opportunity for the Olympic cycle. It also provides chances for the young players like Lin, especially in Stage 2. There are more uncertainties.
Journalist: A question for Lin, you had a close match against Xu Xin and there were some controversial points. You were quite calm and did not call for a timeout. It seems that you were not affected by that at all. What were you thinking at that moment?
Lin: I could not have to much thoughts because it was at a critical set and the match was so close. I told myself not to be distracted even winning a point. And I need to prepare for the next point, the transitions. I don't think those controversial points had an impact on me.
Journalist: I heard that you had a fever yesterday. How is your health?
Ding: I think I will take a rest after the trials. But I did not think much of that while I was competing.
Journalist: The closer you are to the title, the more changes in your mind, especially in the last match. What were thoughts when you played against Zhou Yu?
Lin: I believe everyone get nervous when they are so close to win. I was very nervous. My hands did not belong to me. Before the match starts, Ma Long told me to slow down, one point at a time, don't rush. I slowed down the tempo of that match. I thought before a play play every ball. I tried to prevent from losing consecutive points.
Liu: Ma Long did not tell you when he played against you. He told you that when you played against the others.
Journalist: Sharing the same room with Ma Long helps you a lot.
Lin: Yes. After all Ma Long is a grand-slam player. There are lots to learn from him. We play in the same club. He is willing to teach me no matter what kind of technical problems, mentality problems and dealing with critical points. I think these help me a lot.
Liu: You may not share the same room with Ma Long in the next competition.
Journalist: The Marvellous 12 is a try of commercializing sports competition. We find it refreshing. Can you tell us more about the reasons for doing it and evaluate the results of the commercialization?
Liu: We put lots of effort in this competition. It is different from the trials in the past years. Tecent has given us a massive support, including the man power, logistic and financial support. We think that sports need to be reformed. The sport has become a hot trend after the Olympics. After half a year, the heat of the Olympics faded, we need to think of how to maintain the popularity of the sport. Also the ranking within the national team need to be shuffled in the new Olympic cycle. These are the reasons for organizing the Marvellous 12. This can allow people who follow the sport can see our ability and witness the process of the players maturing from young players to grand-slam players. I think these are the precious assets of the Chinese national team. It also because of the faith and appreciation from the Chinese. The more expose the competition is, the more challenging and pressure the players face. We gained a lot from the competition with such a long competition and that many supports. We see some good points and learn from mistakes. I believe we will get better year by year. The media, audience and promotions have reached an unprecedented level. These are what we gain, the acknowledgement from the crowd. Such competition has trained up our team, the main players and the young players. Coaches can spot the potential players in the new quad. It reveals problems which will help our closed training camp and the preparation of the Worlds. Senior players like Zhang Jike, Ma Long, Ding Ning and Liu Shiwen will face injury. The greatest challenge for them is that as they get older, it takes a longer time to recover from injuries. They need to think of the way to peak in the international competitions. We have players withdrew due to injuries. This is not a good thing. We need to reflect on that. Fortunately, this is an internal competition. If this happen in the Worlds and Olympics, it will be a huge loss. This issue is a new challenge for us. The strength of the Japanese team, the effort they put and the home advantage will pose challenges we have never faced before in the Tokyo Olympics. The Chinese team are great but we have three and a half years to go many things can happen. The Japanese team is relatively young. They are improving. I believe our team is stronger overall. We learn a lot from this competition, issues like dealing with the older players, the change of rules, injuries and other aspects. We need to evaluate every details.
Journalist: Liu, you mentioned that you will treat Liu as the firs-tier main player and prepare him for the Worlds.What do you mean by that?
Liu: A simple example is that in the 2 Vs 1 counter-loop training, Lin is one of the two. Now he is the one. It is a huge change. We will provide evaluation session for the main players. The coaches and players will help him analyze his problems. He fight for his spot and he deserve these. He also earns a chance to play for the national honor. At the same time he needs to grab this opportunity. Let's see how long he can stay in the spot of a main player.
Lin: Thank you coach Liu.
Journalist: Lin, have you ever imagined the scene you played in the Worlds? How will you prepare for the Worlds? As a Guangdong boy, do you speak Cantonese? Who is your idol?
Lin: That is a lot of questions.I used to assist the main players in the past. I have learnt a lot from them because many main players started from assisting the main players. This is a fruitful experience. I am longing for training like the main players as the main players have many opportunities of participating in competitions and have more resources. I really want that.
Liu: Finally you can prepare for your Worlds.
Host: That's for today. Thank you coach Liu, Lin Gaoyuan and Ding Ning.//
It is a 'blissful' headache for the Chinese team to pick the line-up for the Worlds. Similarly, it is a bittersweet moment for table tennis fans to watch these trials. We are happy to see a team with such depth; we clap for the outrageous rallies, we cheer for the players who have stood out in the competition. On the other hand, we lament over the fierce competition within the team; we feel sorry for those who almost made it; we are anxious about the health of the star players. Mixed feelings but we, table tennis fans, are the biggest winners as we get to enjoy these wonderful matches. I cannot wait for the coming of the Prelims of the Chinese National Games scheduled from 23 March to 29 March! The Chinese National Games is also known as the 'mini-Olympic Games' in China. If the Marvellous 12 is not enough for you, we might have the 'Hardy Hundreds' in the National Games!
Journalist: We find the Marvellous 12 is interesting, but what ares the reason for organizing the Marvellous 12 for the players?
Liu: The duration of the competition is long, it is a challenge to the players' ability and their persistence. Some players may have an emotional breakdown when they lose. For a strong player, he can play well consistently. Another point I would like to make is that, the competition format is exciting. There is a reason for the Marvellous 12. It can challenge main players like Ding Ning and Liu Shiwen. After the Olympics, they seldom need to go all out. It is a great training opportunity for the Olympic cycle. It also provides chances for the young players like Lin, especially in Stage 2. There are more uncertainties.
Journalist: A question for Lin, you had a close match against Xu Xin and there were some controversial points. You were quite calm and did not call for a timeout. It seems that you were not affected by that at all. What were you thinking at that moment?
Lin: I could not have to much thoughts because it was at a critical set and the match was so close. I told myself not to be distracted even winning a point. And I need to prepare for the next point, the transitions. I don't think those controversial points had an impact on me.
Journalist: I heard that you had a fever yesterday. How is your health?
Ding: I think I will take a rest after the trials. But I did not think much of that while I was competing.
Journalist: The closer you are to the title, the more changes in your mind, especially in the last match. What were thoughts when you played against Zhou Yu?
Lin: I believe everyone get nervous when they are so close to win. I was very nervous. My hands did not belong to me. Before the match starts, Ma Long told me to slow down, one point at a time, don't rush. I slowed down the tempo of that match. I thought before a play play every ball. I tried to prevent from losing consecutive points.
Liu: Ma Long did not tell you when he played against you. He told you that when you played against the others.
Journalist: Sharing the same room with Ma Long helps you a lot.
Lin: Yes. After all Ma Long is a grand-slam player. There are lots to learn from him. We play in the same club. He is willing to teach me no matter what kind of technical problems, mentality problems and dealing with critical points. I think these help me a lot.
Liu: You may not share the same room with Ma Long in the next competition.
Journalist: The Marvellous 12 is a try of commercializing sports competition. We find it refreshing. Can you tell us more about the reasons for doing it and evaluate the results of the commercialization?
Liu: We put lots of effort in this competition. It is different from the trials in the past years. Tecent has given us a massive support, including the man power, logistic and financial support. We think that sports need to be reformed. The sport has become a hot trend after the Olympics. After half a year, the heat of the Olympics faded, we need to think of how to maintain the popularity of the sport. Also the ranking within the national team need to be shuffled in the new Olympic cycle. These are the reasons for organizing the Marvellous 12. This can allow people who follow the sport can see our ability and witness the process of the players maturing from young players to grand-slam players. I think these are the precious assets of the Chinese national team. It also because of the faith and appreciation from the Chinese. The more expose the competition is, the more challenging and pressure the players face. We gained a lot from the competition with such a long competition and that many supports. We see some good points and learn from mistakes. I believe we will get better year by year. The media, audience and promotions have reached an unprecedented level. These are what we gain, the acknowledgement from the crowd. Such competition has trained up our team, the main players and the young players. Coaches can spot the potential players in the new quad. It reveals problems which will help our closed training camp and the preparation of the Worlds. Senior players like Zhang Jike, Ma Long, Ding Ning and Liu Shiwen will face injury. The greatest challenge for them is that as they get older, it takes a longer time to recover from injuries. They need to think of the way to peak in the international competitions. We have players withdrew due to injuries. This is not a good thing. We need to reflect on that. Fortunately, this is an internal competition. If this happen in the Worlds and Olympics, it will be a huge loss. This issue is a new challenge for us. The strength of the Japanese team, the effort they put and the home advantage will pose challenges we have never faced before in the Tokyo Olympics. The Chinese team are great but we have three and a half years to go many things can happen. The Japanese team is relatively young. They are improving. I believe our team is stronger overall. We learn a lot from this competition, issues like dealing with the older players, the change of rules, injuries and other aspects. We need to evaluate every details.
Journalist: Liu, you mentioned that you will treat Liu as the firs-tier main player and prepare him for the Worlds.What do you mean by that?
Liu: A simple example is that in the 2 Vs 1 counter-loop training, Lin is one of the two. Now he is the one. It is a huge change. We will provide evaluation session for the main players. The coaches and players will help him analyze his problems. He fight for his spot and he deserve these. He also earns a chance to play for the national honor. At the same time he needs to grab this opportunity. Let's see how long he can stay in the spot of a main player.
Lin: Thank you coach Liu.
Journalist: Lin, have you ever imagined the scene you played in the Worlds? How will you prepare for the Worlds? As a Guangdong boy, do you speak Cantonese? Who is your idol?
Lin: That is a lot of questions.I used to assist the main players in the past. I have learnt a lot from them because many main players started from assisting the main players. This is a fruitful experience. I am longing for training like the main players as the main players have many opportunities of participating in competitions and have more resources. I really want that.
Liu: Finally you can prepare for your Worlds.
Host: That's for today. Thank you coach Liu, Lin Gaoyuan and Ding Ning.//
It is a 'blissful' headache for the Chinese team to pick the line-up for the Worlds. Similarly, it is a bittersweet moment for table tennis fans to watch these trials. We are happy to see a team with such depth; we clap for the outrageous rallies, we cheer for the players who have stood out in the competition. On the other hand, we lament over the fierce competition within the team; we feel sorry for those who almost made it; we are anxious about the health of the star players. Mixed feelings but we, table tennis fans, are the biggest winners as we get to enjoy these wonderful matches. I cannot wait for the coming of the Prelims of the Chinese National Games scheduled from 23 March to 29 March! The Chinese National Games is also known as the 'mini-Olympic Games' in China. If the Marvellous 12 is not enough for you, we might have the 'Hardy Hundreds' in the National Games!
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