Table tennis stars quit China Open after removal of coach
China’s top male table tennis players, who were to play at the ITTF World Tour Platinum China Open on Friday, surprisingly announced they would not attend the event, citing the removal of national team head coach Liu Guoliang.
China’s General Administration of Sports issued a statement late on Friday, saying it “firmly opposes” such behavior which it says “shows no respect for national pride.”
The players – namely the world’s top three players Ma Long, Fan Zhendong and Xu Xin – did not turn up for their matches in Chengdu, capital of Southwest China’s Sichuan Province on Friday. Footage posted to social media showed the crowd at the scene shouting Liu Guoliang’s name over and over again.
All three voiced their solidarity with Liu on Sina Weibo, posting the words, “We have no desire to fight at this moment … All because we miss you Liu Guoliang!”
The Chinese Table Tennis Association (CTTA) announced Tuesday that Liu, a former Olympic champion, will no longer be head coach of the men’s national team due to “management restructuring.”
Liu was promoted to vice president of the CTTA, a position which is widely regarded as purely ceremonial. The CTTA already has 18 vice presidents.
The players’ protest came a day after Chinese player and world No.4 Zhang Jike quit the Chengdu event due to injury.
Liu’s former table tennis partner and national women’s team coach Kong Linghui was suspended just days ahead of the World Championships in May, after a Singaporean hotel sued him over a gambling debt.
China dominates the world in table tennis, winning 28 out of 32 gold medals awarded since it became an Olympic sport in 1988.