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Smile back on Ding Ning's face
Source: Xinhua |
August 3, 2012, Friday
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TWO days after the controversy-tinged table tennis final which reduced her to tears, Olympic silver medalist Ding Ning was all smiles and seemingly back to herself again in today's team event.
Ding teamed up with Li Xiaoxia, the newly crowned Olympic singles champion to blanket Galia Dvorak/Sara Ramirez of Spain 3-0 in the doubles, after Li and Guo Yue had won the first two singles matches.
Ding's performance might be a relief to many of her fans, who poured out concerns online after watching the singles final, in which Ding was in tears after repeated foul calls from the umpire and eventually lost.
The 22-year-old Ding, who won the women's singles title at both last year's worlds in Rotterdam and the World Cup, has improved her world ranking from No. 3 to No. 1 over the past year.
She has a trademark squat service which she has been using over the years in international competitions. But she was faulted several times in Wednesday's final. The umpire even showed her a red and yellow card for delaying the continuation of the match when she politely queried one penalty.
"What happened has already happened. No matter whether I accept it or not, it's already reality," Ding said.
"What happened in the final is something no one would like to encounter. Perhaps it was also the first time in the history of table tennis. But since it has already happened, I'll try to accept it, and take it as a lesson in my life."
Ding, cheerful and optimistic by nature, is seen by many as a breath of fresh air in the sport. Her outgoing personality is exactly what table tennis needs.
Shi Zhihao, head coach of the women's team, said Ding is the type of player who really enjoys the sport.
"Win or lose, she always enjoys the process of competition," he said.
"She's been training so hard for the Olympics. It's a pity that due to some reasons she didn't play at her top level."
Shi said the Chinese table tennis team didn't lodge an official complaint about the penalties, but protested with the referee.
"We had hoped to present a splendid final and show to the world the charm of table tennis. It's a pity the final didn't produce such an effect."
"Our players are trained to respect umpires and obey penalties. But we also hope umpires could show some respect to players, at least tell them what exactly the problems are and why they get the penalty," Shi said.
Gold medalist Li said she also felt the umpire in the final was being too strict and affected Ding's performance.
"This is the final of the Olympic Games. Who knows whether we can compete in the Olympic Games or not next time? It's really a pity," Li said.
During Friday's team competition, Ding and Li cooperated smoothly. They chatted casually after the match in the mixed zone while waiting for coach Shi.
"It's impossible for me to totally get over it in just one day. But I'll do my best to focus on the team event and try not to think about it," Ding said, before waving goodbye to journalists.
Ding teamed up with Li Xiaoxia, the newly crowned Olympic singles champion to blanket Galia Dvorak/Sara Ramirez of Spain 3-0 in the doubles, after Li and Guo Yue had won the first two singles matches.
Ding's performance might be a relief to many of her fans, who poured out concerns online after watching the singles final, in which Ding was in tears after repeated foul calls from the umpire and eventually lost.
The 22-year-old Ding, who won the women's singles title at both last year's worlds in Rotterdam and the World Cup, has improved her world ranking from No. 3 to No. 1 over the past year.
She has a trademark squat service which she has been using over the years in international competitions. But she was faulted several times in Wednesday's final. The umpire even showed her a red and yellow card for delaying the continuation of the match when she politely queried one penalty.
"What happened has already happened. No matter whether I accept it or not, it's already reality," Ding said.
"What happened in the final is something no one would like to encounter. Perhaps it was also the first time in the history of table tennis. But since it has already happened, I'll try to accept it, and take it as a lesson in my life."
Ding, cheerful and optimistic by nature, is seen by many as a breath of fresh air in the sport. Her outgoing personality is exactly what table tennis needs.
Shi Zhihao, head coach of the women's team, said Ding is the type of player who really enjoys the sport.
"Win or lose, she always enjoys the process of competition," he said.
"She's been training so hard for the Olympics. It's a pity that due to some reasons she didn't play at her top level."
Shi said the Chinese table tennis team didn't lodge an official complaint about the penalties, but protested with the referee.
"We had hoped to present a splendid final and show to the world the charm of table tennis. It's a pity the final didn't produce such an effect."
"Our players are trained to respect umpires and obey penalties. But we also hope umpires could show some respect to players, at least tell them what exactly the problems are and why they get the penalty," Shi said.
Gold medalist Li said she also felt the umpire in the final was being too strict and affected Ding's performance.
"This is the final of the Olympic Games. Who knows whether we can compete in the Olympic Games or not next time? It's really a pity," Li said.
During Friday's team competition, Ding and Li cooperated smoothly. They chatted casually after the match in the mixed zone while waiting for coach Shi.
"It's impossible for me to totally get over it in just one day. But I'll do my best to focus on the team event and try not to think about it," Ding said, before waving goodbye to journalists.
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