July/August, 1995

The Magazine of USA Table Tennis TODAY

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L-R: Ding Song, Ma Wenge, Wang Tao, Liu Guoliang, after winning Men's Team.(Not shown: Kong Linghui, who would later win Men's Singles.)

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4

TABLE TENNIS TODAY

The Official Magazine of

TABLE TENNIS

TABLE

oF

USATT Headquarters

One Ofbmpic (P[azaCoforado Sprinjs, CO 80909

(719) 578-4583President:

gkny gimminsEditor:

Larng ModgesPage Design & Typesetting:

Lan-j [1{o@esOperations Administrator:

Linda OfeesonCirculation Director:

Magaret SmithAdvertising:LarrY *O([fles

Editorial Board:

Tau[ Montuiffe, Donna Sakai,

Dan Seemifikr,Teny 7imminsConsultants:

gofrn O fron, 3ufian ®atersStaff Writers:

lim 0080an, Larrj Hodges,0*0 Schaa¢ *Pei'Warg

Photographers & Artwork:Mai Anderson, Aaron Avery,

(Houshanj (Bozogzadeft,D.M. Gunn, 3oful Oros,

gag *wferman, Diego Scflaaf,Art'IfleTOU;g Micfule['Wetze[

Cover Photo ©1995

by Deutscher Tischtennis-Bund

Cover Artwork of Broom ©1995

by Elaine Hodges

' THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

10 Men's Singles by Diego Schaaf

13 Women's Singles by Tim Boggan

15 Men's Teams by Tim Boggan

20 Women's Teams by Tim Boggan

23 Results

24 USA Men at the Worlds by Tim Boggan

25 USA Women at the Worlds by Tim Boggan

26 The Worlds Through the Camera by Gary Ruderman

USA TOURNAMENTS

30 NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

by Larry Hodges

32 ST. JOSEPH VALLEY OPEN

by Larry Hodges

1 34 NATIONAL CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS

by Larry Hodges

42 AROUND THE USA

COACHING28 THE STEP-AROUND FOOTWORK OF

WORLD MEN'S CHAMPION KONG LINGHUI

by USATT Certified National Coach Wei Wang

39 RATINGS PROBLEMS

by Larry Hodges

40 ADVANCED RALLYING TACTICS

by USATT Certified National Coach Larry Hodges

41 MENTAL ADVANTAGE

by Dr. Jim Annesi, Sports Psychologist

1 FEATURESVolume 65, Number 4

July/August, 1995 -Table Tennit Today (ISSN 1068-5782>*SPS 941 -

000) js the official-m?gazin¢ of USA Table Tennis =CUSATT), a Class Whnembe:r of 11* U.S, 049*e

Committee and 19 pubished bi-monthly Second classpohtage paid m Colorado Sptings, Colorado, and addi-tional mailing offices. 6 -- -

POSTMASTER:=*nd address changes to USATIyUS. Olympic Coplek, do 777044 One OlympicPlaza, Colorado Spring„ CO 80909-5769. -

Subs¢nption rates available in the United States ate

$17 forone year ormcluded with an Aalt ($25), Family($45), or Junior ($12) USATT membership. Canadiansubscriptions are $18 *oneyear. Allatherepuntries are$19 per year. Single- copies ate $400 plos postageprepaid. Subscription brders and inqu,ries concerningsubscnptions should be sent to USAIT Headquarters,One Olympic Plaza, Colorado Springs 80909, 719.578-4583. All subscription orders payable m U.S. cumneyonly, For CHANGE ef ADDRESS, send both old adnew addresses and labdl from recent i=u©

Allphotos, graphics. andwntten coitributions shouldbe sent to Lairy Hodges, Table Tenni,· Toay, NationalTable Tennis Center. 13916 Indianota Drive. Rockvilte,MD 20855. 301-Bi#·9305 (ph). 301416-9304 {Fa*The publmher and editi»: are not respohsible Br unsolic.ited tetters, manuscripts, artwork. or photos, although

- every effort will be made te rotum such matter when-accompanied by a self-addressed envelope. When pes-3

sible, send wxitten conyibutions on 15" computerdi*2]BM or Macintosh. t,2 , 44% , 4

Advortisingrates*availableup,mmples*. Aeceplar=of advertising does notkiecessarity imply USATT endm»mentof the product Ontact theeditor for adrate ch=%. 3

Reproductionwith®*permissioni,plohibited. Copy.5right 1993. All ights j[¢Berved. Print#d in the USA. <E

8 DID'JA KNOW?

by Bob Green

36 INTERVIEW WITH KHOA NGUYEN

U.S. #2 Rated Playerby Larry Hodges

37 THE BARTLESVILLE GIRLS

by Nancy Persaud

38 MARYLAND TABLE TENNIS

and The National Table Tennis Center

by Julian Waters·

47 BERNIE BUKIET

by Bernie Bukiet, Tim Boggan & Mary McIlwain

DEPARTMENTS

4 Reports

8 Nets & Edges

8 They Said It ....

37 Results, Membership Survey

49 ye *041 IRatitws54 Tournament Schedule

1

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047

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PRESIDENT

VIEWPOINT

by Terry TimminsThe election is over. The message

is clear-more growth and develop-ment, particularly at the grassroots level.We need to grow our juniors, clubs,coaching, and school programs (schol-arships), and establish leagues at all

levels. The means to this growth hasalso emerged. It can be summarized intwo words, regional empowerment.

From the ideas many of you haveshared with me, regional empowermentmeans redistributing power through astructuring of the way the president andboard members are elected; reallocat-

ing the budget to support regional

growth; and, better serving our regional

organizations and leaders through

grants, revitalized committees, and

headquarters based services such as

ratings, public relations and advertis-

ing.

Regional empowerment should be-

gin with the Board of Directors and

flow to the existing eight regions of the

country. By the time you read this

column, I will have proposed to the

Board that it adopt a Bylaw change

calling for the election of the presidentfrom among board members. I will also

propose that board members reside in

the regions from which they are elected.The ITTF and 80% of the National

Governing Bodies already elect theirpresidentfrom theBoard and elect board

members by region. Board membersknow who works best with them and

national mud-slinging would be use-

less. How will regionalism grow tabletennis?

Eight regions already exist for pur-

posesoftournamentcoordination. With

further empowerment, leaders in theseregions can receive the support they

need to: train juniors, establish clubsand tournaments, attract sponsors, es-

tablish school programs and leagues,and develop coaches and training cen-ters.

Of course, to grow the sport in

these ways takes time, money and a lotof dedicated people. These ideas maybe viewed as radical and risky. But theydeserve a good airing. A summary ofthe recently developed High Perfor-mance Plan will soon appear in TTT. Itincludes the establishment of a model

regional table tennis center for starters,and six more will follow suit if the

model is successful. Revitalized com-

mittees focusing on regions can de-velop similar plans for growing tabletennis.

Thechallenges ahead are truly hum-bling for anyone who wants growth intable tennis. The first and most formi-

dable lesson to be learned is "There are

no short cuts, quick fixes or easy solu-tions." I'm honored to be in this posi-tion. I look forward to talking with youand working for growth.

4 Table Tennis Today

TREASURER'S REPORT

by Ben NisbetWe are please to announce that the 1994 USATT Annual report

hasjustbeen completed! Forthe firsttime in the Association's historythis report will be distributed to all the clubs and made available at theupcoming U.S. Open. It provides the membership with a detailedaccount of fiscal year 1994 as well as commentary on our plans togrow the sport in the future.

USATT in Fiscal Year 1994, reported a 4% increase in revenuesto $877 thousand. This growth was fueled by the income receivedfrom the U.S. Open and from increases in the membership account(comprised of membership, club fees and the new ratings system).

In terms of our revenue picture, the most important event was notthe revenue growth itself but the improving quality ofthese revenues !By bringing in the ratings database in house we added $52 thousandin new monies for the USATT, an income stream that willlikely berepeated year after year. Furthermore, and just as important, was anoticeable growth in our membership numbers to 7300 at year end.

Expenses in Fiscal Year 1994 did exceed revenues by $6 thou-sand but this was well within our tolerance limits as our budget hadforecasted only a $5 thousand surplus. The expense account for 1994was divided as follows:

Expenditures for Each Dollar of Revenue

Athlete Support

pen

Member,bilService: &

Technical

Support

[f€kU. S. National

94

[arketin*'TV

Hea!*ier:/Board of Directors

U. S. Open

Athlete Support Membership Services & Technical Support Headquarters/Board of Directors Marketing/rV

U. S. Nationals

1995 will be an excellent year for USATT. Our revenues areexpected to exceed $925 thousand, primarily from additional ACOPfunding, and from our new merchandising and fund raising programsto be rolled out this year. In addition, the start-up costs for bringingthe ratings system in house and from managing the tournament inAnaheim are now behind us, giving us expected reductions in ex-penses.

The increase in revenues will be passed directly down to thevarious support programs, including athlete development and for theopening of the new Elite Training Center in Davidson, Michigan. Inaddition, the 1995 budget, for the first time in a number of years isprojecting a sizable surplus. This surplus is needed to build fundbalance and help us solve the lack of liquidity during certain times ofthe year.

The future however is not without its challenges. In 1996 andbeyond, we expect significant cutbacks from USOC funding as thepool of monies after Atlanta is expected to fall. Furthermore, ourcontract with ACOP expires in 1996. Combined, these factors couldleave a funding gap in excess of $100 thousand.

USATT is well positioned to meet these challenges. TableTennis is a participant sport and there is unlimited potential to boostmembership. We have in place an Executive Director and Staff thatare focused. hard working and prepared to meet the challenges.

For anyone interested in receiving a copy of USATT's 1995Budget, please send a self-addressed stamped envelope to:Ben Nisbet, USATT, 67 Ridgeway Drive, Irvington, NY 10533

Etttetetttettt

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IT'S THE LAW!

by Malcolm R. AndersonUSATT Legislative Committee Chairman

The ITTFhas made twosignificantruleschanges that you should know about. I' ve IVasked our EC to change the USATTRules to comply, and in any case theywill apply to the U.S. Open, as it is anInternational Open. The changes are:Delete USATT Rule 14.2.3 - "Re-

quire the loser to make the first choice." This refers to the

choice of serves and ends-from now on the winner of the

toss must choose either who serves or which end each

playerstarts at, with the loserthen making the otherchoice.

Delete USATT Rule 4.4.2 - "After August 1, 1995, noadhesive that uses any solvent may be used to attach the

rubber to the blade."

This willleave the following rule still in place :

4.4.1 Only adhesives that have been approved by the ITIF

for this purpose may be used to attach the rubber to theblade.

In short, the ITTF has canceled the total glue ban, you

may still reglue WITH AN APPROVED GLUE. (Note

that the Korean player Kim Taek Soo was disqualified

from the semifinals of the World Championships, after

apparently beating World #2 Wang Tao of China in the

quarterfinals. Kim's racket tested positive for toluene andxylene-both banned solvents-afterthe match. The ITTF

is completely serious about banning toxic solvents-we

can do no less)

The following questions have been asked:1. Suppose I hit a ball that just dribbles over the net. I raise

my hand and say, "Sorry!", but my opponent makes an

incredible diving return of the ball-butjust misses. SinceI talked during the point, do I win or lose the point, or is ita let?

The relevant rule in this case is:

10.1 A rally is a let:10.1.3 If, in the opinion of the umpire or assistantumpire, failure to make a good service or a good return

or otherwise to comply with the Laws is due to adisturbance outside the control of the player.

If the umpire decides that your talking distracted youropponent, the rally is a let. Otherwise you win the point.2. Suppose, in the middle ofarally, I hit the ball into the net.I look at my racket, and discover it is wet. Is the rally a let?

The same rule applies here. If the umpire decides thewet racket caused the miss, the rally is a let. Otherwise youlose the point.

In both of the above cases the umpire's judgment isfinal. The referee can overrule the umpire on apoint oflaw,but not on a point of fact.3. Can my opponent change rackets during a match? If so,how often?

Yes, whenever he wants between points. The relevantrule is :

4.12 At the start of a match and wheneverhe changes hisracket during a match, a player shall show his opponentand the umpire the racket he is about to use and shallallow them to examine it.

Note that examining a racket means looking at it, butnot touching

However, note also the followingrule: (A rally is a let)

10.1.6 If it is interrupted for warning a player for aservice of doubtful correctness or that he has failed to

notify a change of racket. If a player fails to notify the

umpire and his opponent when he changes his racket, theumpire shall immediately report this to the referee. Onthe first occasion the referee shall warn the player; onany subsequent occasion the referee shall disqualifyhim.

Thus, you must ALWAYS notify your opponent andthe umpire EVERY time you change rackets, even if youare switchingback and forth between the same two rackets.

If anyone has questions on the rules of TT, don'thesitate tocontactme at23D Forest Acres Drive, Bradford,MA 01835.

July/August 1995

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July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today .

OFFICIALS'

VIEW

Congratulations and AppreciationsAre in Order

by Dr. Azmy IbrahimLet us start by congratulating those

who won their seats in the recent election:

Terry Timmins as the new president, Y.C.Lee as the vice president. Dr. Wang as theexecutive vice president, and Donna .Sakai as the secretary. Now that thedust has been settled, we can direct

ourattentionto the responsibilities ,and work for the coming years.

During the election we heard newideas and read about new visions. We

wish all the officer. a successful term,

which will help them realize theirdreams and visionx.

Somethingwasdifferentaboutthiselection. It was the involvement of the

officials. Several of them ran for of-

fices. To my knowledge Terese <Terranova, Larry Kesler. Y.C. Lee. and »Terry Timminsentered the arena. It was

refreshing to see many officialswanting to get involved. And it 40was more rewarding to see that

the members of the USATT gave their con-fidence to two officials, Terry Timmins and

Y.C. Lee. I am confident that they will live

up to everyone's trust. It is also a goldenchance for all officials to do their best to

insure the success of this administration. Let

us remember that it takes more than those

sitting in office to create new dawns. It is

also a wake up call to other officials remind-

ing them that it is possible to get involved

and it is worth taking the risk of puttingthemselves on the line. It is possible as anofficial to run and to getelected. Yes, it takesa lot of hard work and organization. but forthe sake of the sport it is worth it. After all,one can assume that many of the officials aredeeply concerned about the sport in generaland the USATT in particular.

This is not just a time for congratula-tions. it is also a time ior appreciation.Appreciation of those individuals who do-nated a large part of their lives serving theUSATT. Let us not forget that those wholost their seats recently have been servingtheorganization foryears. Ex-president DanSeemiller did his best during his term andall the years as a player and a champion ofthe U.S.. and he was inducted into the Hall

ofFame in 1995.Gu# Kennedy has donated

6 Table Tennis Today

his energy, time, money and effort to theUSX[T on the national and international

level for20 years. Mal Anderson has servedon the USATT and the ITTF rules commit-

tees for over 20 years. Let us express ourappreciation to those individuals, and manyothers, for their commitment and dedica-

tion to the sport. Let us ask them to remem-ber that this is just a changing of the guards,not an abandonment ofthe ship. The ship isstill sailing and it needs their services andexperiences. Many sports try to include

their ex-officers by honoring them in theirmajortournaments, and ask fortheir sym-bolic participation in the ceremonies. Itis good for the sport and USATT to

always extend invitations to those sig-licant officers who contributed to it.

Let us also congratulate the Offi-ials Committee and all the officials.

[t seems like our hard work and goodpreparation of the umpires andoffi-cials. and the workshops, seminars.training sessions. evaluations. andfeedbacks are paying off. Recently,

we have been invited to send one13 umpire to England, two umpires toE China, two umpires to Canada, one

umpire to Japan, and one umpireto Taiwan. Unfortunately the lim-

itedfinancial supporto fthe USAITforthesecostly trips has discouraged manyofficials to volunteer for such opportuni-

ties. Another plus for our performance

was expressed by the International Um-pires who attend our tournaments, semi-

nars, and participate in the exchange ofknowledge. Many have been impressedby the quality of the material presented,

problems raised, and the emphasis on

practical applications. Please let us all

keep up the good work.Before 1 close this time. I would like to

get the attention of those who organized the

3 1 st St. Joseph Valley Open and North

American Championships. May 26-28,1995. 1 received the invitation, and there

was no mention of a Referee or a Chief

Umpire for the tournament. The tourna-ment is inviting International and Nationalplayers. ltincludes also Allstarevents. Sucha tournament I hope has a Referee and aChief Umpire. it is more appropriate tomention their names on the invitation forms.

We have been reprimanded previously bythe ITTF for our casual approach toward

assigning tournament officials. I hope thiswas just an act of omission and not an act ofneglect. Let us work together to make every

tournament live up to a higher standard.

ni

C

111111.mill

U. S. Officials Excel

at 43rd World Championships

CHRIS & BERNIE

by Tyra Parkins & Michael J. Scott, MDAlthough we do not advocate gam-

bling we must mention the outstandingaccomplishment of our fellow table tennisclub memberChristian Van Ness. Chris is

rated around 2000, but he is universallyknown for his poker skills. He has wonseveral such tournaments with 5 and 6

figure awards. None however top hisApril 25 First Place win in Las Vegas for$315.000.00 at the 26th Annual World

Series of Poker. The entry fee was$ 1500.00 and it attracted 560entrants from

around the world.

Chris had acquired a substantial chiplead when all but the final three contes-

tants were eliminated and he never elin-

quished that position.Bernie Bukiet was a very close friend

of all three of us and we were just ready tephone Bernieabout Chris'swindfallwhenwe learned of his death. For many years atthe National Table Tennis Tournament in

Las Vegas we have shared a small table at

the Banquet with Bernie. Bobby Fields,Ruben Gomes and Von Schimmelman.

Tim Boggan, Gusikoff, Jack Howard, GusKennedy and Richard McAfee frequently

joined us wheneverthey attended the func-tion.

This year we will leave a vacant chairat the table in memory of our dear friendBernie. He always looked forward andwas delighted to dance with Tyra duringthe yearly event.

Bernie will certainly be missed by theTable Tennis scene and we look forward

toBoggan's tribute to him in the next issueof 11-Todav.

Dear USATT

I felt that you needed to know. sinceyou have faithfully sent my husband DickTuckerTable Tennis Todan thathe passedaway on December 29, 1994. He was in

the hospital two weeks and unbeknown tous and himself. had terminal colon cancer.

He played serious table tennis up to thebeginning of December. but then started

having pains and health problems. Heloved his table tennis and helped organizeGreensboros club. I truly believe hiscontinual playing of ping pong (table ten-nis. sorry) gave him the aerobics that al-lowed him to continue with a good qualityof life. it always was a fun time for him tosit down and read his Table Tennis Todar

every time they came. Hehadn't played in manytournaments these pastfew years, but maybe 10years back was quite ac-tive. At one time, he was

the top senior player inNorth Carolina. One of

his greatest joys in lifewas his enjoyment of tabletennis. I'm sorry I haven'tlet you know sooner, but Iseem to be slow in doingthat very thing. He was68 years old on June 24,1994 and a tremendous

table tennis player til hislast days. Thank you for

your publications thatwere so very important to

him. 1 am not a playermyself, just a spectator.He was the dedicated one

to table tennis.

Sincerely,Grace Tucker

Over 150 International Umpires from associations around were invited toofficiate at the 43rd World Championships in Tianjin, China on May 1-141995 Representing the United States were Y. C. Lee of Palos VerdesEstates, California, and Aly Salam ofDuluth, Georgia. Because of theiroutstanding performance during the 43rd World Championships, the twoInternational Umpires from the USA were bestowed with special honors

6 Y C. Lee was selected as Chief Umpire for the Men's Doubles Final.

O Aly Salam was selected as the ChiefUmpire for the Men's Team Final

Thanks to our officials for a job well done!

Dear Editor,

Our dear friend, Joe Henneke from

Palm Bay died last Sunday from a head

injury sustained during a fall in the shower.He was a kind, gentle person that 1

had become to like very much as I m surehad all of the members of the Melbourne

T. T. Club.

His friendship and dedication to oursport willlong be remembered.Sincerely,Randall Hess

CLUB LISTING CORRECTION

Because of a clerical error. the USATT-

Affiliated Clubs in the states of Washing-ton and Wisconsin and one club in Texas

were inadvertently omitted from the May/

June issue of 7'able Tennis Today. USATable Tennis would like to apologize for

any inconvenience this may have caused.

Texas

Top of Texas Table Tennis Club

C/o Paul C. Dodgen, President

1522 S. LipscombAmarillo, TX 79102

Contact: Paul C. DodgenPhone: 806-374-0862

WashingtonBellevue TTC

Crossroad Comm. Center

16000 N.E. 10th Ave.

Bellevue, WA 98008

Contact: Daniel Sie

Phone: 206-957-4471

Boeing Employees TTC-KentBoeing Kent Act. Center22649 83rd Avenue, South

Kent, WA

Contact: Pete Williams

Phone: 206-228-5063

Boeing Employees TTC-Southc/o Joe Romanosky771418th Avenue, S.W.

Seattle. WA 98106

Contact: Joe RomanoskyPhone: 206-662-4826

Mountlake TTC

Aldercrest Learning Center2545 N.E. 20()th Street

Seattle. WA 98155

Contact: George KawainotoPhone: 206-485-3136

Tri-City TTAc/o Keith Fiene

19()7 Forest Avenue

Richland, WA 99352

Contact: Keith Fiene

Phone: 509-946-8843

Wisconsin

Oshkosh Table Tennis Group5114 State Road 44

Oshkosh, WI 54904

Contact: Dick DorseyPhone: 414-589-4652

St. Luke Parish TTC

St. Luke Parish (Carpenter Hall)18000 W. Greenfield Ave.

Brookfield, WI 53045

Contact: Dan Bauer

Phone: 414-544-6678

Wisconsin TTA

Univ. of Wisconsin Waukesha

8975 South 13th St.

Oak Creek, WI 53154

Contact: Paul Dadian

Phone: 414-762-9058

July/August 1995

F'L

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July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 7

.

4

6

4,1 1 A

4

TIM BOGGAN WINS

ORDEROFMERITAWARD

.

0

THEY SAID IT... O"At least I won something this week." Dan

Seemiller, after winning the PennsylvaniaState Championships the same week helost in the USATT Presidential election.

"I bet if Saive and Waldner went to China,

even in a province, their level would bebelow average in the province team." DingWu, on Internet. May 12, ]995

NETS&EDGES

Tim Boggan of the U.S. and ZdenkoUzorinac of Croatia were among severalothers who received (via the recommenda-

tion of Jimmy McClure's ITTF Hall ofFame Committee) the ITI'Fs Orderof Merit

Award at the World Championships inTianjin. The Award is given to those who've

served the Sport and theircountries well butwho have not the repeated winning WorldChampionship Player Performance to be-come ITTF Hall ofFame members. (Editor's

Note--:he ITTF rules require that only play-ers who have have won at least five world

championships may be admitted to the Hallof Fame.)

Tim is of course a familiar writer to all

those who've read Table Tennis Topics,and/or Timmy's, and/or Table Tennis Today

some time in the last 30 years. His WinningTable Tennis (1976) might still be found insome old bookstore somewhere, and his

"Ping-Pong Diplomacy" writings are in the

Sino-American Collection at the Universityof Michigan Library at Ann Arbor.

Tim is currently the ITTFNorth Ameri-can Vice President and a memberofthe ITTF

Executive Board. He's three times been

elected USATI' President, two times Vice

President. He's now the USATT Historian

and is writing a History of U.S. Table Tennis.His sons Scott and Eric were both U.S.

Junior and U.S. Men's Champions. Timhimself at one time or other was U.S. Men's

Over 40, Over 50, and Over 60 Champion.Zdenko Uzorinac, a friend of Tim's for

over 20 years, won a bronze medal inSwaythling Cup competition in 1951 and inthe Europe Club Cup of Champions in 1961.

He is ajournalist for a Zagreb newspa-per and from 1948-95 has attended 21 WorldChampionships.

Zdenko is a publicist, historian. and the

author of several very well-received tabletennis and tennis books. His The Stories of

Coaches Who Raised Good Players contin-

ues to be serialized in current issues of the

Buttedly WorldReport-His latestbook TableTennis--From Its Origin To The Present

Tinze has just been published in Italy. Itcontains biographies of 115 of the best-ever

Champions and is richly illustrated.

$10,000 JOOLA PRIZEJan-Ove Waldner (Sweden) & Deng

Yaping (China) were this year's recipients ofthe Joola Trophy forthe most valuableplayerin the Team Competition of the European

and World Championships. Waldner com-piled a 13-1 record in team competition;Deng compiled a 10-0 record. Runner-upswere Yoo Nam Kyu and Chai Po Wa.Waldner and Deng each received a $5,000prize in addition to the trophy. Winners were

determinedby apointsystem forbothsinglesand doubles matches in the team event.

8 Table Tennis Today

DID'JA KNOW?by Bob Green

During the first two decades of theUSTTA (now USATT). tournaments were

much less complicated. Let me take youback for a look at how it was then.

TOURNAMENT DRAWS - Were the

straight elimination type and only four orfive scheduled events. They were: men'sand women's singles, men's and mixeddoubles. and usually a junior event. Aplayer rating system had not yet been in-vented, so there was no rating events orround robins. Everyone took their chancesin the open draws. The only exception wasa sometimes consolation event forfirst round

singles losers.

PLAYERS - There were many thousandsof players in local clubs, YMCA's, etc.However, most felt they had to be atop local

player before they ventured into sanctionedtournaments. This had the effect of keepingtournament entries and USTTA member-

ship small. Most players only joined theassociation when they entered sanctionedtournaments. In state and regional champi-

onships there was usually a 64 draw inmen's and 32 in women. Play was a week-end affair with the finals on Sunday night.

The New York area had the top players;however, the bulk of the membership andmajority oftournaments were in themidwestareas. By virtue of the greater voting

power, the midwest had more control overthe USTTA's activities.

PLAYING CONDITIONS - Dueto straighteliminations and limited events, they did nothave to be very elaborate. Most tourna-

ments were held in existing clubs, gymnasi-ums, and hotel ballrooms. Ballrooms were

popular with the players due to the proxim-ity of the playing area to their rooms. Six to

eight tables was the normal setup and even

a few National Championships were played

on only six. A string of three, four, or five

shaded light bulbs were suspended over

each table. This made for good lighting but

was murder on lobs. Most players usedHock, Barna, or McCrossen bats with short

pips-out rubber surfaces. (Sponge rubberhad not been invented yet.) Balls of choicechanged many times during these years,

with the Super Halex ball from England

being used most. Detroiters were the most

used table probably due to aggressive pro-

moting by the maker, who furnished free

tables for major tournaments.MATCH PLAY - Almost always best two

of three games, with three of five reservedfor the finals. Due to the limitations of hard

rubber facings, play was much slower thantoday. Rallies were longer as most playersrelied on chopping, blocking, and place-

ments to get the ball in position for point-

getting shots. With very few exceptions,sustained offense did not exist. Hard rubber

serves had little spin and were easily re-

turned safely. Third ball attacks were un-heard of, more like fifth and seventh ball

attacks. Serve rules were introduced that

eliminated most objectionable serves dur-

ingthis period. (Finger spin.fingergrippingof the ball. and brushing off the hand.)AWARDS - Mostly trophies which, exceptfor major tournainents. were not engraved.Cheap machine stamping was not availableand hand engraving more than doubled the

price of the trophy. Identification was usu-ally a paper tag tied to the trophy.SOCIAL LIFE - As most of the same

players toured the tournament circuit andknew each otheron a first name basis. infor-

mal social events were the norm and looked

forward to by all contestants. One popularactivity was the Saturday night parties inmany of the players' hotel rooms. All play-ers were welcomed and by room-hoppingyou could enjoy the strictly social partieswith drinks, snacks and endless conversa-

tions or skip to other rooms where all-night

card and dice games were in progress. Andthat' s the way it was during typical tout-na-ments in the 30's and 40's.

Thoughtfortheday: Looping is like eating

with chopsticks, looks easy until you try it.

WORLD TEAM CUP UPDATE

According to Director Richard McAfee,

the following teams have entered the World

Team Cup in Atlanta, August 9-13.Men's Teams

China, Sweden, Korea R.,Germany, France,

Yugoslavia, Belgium. Japan, Brazil, Nige-

ria, Australia, Czech Republic, Austria, Italy,Canada, USA

Women's Teams

China, Korea R., Sweden, Russia, Ger-

many, Brazil, Nigeria, Australia, Hong

Kong, Romania, Canada, USAHotel

Official hotelis the Atlanta Hilton Tow-

ers, 404-659-2000 (ph), 404-221-6301 (fax).Rates are $70/single, $80/double--ask for

World Team Cup Special Rate.

HOW TO PLAY

KILLER TABLE TEfqNIS

The book, "Tricks of the Trade forKids," edited by Jerry Dunn, is out in book-

stores now, including Waldenbooks, B.J.Dalton, Borders, and Crown Book Stores.

Included in the book is a chapter entitled"Play Killer Table Tennis." by Table Tennis

Today Editor and USATT Certified Na-

tional Coach Larry Hodges. (Hodges re-

ceived no money for the work, just an assur-ance that the book would include the

USATT's phone number, which it does.)

The book includes chapters written byArnold Schwarzenegger, Ronald Reagan,

Colin Powell, Jerry Seinfeld, Lee Iacocca,WilliamF. Buckley Jr., MisterRogers, Buzz

Aldrin, DennisConner, Peggy Fleming, Tom

Sito (head of animation at Disney Studios),LeVar Burton (LaForge from Star Trek),Sergio Aragones (of Mad Magazine), andCalifornia Angels stars Chad Curtis & MarkLangston. Prepare for the onslaught as

millions of kids across America show up at

clubs with a "Killer Backspin Serve," cour-tesy of a sidebox in the article!

-1 didn't know [well-known. controversial

U.S. Umpire who was not at Worldsl wasgoingtobethere.' Larry Barly, on hearingabout Kint Taek Soo's default at tile Wo rld

Championships.for illegal glue.

"Counseloi Troi convi nced me 1 should try

the new table tennis program. Thal gameis not as easy as it looks." Commander

William Riker of Star Trek: The Next Gen-eration, iii Into the Nebula. Pocket Books,

June, 1995. page 9.

Overheadat the St. Joseph Valle¥ Open &North American Championships in St.Joseph Valle¥. Indiana. Mav 27-29:"1'11 never have kids!" Todd Sweeris, who

(along with Cheng Yingliua & SeanLonergan) sal in front of a baby on their

flight to the St. Joseph Valley Open. Thebaby never stopped screaming.

"I used to play table tennis in college witha member of the Grand Cayman Island

Olympic Team. He played with sandpaperand switched hands to hit the ball." Cab

driver at the the North American Champi-

onships.

"That gives you great incentive. Sean

Lonergan to Dave Fernandez, after Davehad notedthat ifhe beats Dan Seemiller(at

NorthAmericanChampionships), he'dplay

Cheng Yinghua.

"It's really not fair. They're professionals,who play twice a day. They get salariesfrom the Canadian Association. We have

to work for a living and train in our sparetime." U.S, Women' s ChampionAmy Feng

at the North American Championships,after losing final to Lij uan Geng of Canada.

Overhead at U.S. Club Championships in

Augusta. June 2-4:

"I used to be able to only hit one weakforehand in a row. Now I can hit two or

three bad forehands in a row." ChopperDerek May.

"I may have my best chance ever againstGod in this humidity." Derek May, justbefore playing Cheng Yinghuainthe Allstar

Men's Singles.

"Who's serving illegal?" Sean O'Neill

when tournament director Pete May en-tered the arena with a security guard.

"If the player is weaker than you, servelong. If the player is stonger than you,serve short." Pete May's coaching advice

for tournament players.

"If I win, it's for the college boys." Col-

lege student Todd Sweeris, before playingfull-time player Jim Butler in the AllstarMen's Singles. He lost..

Heard anything interesting at the table

tennis club recently? Send it to: NITC,15916Indianola Dr., Rockville, MD20855,

301-816-9304 (fax).

July/August 1995

Photo by Mal Anderson ©1995r

$7,700 SUN TV OPEATABLE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sun gr/ Greentree Racquet Club, Pittsburgh, PA •/ButterflyAugust 19-20,1995

NATIONAL ALLSTAR SERIES EVENT*** FULLY AIR CONDITIONED ***

EVENT FEE DATE/TIME

01 Open Singles $25 Sun 11:00 a.m.

02 Allstar Men 15 Sat 11:30 a.m.

03 Allstar Women 15 Sat 11:30 a.m.

04 Open Doubles 10ea Sat 12:00 noon

05 Over 30 12 Sun 11:00 a.m.

06 Over 40 12 Sat 3:00 p.m.07 Over 50 RJR 12 Sat 1:00 p.m.08 U2500 R/R 15 Sun 9:00 a.m.

09 U2375 IUR 15 Sat 5:30 p.m.10 U2250 R/R 12 Sun 11:30 a.m.

11 U2125 R/R 12 Sun 9:00 a.m.

12 U2000 IUR 12 Sat 11:30 a.m.

13 U 1875 RJR 12 Sat 5:30 p.m.14 U1750 IUR 10 Sat 9:00 a.m.

15 U 1625 RJR 10 Sun 9:00 a.m.

16 U 1500 R/R 10 Sat 1:30 p.m.17 U 1350 R/R 10 Sat 9:00 a.m.

18 U 1200 R/R 10 Sat 11:30 a.m.

19 U 1000 R/R 10 Sat 3:00 p.m.

20 U18 Boys' Allstar 10 Sun 9:00 a.m.

21 U18 Girls' Allstar 10 Sun 9:00 a.m.

22 U16 Allstar 10 Sun 12:00 noon

23 U4000 Doubles 8ea Sat 7:30 p.na.

24 U3400 Doubles 7ea Sat 7:30 p.m.

Hotels:

GREENTREE MARRIOTT

101 Marriott Drive, 412-922-8400

$60/night (Regularly $89/night)(Mention Table Tennis Tournament for discount)

Next Door to Playing Site

r

NAME ADDRESS

PHONE BIRTHDATE RATING

| LISTEVENT#'S ENTRY

USATT MEMBERSHIP # REGISTRATION FEE $

I hereby assume all risk and responsibility for my participating in this tournam, for injury or loss suffered due to my participation in this tournament. I will

director(s).

| SIGNATURE

1St 2nd 3-4 5-8 9-12

500 325 225 125 50

400 300 225 150

250 150 75 25

200 100 50

100 60 40

200 100 50

75 50

150 100 50

125 80 50

100 60 30

100 60 30

80 50 30

80 50

T T

T T

T T

T T

T T

T T

75 50

75 50

60 40

125 80

100 60

MOTEL 6

$28.95/night for a single211 Beechem Dr.

Pittsburgh, PA 15205412-922-9400

six miles fromplaying site

USATT EXP. DATE

FEE$ USATTRATING FEE$3.00 |

3.00 TOTALFEES$

:nt. I release tournament personnel from any claims abide by all rules and decisions of the tournament

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION:

SITE: Greentree Racquet Club,

Pittsburgh, PADIRECTORS: Dan Seemiller &

Barry RodgersREFEREE: Bill Walk

AGES: As of August 19, 1995

ELIGIBILITY: Events #3-5 are opento U.S. ITTF Eligible players only. All

other events are open to anyone. Adult

and junior players must be members ofany USATT or ITTF affiliate or pur-

chase a USATT membership.

DRESS: Solid, non-white clothing andsoft-soled shoes must be worn. USATT

dress code will be enforced.

EQUIPMENT: 14 Stiga tables, 6 Butter-

fly tables, Butterfly white balls,air conditioned.

PLAY: Events 1, 3&4 are best of five.

All others are best of three except finals.RR - Round Robin.

NOTE: Tournament management may

modify. combine or cancel events, limit

entries and assign temporary ratings for

unrated players. All USATT rules will beenforced.

DEADLINE: Entry deadline is August

12,1995. Any late entries,entries without

payment or phone entries will be chargeda fee of $10.00. Please send entries to:

SUN TV OPEN, 307 Meritt Ave.. Pitts-

burgh. PA 15227.412-884-5864. Make

checks payable to: Sun TV Open TableTennis.

*****

DIRECTIONS TO TOURNAMENT

FROM WEST: Take Ohio Turnpike to

PA Turnpike. and take exit 3. Follow one

mile to 79 South to 279 North Pittsburgh.

Exit Greentree. Turn left at light. Take

left at next light. and follow down hill past

Holiday Inn. Take 2nd right up Marriot

Drive. Take right on Iron City Drive.

FROM SOUTH: 70 East to 79 North to

279 North, then follow directions from

West.

FROM EAST: PA turnpike to exit 6.Take 376 to279S. ExitGreentree/Crafton,

take left exit. Take left at stop sign andfollow downhill to Marriott's second en-

trance. Follow up hill and take right on

Iron City Drive.FROM NORTH: 79 South to 279 North,

then follow directions from West.

Parents must sign for minor(s) 1

Sponsored by SUN TV & APPLIANCE COMPANYJuly/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 9

43rd WORLD TABLE TENNISTianjin, China China Sweeps Everything ! May 1-14, 1995

Two weeks ofnon-stop table tennis action--and most ofus had to miss Gary Ruderman's"Through theCamera Lense.") You'll see itthroughit! No problem--on the following 18 pages, you'lllive it through the the cameras of Mal Anderson, Diego Schaaf, The Butterfly Report andeyes of our very own North American Vice President, Tim Boggan China Sports Magazine (both of whom who graciously allowed us to(with help from Diego Schaat who wrote up the Men's Singles, and use their photos). Enjoy!

MEN'S SINGLES

by Diego Schaaf

China was ready! We could already tellduring the drive from the Beijing Interna-tional airport to the center of town: The

expressway was lined formileswith bannersannouncing the 43rd World Table TennisChampionships. A taxi driver in the capital,whom we asked if he had heard of the event,

responded: "Of course, how could I not!Such a big thing, everybody knows aboutit!"In Tianjin, anothertaxi drivertold us thatfor the duration of the tournament, traffic

was reduced to odd and even car ID's for

alternating days. Asked if that didn't se-

verely impact his business, he respondedthat that was his contribution to the success

of the event! People lined the avenue and

waved at the passing shuttle bus convoys

that made their way between the playershotel and the venue every half hour. Each of

these convoys was escorted by a police carwith flashing lights.

We were received by a very coopera-tive staff. Each team was assigned a transla-tor who stayed with the team for the duration

of the tournament. Literally thousands ofvolunteers participated in the organizationof the event, few ofwhom ever got to see theinside of the competition halls.

The attention b> the fans was so intensethat the Chinese athletes had to be escorted

by police between the venue and their hotel,which was immediately adjacent to the hall.Occasionally one of them would try to makeit through the halls by himself, and he'd beswarmed by dozens of autograph seekers.

And China was watching: Every dayChinese TV carried several hours of the

tournament live to hundreds of millions of

spectators. The hall was well filled for mostof the time, and from about the quarterfinalson there was not an open seat in the house.

With such pressure, all Chinese playersstarted the tournament somewhat shaky. Yetas events unfolded, they would dominate inan unprecedented fashion. Both Men's andWomen's events were won by the host. Thecomet-like ascent of young star KongLinghui, who a mere year ago played whathe called "my best tournament so far" whenhe won the U.S. Open. already culminatedina Men's Singles World Championship title.Deng Yaping, stunned in an early defeat byan expatriate Chinese from Singapore twoyears ago. reclaimed what can only be calledrightfully "her" title. in fact, China won thegold medals in all 7 events. Of the 5 silvermedals available in the individual competi-tions they won 4, and of the 10 Bronzemedals for individual events they won 6, atotal of 17 of 28 available medals. (In 1981,China won 14.)

The-tlyackfridax"of=Euroean-TableTennis

Friday morning, May 12th. 10 am. TheWorld Championship Men's Singles eventhad come down to the last 16 players. Al-ready, the field had been cleared of someplayers who in the weeks before the event

10 Table Tennis Today

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World Men's Singles Champion

Kong Linghui

had been considered real contenders for the

title. Zoran Primorac (CRO)-a semifinalist

in 1993, came down with some ailment

towards the end of the team event and sue-

cumbed in five games to an extremely hot

Thierry Cabrera (BEL) in the first round.Veteran Andrzej Grubba, also sick defaultedhis first round match and caught a flightbackto Europe. Yoo Nam Kyu (KOR-) lost his

first round match to Feng Zhe, another oneof China's seemingly endless supply of phe-nomenal players. Feng, who eliminatedChristophe Legout (FRA) in the following

round, is a penholder who plays with in-verted rubber on both sides and. like Liu

Guoliang, plays "two wing" penhold style,using the back side of his racket to loop andblock backhands. Most notably, though, Jean-Michel Saive was out. He hadbeen perform-ing so strongly that predictions for him hadranged from: "semifinals-most likely" to"a lock for the finals." And once more such

solid predictions in this sport have beenproven silly, this time by an as yet littleknown chopper by the name of Ding Song ofChina, who took Saive out in three straightgames in the round of 32 (17, 17.11). Otherssurvived near misses, like Wang Tao who inhis first round match against Toshio Tasaki(JPN) found himself in a cliff-hanger, down2 games to 1 and 17-19 in the fourth. Hepulled that game out at deuce and then, witha final burst, won an uncomfortable fifth

game at 15. Kim Taek Soo (KOR) played hissecond round match against 37-year-old Ital-ian Massimo Costantini, the 8-time Italian

Singles Champion, who calls himself "thelast Dinosaur," because he doesn't use speedglue. In a match that lasted until about 11:30

pm, Costantini barely failed to bring home a2:0 lead from deuce in the third, and even a

17-14 lead in the fifth game was not enough:Kim squeaked through at -19,-19,20,10, n 9.

' 43*tiv,4 2.1,1/lif.. m·. · >44*·%ES; % Mr*p:·*>i?··?ii??:1 9 /· -

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World Men's Singles Runner-up U

Liu Guoliang

The Infamous Round of 16

The stage was set for what was to be-

come the start of a bloodbath for EuropeanTable Tennis. Of the 16 players, six weremembers of the Chinese National Team, one

was Korean, eight were Europeans and onewas a Chinese representing Austria (DingYi).

There were so many ironies and signifi-cant coincidences bunched together in the

events of this one day: After long 5-gamematches, the last three World Champions all

fell to China's up- and coming stars-all

three matches finishing within 7 minutes ofeach other. In fact they went down in reverseorder of their ascent-the '93 championGatien lost his match first(to KongLinghui),then the '91 champion Persson (to DingSong) and minutes later '89 championWaldner (to Liu Guoliang). Kong and Liuwere in their early teens when China lost itsdominance in '89, Ding a couple of yearsolder. and they all must have been pickedright around that time to be the ones to regainthat position for their country. After that sixyear"gestation period," what a better settingto succeed in than at home !

As if to validate the championship hewould win a couple of days later, KongLinghui almost physically took the crownout of the reigning champion Gatien' s handby defeating him head to head. In a beautiful5-game match Kong proved those wrongwho had seen in him a very promising, butnot quite mature player. A European coachhad commented on Kong after his some-what rocky performances in Italy and Swe-den: "He is a technically brilliant player,has good serves and plays a very goodtopspin game from both sides. With this

very European-like style, he will be animportant tactical variation against Asiancompetitors, but against a good Europeanplayer his backhand is too soft." Well, itmight have been last year, but Kong learnsfast! Gatien's legendary forehandjustdidn'tgo through Kong enough times. He blockedand counter-punched with the backhand,counterlooped with hispowerful forehand-and threw in an occasional chop for goodmeasure-all of it performed so effectivelythat even a fighter like Gatien ran out of gasand spirit in the fifth. The scores were 18,-18, 10, -17, 8.

Ding Song, who lost his first match

against Persson during his nervous first ma-jor international appearance at the World

i Team Cup in France last October, got hisrevenge here. Ding is a completely exhaust-ing, unforgiving chopper. Usually, an attackplayer can buy some time by dropping a ball

' short here and there to regain his rhythm. Against Ding that does not work well. The

slightest hint of a drop shot brings him for-1 ward to the table, and by the time the ball

bounces. he is in perfect position to loop or

smash the ball wherever he wants to. He hasa complete attack arsenal: He can loop with

i his forehand, his backhand- inside-out,

straight, hook-from any part of the table.

Frequently he bypasses the chop portion of

his game altogether and plays straight attack

for a while. When he does chop (he uses

short pips on the backhand), his balls are so

hard to read that none of the Europeansseemedto be able tocontinue loopingenough

balls. They either got lured into a mistake orwere forced to try a drop shot-with theresults I mentioned above. Persson put up a

valiantfight, but ultimately hecouldn't solvethe puzzle and lost 13, -18, -17,23, 18.

Waldner's loss was quite surprising,

because he had thus farlooked in such splen-did form that some thought he might take thetitle again. His meeting with Liu Guoliangcalled to mind the result of Liu's first inter-

national tournament, when he had burst onto

the scene with a victory over Waldner.

Initially both had great difficulty re-ceiving serves. A fiery Liu pounced on everypossible opportunity to take the initiative.Undaunted, Waldnertooka 17-131eadinthe

first game, but then Liu stopped him dead inhis tracks: He got the serve and scored 5points, handcuffing Waldner a couple oftimes with very well placed loops to thecenter. Waldner, now down 17-18, attacked

hard, but his put-away nicked the net. Liuflicked the next receive in foraclean winner,

and won the game after running downWaldner' s fast, long topspin serve to theforehand corner and hooking it back onto thetable from a good two feet behind his body.In the second game Liu took a quick 4-1 leadandcontinued toa 18-12 advantageby smash-ing Waldner' s loops in all conceivable di-rections. And then it was almost his turn to

let a big lead evaporate. Waldner, serving,attacked with authority, won his five servicepoints and then tied it at 19-all. At 20-20. Liulooped Waldner's serve right into his hip,and won the game by lifting a net-dribblerover carefully with no spin but a big motionand thus forcing Waldner into acounterlooping error.

The matchcontinued tight, butit looked

/ more and more like experience was about tooverwhelm youthful fire. Waldner broughthis whole arsenal to bear in the next two

games, including a much bigger backhandloop than we're used to seeing from him. Heforced a fifth game, and although Liu wasdoing his job very well, more of Waldner'spunch blocks and power-hooks found theirtarget. He backed up a step farther thanusually and let the ball rip in a display offirepower which is uncharacteristic for"Mr.

July/August 1995

CHAMPIONSHIPS€M; TANJIN

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© China's Ding Song chopped and looped

2 his way to the semi's with upsets over- Jean-Michel Saive and Jorgen Persson.

Finesse." With Waldner serving with a 10-5lead after they changed sides, not too manywere betting on Liu anymore. Liu got anedge. then Waldner missed a block by aninch or so, and suddenly the opposite side ofthe hall erupted in loud cheers: Kong hadwon his match against Gatien. Waldner andLiu waited a little for the noise to abate and

continued. Liu seemedmore vigorous. maybemotivated by his buddy's win. Suddenly thetire was back and he came back to tie at 11.

He moved as he had earlier in the match.

even faster. and just as he took a ] 4- 12 lead.the wholehall exploded in adeafeningcheer:Ding Song had just finished off Persson. Thecheer was so loud that Liu held on to the ball

for awhile and looked at his opponent point-ing to the crowd as iftosay: " 1 can't give youtheballyet. lean't hearmyself think." Whilea mass of reporters and photographers wereflowing over to the site of Persson's demise,they continued see-sawing points, untilWaldner got the serve at 17-18. Liu loopedWaldner's first serve deep into the backhandand forced Waldner to mistime his block off

the edge of his racket. The next serve Liutried to flick. but suffering a little from whatthe Europeanscall the "lead-arm-syndrome"( when. under pressure. you arm weighsabout a ton). he missed six feet off the table.

The next serve was short underspin to thebackhand, but Liu turned a little and droppedit short and wide to Waldner's forehand. As

if that was what he had hoped for. the "Ma-gician" leapt forward and ripped itcrosscourt-too hard for Liu to block. 19-

19. Another long serve, and this time Liulooped right down the middle. Waldner hadalready turned in anticipation of anothershot to his backhand and reached the ball

only with the edge of his racket. For reasonsonly he knows, Waldner gave Liu anotherlong serve. Liu fearlessly turned and loopedthe ball right back to Waldner's hip. Matchto Liu 17, 20, -16. -17. 19

The notable exception to the pronouncedshift in balance from Europe to Asia wasLucian Blaszczyk (POL). He was the onlyEuropean player who was able to inflictsubstantial damage to the Chinese. He isextremdy quick and with his somewhat un-orthodox strokes generates an amount ofpower that simply is amazing. After defeat-ingthe U.S. #1 player Cheng Yinghua in thesecond round, he won atight 5-gamestruggle

against Feng Zhe. He was just too fast andhis shots too powerful for Feng. Ma Wengewas his next opponent. Ma. injured on hisshoulder late last year. had reportedly notbeen able to participate in the preparationsfor this tournament and was not at his best.

Blaszczyk's power-loops from the forehandand the backhand-right off the bounce-didnt give Ma enough time to unfold hisgame. He lost in three. 18.15.16.The Ouarterfinals

By the time the morning session wasover. only three Europeans were left: PeterKarlsson. the lact Swede in the field. who

had taken out Peter Franz (GER). Vladimir

Samsonov (BLR). the Europeanjuniorhope,who had advanced against his Bundesligateam mate JOrg Rosskopf (GER), and asmentioned above. Blaszczyk. The evening

session-the quarterfinals-was scheduledfor 5 pm. The match-ups were: Ding Song-Blaszczyk. Karlsson-Kong Linghui.Samsonov-Liu Guoliang and Wang Tao-Kim Taek Soo.

Blaszczyk was totally befuddled by

Ding Song and never really in contention.He lost at 13,10 and 16.

Kong Linghui-always amazing-didn't seem to mind any part of Karlsson'sgame. The very backhand that less than ayear ago was too soft to intimidate Europe-ans now seemedtoprevail in mostexchangesand even in the traditional strength of play-ers from the old continent, the torehand

counterloop, Kong came out ahead most ofthe time. When receiving serves, he oftenjust pushed so heavy that Karlsson. in hisattempt to loop it. wound up rolling the ballon the table! Kong lost his concentration alittle (apparently that goes with table tennisgenius-Waldnersuffers from the same phe-nomenon) and dropped the second game at23-25, but he easily cruised through thenext two games at 11 and 11. (18, -23, 11,11).

From the first time we have seen

Vladimir Samsonov he has impressed uswith his well-placed, powerfulshots. There is a beautiful, sim-

plicity to his game. His strokesare smooth even under tremen-

dous acceleration needed to pro-duce the dazzling power that istypical to his shot. Under nor-mal circumstances. his antici-

pation is almost flawless, he israrely caught wrong-footed andalmost no one can play a ballclear past him. Of course, a hotLiu Guoliang cannot be consid-ered "normal circumstances."

When your opponent smashesback your best loops, there islittle you can do but hope thathe'll start missing. Liu didn't,or at least not enough. He wonthe match in three straight gamesat 18.18 and 18.

An unfortunate incident

marred the last quarterfinal:Kim Taek Soo. historically introuble against Wang Tao. thistime rippedthroughhim in threestraight games. He was playing Iat a blisterin pace, smashingthe ball more than looping it Iand running down every bail. Itseemed that he had found one

way to break his losing streakagainst Wang. Then we heardthe news: Kim was disqualifiedbecause a test of his racket after

the match came back positivefor a high concentration of asubstance indicative of banned

glue! After recovering from theshock, everyone seemed to askthemselves the same questions:Why did he choose to do that'?Or was there a problem with thetest? How could he not have

known, that this would be the

inevitable consequence. par-ticularly since it had been ar,-nounced that every winner s

racket from the quarterfinals onwould be tested? He had played

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they met in the quarterfinals. This time

illegal glue. and Wang advanced to the se

Wang so differently froin othertimes. wouldhe not have won anyway? lfhe can smash somany balls and make them go in. does theadditional speed really make a difference?Remember. thecomparisonisnot speed gluevs. no speed glue. It is the difference be-tween one type of speed glue solvent andanother. Granted. the old, banned glues aremore effective. But by how much? Enough

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1995 World 12

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a's Kim Taek Soo 8 times in a row when

Kim won--but was disqualified due tomifinals.

to turn a match this clearly?Kim's steadfast denial of having used

an illegal glue supports a scenario offered inan article in the official German Table Ten-

nis magazine: During the World Champion-ships in GOteborg, some German playersvoluntarily had a inixture of two ITTF ap-proved glues tested and the result Was-totheir complete amazement-positive. Kim

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At the Atlanta Hilton 'Ibwers, the,mcial hotel d the 1,95 World Dam CupIb make reservations cal] 104-659-21* or fax 404-221-6301

Rates are $71 ler a single or $80 for a double per night

For infonaalia about the World ki {4 ad Atluta *rts 195 rall l]&41T Head™rim at(719) 5784531. Free Ocketi are available to all [SAIT members. Orguized with permission

of the M by the Allata Co-ttee for the 01,mlic Games amd Ult lible Dnnis

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 11 .. „..

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admits to having used a mixture of twoapproved glues. Although chemists say that

this is no( possible, some further investiga-tion miglit be in order.

Of course none of those questiong re-ally address the issue. During team compe·-

tition. Kim reportedly had been warned thathis glue was not acceptable. This wa the

ruling. and however much he might have

disagreed with it, all players are expected to

abide by it For whatever reasons. Kim didnot.

This left Wang Tao in an extremely

uncomfortable position. In an interview hegave after hearing of Kim's disqualificationhe said that indeed he had been surprised b>the power of Kim's game, but he didn'tspecifically attribute his loss to the glue. He

said that he would play the semifinal if hewas told to. but in his heart he knew he had

already lost this tournament. One can easily,feel that he didn't cherish the task of facing

Li.u Guoliang in the hemitinal and possibly

.spelling hisjuniorteammate' s chance to win

a clean World Championship title, whenWang himself could only win a tainted oneat best.

The Semifinals

He had to play. though. Thousands ofpeople had paid what amounts to a month'sincome to see the semilinal<. And so, the

sold-out hall was treated to a very well

di,guised exhibition. Beautiful points were

12 Table Tennis Today

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£ It was not a good touirnament for manyof the top European stars, or for someof the Asian stars as well. Early losersincluded (clockwise from top left).Belgium's Jean-Michel Saive (3-0 toChina's Ding Song). Sweden's JorgenPersson (3-2. from up match point

against Ding Song) Germany's JorgRosskopf (in 5 to Croatia's VladimirSainsonov), Sweden's Jan-Ove

Waldner (shown [losing last point

against China's Liu Guoliang, 19 in5th),Sweden's Peter Karlsson (3-1 to

Liu Guoliang), France's Jean-PhilippeGatien (3-2 to China's Kong Linghui).

Ma Wenge (3-0 10 Poland's Lucian

Blagezyk), and ¥00 Nam Kyu (19 in

5th to China's Fen Zhe).

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played. but ultimately. Wang knew very

well where to put the ball to give Liu a

chance to put it away„ As if he wanted toshow the world that he could, if he wanted,

Wang won the firg game, but then he lost {he

next three. It left a sad note. Days before, he

was celebrated as the new World Championin the team event. anc now lie was seen

losing twice in a row. But Wang Tao will be

recognized asatrue Champion. Ashisteam's

#l heborethebrunt ofthepressure of havingto win at home. and he contributed strongly

to that success. Even though his perfor-niance in the singles event was less than

stellar. the fact that he absorbed most of the

media and fan attention seemed to have

freed up his junior teammates and helpedthem perform at their best.

The other semifinal was another dis-

play of Kong Linghiti's ability to disas-

semble choppers. Thase who have seen him

play against Matthew Syed (ENG) in theteam final of last yearb. U.S. Open had anidea of what wax in store for Ding Song.Ding's magic suddenly didn't seem to work

anymore. He made the same shots that hadleft his previous opponents fiabbergasted.

but nothing seemed k, confuse Kong. Herefused to misread any of the spin, and he

smashed and spun and dropped almost at

will. Ding put up a valiant effort, and theyplayed great points. bul Kong beat him in

three games that felt le» close than 12.18and 18.

The Final

Again, last year's U.S. Open was called

to mind: The same two players played thefinals. In Anaheim. Kong had destroyed Liu

Guoliang, and we were hoping that this

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would be a closer match. Liu came out

roaring, won the first s.x points they played(he lostoneonaservice fault call). tooka 10-

3 lead. let Kong catch up to 11-9. but thenwent ahead to finish the first game at 17Kong stepped it up a notch He looked much

more aggressive in the second game. Liu

reacted and managed to stay close until 15-15. On his serve. Kong ripped a couple of

backhand winners. then got a point on what

is beit described asabackhandside/underspin

block (straight out of Waldner's "private

collection"), and finally he looped two pow-

erful forehands to put the score at 20- 15.

Game two to Kong 21-16. In the third game

Liu took off from 14- 13 to win 21 - 15. Kongcame out to the fourth game playing unchar-

One of the outstanding features of

E the top competitors of our sport is their.honesty and sportsmanship, which theydi>play to a degree Weunfortunately hardlyever see in Other sports. A good exampleof this was given by Jean-Philippe Gatienduring his match against Kong Linghui

(8ths of Men's Singles), -but it almostwent almost unnoticed. Spectators fol-lowing the match saw a tight score pro,gression displayed on the official icorecard. They say 15-15. then 19-all. After

missing hi>;loop intothe net, ostensibly toreach a score of 20-19, Gatien grabbed histowel andheadedovertohiscoach. Kong,:ready to Flap on, Watched. a ittle con-

fused. and waited While the umpire triedto ·tall Gatienback. Upon seeing Gatien'sgesture indicating "Finished." theumpire

aw.irdecl:t point to Kong, and the gamewent into the books as 21 -19.

What had happened became clearonly upon rev iew of a videotape of thematch. it 1 3-13.Gatienmade apoweiful

acteristically hunied. Again. he quicklydropped to a 3-10, then a 6-1 2 delicit. Butsuddenly he was on again. as if someone hadthrown a switch. Now every loop found thecorner, every push was heavy enough. andhis serves wereoutstandingly effective. Fromthis pointon. 1-2 down in ganies and 6-12 inthe fourth. he allowed Liu another 12 pointsforthe whole remainder of the match! First,

lie caught up and took a 14-12 lead. Liumanaged to lie at 14. but Kong shut him outfor the rest of the game: 21-14. The fifthgame started even. but Kong was helped to a9-6 lead by three nets and edges. But then.although he gotacouple more nets which ledLiu to lookup totheceiling in despair. Kongstarted ripping loops left and right. blockedlike a wall and just plain outplayed his team-mate to claim the title.

Can I possibly resist the temptation of

the obvious and not call him "King." but'Emperor Kong' instead. which ix more in

keeping with his country's tradition? At any

rate. his game has a royal quality. Certainly

there are still a number of things our newchampion needs to work on. His concentra-

lion is spotty, although he can go from totalabsenceto fullconceliti'ationina x econd flat.

He displayed that ability very clearly in hismatch against Gatien. As he was playing the

third game. Kong gradually started to watch

the Ding Song-Persson match on the tablenext to his. the winner of which lie would

play-if he won. HAI play a point. turn and

watch a point of the other match und then

continue playing. He lost the 1-ourth daine

doing that-his coach probably grasping forhis nitroglycerin pills- but in the fifth hi>,

switching between 100% off and 1009 on

was so perfect that he took a 17-8 lead and

probably still knew the exact progress of theother match. At that point, Gatien. ready to

serve looked up and saw Kong standing by

the bari-iers watching the other match. Un-

derstandably miffed. Gatien pounded theracket on the table to get Kong's attentionand to invite him to come back and finish

him off'. Certainly, there was no ill intention

by Kong. I know himas a friendly, respectfuland somewhat shy kid. But it shows how

completely aloof he can be.

And yet. with all the mistakes he still

makes, he already looks almost unbeatable.What ifhe stops makingthese mistakes as hematures and starts keeping his concentrationthroughout the match? That must be a ques-tion that at this point sends cold shivers

down the backs of all European coaches.

forehand loop which nicked the net andthen missed the table by a fraction of an

inch. The referee thought it hit andcounted the point for Gatien. and theofficial score became 14-13 instead of

13-14. Nobody. including Kong and hiscoach, seemed to have noticed. and playcontinued. This error of course carried

through the rest of the game. and whenGatien missed his shot at 19-19, he

knew-having counted along correctlyin'his head-thai the score should have

been 20-18. and thus, after his miss, he

declared the game over.It is unclear j f he noticedthe mistake

when it occurred and just chose to avoid

confusionatthat point. orifhe was neveraware of it and,iust trusted his own count-ing, but the fact is that he declared the

game finished in a stage in which offi.cially it was still very well within his

grasp. For this degree of integrity, 1believe Jean-Philippe Gatien deserves tobe saluted.

July/August 1995

A PRAISE TO SPORTSMANSHIP

Gatien's Good Deed

Photo Courtesy of China Sports 4 1995Photo by Mal Anderson ©1995

Photo Courtesy of C hina Sports : 1995

WOMEN'S SINGLES

Deng Yaping defeats Qiao Hong

by Tim Boggan

Well, it wasn't an all-Asian 8ths-

there were Europeans such as Jie Schopp,Nicole Struse, and Csilla Batorfi, none of

whom would make the quarterfinals. Butsurprisingly, there weren't any Japanese orKoreans, all of whom had been knocked out

early. Of especial interest was the absenceof the Japanese ace Chire Koyama, alias HeZhili, the 1987 World Singles Championfrom China, now living in Japan. (See box.)

So, no Japanese. no Koreans, in the last16. How about other Asians-you know.

Chinese but not representing China?Well, let's see. There was Canada's Li

Geng-a World Singles runner-up and twicea World Doubles winner for China. Appar-ently she was a favored member of what theChinese media called the "overseas corps"(an organized subdivision of the establish-ment?). Feeling a bit disoriented as an ex-player in her ex-country, she neverthelessmoved right along through three 3-0 matchesto reach the quarter's.

Geng's best win was in the round of 16over China's World #10 Chen Zihe who

backhand chop/blocks with her long pips,and serves and hits forehands with her short

pips-the long and short of it being that lastseason she had the best record in the

Bundesliga. Why? Because her long pipsare very effective against European spin-ners but not so effective against Asians whohit.

In thequarter's, oh, oh, Geng metDing."The major threats to us [that is, China],"

W>»>»>... 155 '99 5,0RRR,%21%.m/"1**I

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World Women's Champion

Deng Yaping

she told reporters, "will come from formerChinese Nationals living in and playing forother countries. If I meet them I will gettough." So, if she can't get tough withKoyoma, she will with Geng? It might 3-0seem so, but I myself thought that Geng wassoft rather than that Deng was hard. Any-way, Deng to the semi's.

In the roundof 16 Germany's expatriateChinese, Jie Schopp, faced China's World#8 Liu Wei who, able to off-the-bounce

counter the lowest of low balls, had 8,14, 8

destroyed World #45 Asa Svensson. But,after fighting so hard against Sato and thenlooking so strong in winning the 1st game at8 from Liu, Schopp suddenly did a completeturnabout and -7, -9, -15 didn't seem to wantto win this round of 16 match after all. How

explain such a reversal? Schopp or ratherchop isn't what it used to be?

Also in the round of 16, Taipei' s World

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World Women's Runner-up

Qiao Hong

#30 Xu Jing had a 2-1 lead over China's

World #22 Wang Nan. '94 Swedish Openwinner, but had to relinquish it, lose in 5.However, in the quarter's against 25-year-old Liu, Nan appeared to have had no 6,16.15 chance. Liu, '91 and '93 World's Mixed

Doubles and'93 World's Women'sDoubles

Champion to the semi's against Deng.Chai Po Wa, the Hong Kong #1 from

China, didn't make the last 16, but Chan Tan

Lui, her teammate did. Chai lost to Taipei'sXu Jing, 17, -19, -19, -14. Perhaps Po Wa, up1-0, could have been helped to win that 21-19swing 2nd game had her sister Chai Manbeen with her courtside? Yeah, that Man' s a

woman (justonemore instance of that which

seems confusing, a paradox, to Chinese andAmericans trying to share relations). Youremember how back iii ' 86 Man had beaten

our Insook in Dave Elwood's $16,500 Co-

lumbus, Indiana U.S. Masters tournament

and later how she'd written Coaching Conner articles for T7-T?...You do?

Chan Tan Lui, the Hong Kong #2,

made the last 16, but, after losing 3 straight

to Qiao Hong, she'd soon be able to go back

to her studies at the University of Canberra.

where world-class practice must be a littlehard to come by.

Coming out to meet the 27-year-oldQiao Hong inthe quarter' s was Taipei's'88

Olympic Singles Champion and '93 World

Runner-up Chen Jing. Earlier, China emi-

grant Chen had knocked out China emigrant

Amy Feng after our Amy had produced a

good 20,16, -15,14 win over '94 European

Champion Marie Svensson. Against Chen,Amy's backhand-snaps to thecorners score,but slow loops are dangerous. With the

match tied at 1-1, Amy, making errors, is off

to a bad 0-5 start, then swats a high ball withherbackhand-off-and 0-6 smiles. A pointof view not so easily read?...Soon, though,

it's 15-all...18-all with Amy serving. ButChen knows when to commit herself to

taking a forehand-and Amy, who I don'tthink has been watching the ball very well,has seen her best chance come and go.

In the round of 16 Chen then 3-1 unbal-

anced 17-year-old Yang Ying, World #20,who'd won the '94 Yugoslav Open. Butafter that neither she nor anyone else couldprovide her with enough equilibrium to evenbegin to see-saw back and forth into an evenmatch with Qiao Hong. The spectatorsseemed oddly quiet this China/Taipei matchand Chen herself played without enthusi-asm, as if she were grounded. Qiao Hong tothe semi' s.

Taipei had finished an unimpressive12th in the Team' s, but its "sleepef ' entry in

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July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 13

.

the Singles, Tang Fei Ming, apparently notavailable or not eligible for Team play,proved her mettle in a -20,13, 22,20 battleof 2nd-round nerves with '94 Italian Openwinner Wang Chen. Then, to get to theround of 16, Tang, who plays for England'sGrove Club, took out early '80' s Europeangreat Valentina Popova.

Meanwhile, how many Europeans areamong the last 16? Only two--Germany' sWorld #18 Nicole Struse and Hungary'sWorld #22 Csilla Batorfi, who are both in

the same quarter.After getting by World #48 Mirjam

Hooman, -15,13.19,16, Struse, in advancingto the round of 16, played one of her typical-18, -15, 20, 12, 17 gutsy matches to beatChina's World #24 Li Ju. Ah, you think INnexaggerating-that kind of match. you say,could hardly be "typical." Allow me, please,since Struse was my favoriteplayerto watch,to describe her very next (quarter's) matchwith Taipei's Tang.

Struse's again down 2-0-and down15-10 in the 3rd, then pulls itout, 22-20. Thenshe' s up 20-16 in the 4th. Is it fair to sayshe's temperamental? Or that her concen-tration comes and goes? Struse's made asoft return-and it's 21-all. Tang, however,tries to soft-flip Struse's serve in, and theGerman with the ad counters a forehand

with such a lunge that, as the ball goes in forthe game win, Struse falls flat on her back.Tung walks away from the table shaking herhead.

In the 5th, Struse's again in trouble, isdown 10-5 at the turn. Isn't she playing toomuch to Tang's forehand'? Is that what herCoach has told her to do'? Whatever.... She

moves from 14-10 down to a fist-high 14-all...1017-all. Struse'swell-placedbackhandmisses....A forehand's off, a forehand's

on....Struse serves and backhand loops intoTang's middle: 19-all. Struse's down flat on

her back again, but, deliberately playing toTang's forehand, deuces it. Struse gets thead, serves into Tang's forehand-and sheswats it in! She's tough too. Struse countersa forehand-off, then tries another lungingforehand and, though this time she' s againon the floor, the ball doesn't go in. Struseloses 24-22 in the 5th.

Rising from the floor she begins to cry.Somebody hands her a towel, a couple ofpeople try to comfort her. She sits on herbenchand buriesherhead in heaving sobs-wins everyone's cautious attention, espe-cially the photographers'; naturally theycan't resist coming closer and closer tocapture the history-making moment. It willbe a loss Struse won't forget-and neitherwill I.

Alright, now dutifully back to the otherEuropean, Hungary' s strong looper, Batorfi,who also made the last 16.

AgainstChina'sQiao Yunping, Batortihad one chance to get into the match when.down 1-0 but up 18-17 in the 2nd, she wasforced to lob and her lob luckily caught theback table edge. But, despite her usualtenaciousness, she couldn't hold the lead

and in the end popped up the ball to lose thegame.

Qiao Yunping has much smootherstrokes than Tang and a very good back-hand. It's no surprise that in their quarter' bmatch she's up 2-1. In the 4th, it's no contestat all. Down 16-4, Tang shakes her head.

CHIRE KOYAMA Alias HE SHILIby Tim Boggan

Down 17-4, she smiles, and serves into the

net. Qiao Yunping to the semi' s againstQiao Hong.Semifinats:

Deng Yaping over Liu Wei, 12, -14,17,19. Nocoaches are in evidence forthis match

between the righty shakehands loopers. Howcould one Chinese root against another? Ihave the strong feeling that the outcome ispredetermined. Unexpectedly, at least tome, the match is expedited. With Liu up 17-13 in the 4th, it appears to be going into the5th. But Deng with a burst wins the gameand the match at 18, then jumps and yells inhappy triumph.

Qiao Hong over Qiao Yunping, 23,17,14. I knew Qiao woulddefinitely win.There'sone fun point here I noted. When in the Istgame Qiao Hong is 21-20 down. she makes1-2-3-4 good kills as Qiao Lunping keepslobbing them back. Then. instead of hittingout again, she lightly drops the ball to winthe point. That's as close as Qiao comes tobeating Qiao.Final:

Deng over Qiao. -14.17,17, -14,14. Inthe 1st, Deng's at the table in attack positionforcing block returns from Qiao, and is up 5-0. Butthen Deng' s forehand findsapinpointtrajectory that sends ball after ball long.What a streak ! You might say that Dengoutmisses Qiao 21-9.

In the 2nd game. Deng ties it up at 12-all after winningalong,exhibition-like mid-game rally, then is down 15-12...16-14. Now,though. she instinctively makes a fast-handsblock/counter-just flashes outherperfectlyplaced racket and the ball rockets back toQiao. In an aisleway way up in the stands. ahigh-priest figure in a yellow robe and aheaddress resembling a bishop' s mitre, of-fers his golden tlag as a blessing to themultitude below. "Peace, Friendship, Pros-pei-ity, Development"-may they always

be with you. I look back to the score--6straight points Deng's won. She's up 20-16and Qiao is shaking her head. How Dengcan anticipate. She closes out the game witha great side-to-side attack.

In the 3rd game, Qiao is again leading,14-11. But now both players begin loopingthe ball offthe end of the table....With Deng

leading 18-17 there's exceptional counter-play. Deng runs out the game 21-17.

In the 4th, Qiao is up6-0...10-3! Deng'schop/blocks are ineffective, Qiao immedi-ately pounces to the attack. So Deng, tryingout her repertoire, so to speak, takes tohitting and dropping. Game to Qiao, 21-14.

Deng and Qiao traded shots "as if theywere on the practice table," a Hong Kongpaper would say the next day. Which mightnot have been a bad assessment except forsome final moments still remaining in thismatch. lii the 5th, Deng is up 8-1. Sometimesyou'veseen Deng blowonherrackethand-but a better reminder, to the audience if not

to her, that she's not to blow this game, thistitle. comes when she again and again inbetween points carefully places her hand onthe table and says, in effect, This is seriousbusiness, my friends.

Hey, no sweat. Deng. No way, givenyour great career, you can possibly be hu-miliated by losing from 20-8. Play freely.

And-wow!-do they both! Had thenext 6 points been as professionally choi-eo-graphed as those other amazing spectacleacts-in the Opening and Closing Ceremo-nies (which I've no time, or space, or evenenergy now to report on)-they Col!]dn'thave been as skillfully entertaining. For 6points what happened out there on courtseemed as spontaneous, as giving, as free. asfunworthy as any high-quality final (men'sor women's)1've ever xeen. And for those 6

points I knew that there was artistry in ourSport and always would be.

Before the '95 World's Women's

Singles Championship began, the 96thposition in the]28-entryChina-dominatedDraw proper (of course there Were alsoQualification rounds) belonged to the #5seed, Chire Koyama. Koyama is clearly aJapanese name-andbecause in the AsianGames in HiroshimalastOctoberKoyamabeat both China's 1991 World Women'sSingles Champion Deng Yaping, -20,19,20,16inthefinal, andChina'$1989 WorldWomen's Singles Champion Qiao Hong,17, -14.17.19 in the semi's, she was estab-

lished as one of the favorites. perhaps thefavorite, to win this year' s title.

A Japanese woman who can win aWorldChampionship?Ithadn'tbeendonein over a 4uarter of a century«not sinceToshiko Kowada did ii in Munich in 1969

when the Chinese, still suffering from thetoes of their Cultural Revolution, werenotparticipating. So, though today Japan-China cooperation is "vital, as ChinaDaily insisted, who would expect that"Friendship first, Competition ts©cond,"the Ping-Pong Diplomacy line of 1971,would prevail in a major championship inthe '90'st.No, in =Tianjin, the #1 seedDeng, who's headed the ITTF computer-ized rankings for the last four years, andthe #2 seed Qiao. would definitely beintenton("CHIN,a!CHIN-a!"lovercom-ing the foreign opposition.

But was 31-yeariold Chire Koyamareally so foreign? Had:one already forgot-ten'her story? In New Delhi in 1987 shehad won the World's Women's SinglesChampionship, and back then, when hernanie was He Zhili, she wasn'tjapanes¢atall, she was Chinese. born in Shanghai.

So why had she become an expatri-ate, even changed hername?

The story I heard was that she was

14 Table Tennis Today

not selected as a Chinese National Team

member for the'88 Seoul Olympics be-causein the'87 World's she'd refused to

throwa match to>a compatriot as she wasasked to do. So, not being wanted, shewent over to Japan, became their Chain,pion.

This move by He Zhili did not>sitwell with the Chinese media and with

many of her previous fans-they calledher a "traitor."John Crean. in an artidevery helpful to me in the South ChihaMorning Post, described their feelingsthis way:

"The Beijing Youth Newsquestioned how a woman with'pure Chinese blood in herveins' and ' raised on Chinese

food' could stand pfOUdly un-deraJapaneseflagatthemedalceremony in Hiroshima."

Another commentary in the :samepaper added: "Sothisis how she repaysher motherland, her coaches, her team-mates and all of her compaoiots-reallybeautiful."

Meanwhile. a Japanese official wastelling::me, 1 think she will win >thisWoridChampionship. She has moneyaa bank in Osaka supports her training,and shegets otherhelpfrom thecity. Shehas her own massager, her own trainefiShe has many supporters."

But in Tianjin she wouldn't havemany supporters-··-not vocal ones any-·way; she'd be sure to be booed. In fact,there were even threats on her life-

though this Japanese official, with a littlesmile. said she would be "well guarded."

Suddenly,however, therecamenewsthat Koyama was in an Osiika hospitalwith a "stoinach: problem". and that shewas '406 ilt' to play.

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July/August 1995

MEN'S TEAMS

China Defeats Sweden 3-2 inSwaythling Cup Final, Ending6-Year Drought

by Tim Boggan

Despite Sweden's 1989-91-93 domi-nance in World Championship play. it couldbe no surprise to aficionados that in 1995, asin 1961. the only other time the Worlds were

played in China. the Chinese would be pre-pared to win the Men's Swaythling Cup

competition. This time, though, it was not inBeijing but in the new, 10,000-seat, flying-

saucer-shaped Stadium especially built by

workers conscripted for these Champion-ships in table-tennis-touted if not table-ten-

nis-crazed Tianjin.

The great Swedish player, Jan-OveWaldner, the formerWorld, World Cup, andOlympic Champion (his name in Swedish

actually means "World Champion"'?), still

seems an ageless wonder-strong enoughcertainly to win the only two matches he

could play in during the final Championshiptie against China. But no matter how good

any one player is. or how honorably he' sable to rise to the occasion for self and

country, he cannot win a team tie all by

himself (or, forthat matter, even be expected

to play unvaryingly to his own very highstandard through aU the grueling team andindividual matches he needs to play in dur-ing these Championships). He has to havehelp.

In the '91 World's at Chiba City, Japan.Sweden captured the Swaythling Cup with,repeatedly, the combined singles wins ofWaldner, Mikael Appelgren, and Jorgen

0

E

2

Sweden's Jan-Ove Waldner won both

his matches in the Team Final against

China, but it wasn't enough.

Persson. and in the'93 World's atGothenburgwith, repeatedly, the combined singles winsof Waldner, Persson, and Peter Karlsson.

But here in Tianjin, the aging Appelgren (asfar back as 82 he' d won the first of his three

European Championships) and his long-timeteammate Erik Lindh (so helpful to Swedenin the '87 World's) could not be counted on

as they had been in the past, and in theclimactic tie with China neither Persson nor

Karlsson could add the one match to

Waidner' s two Sweden needed ta retain its

title.

World #2 Wang Tao and Tianjin's own

two-time World Cup winner Ma WengebalancedoffWaldner'svictoriesagainstthemwith theirs against Persson. But againstKarlsson China had a choice of, well. not 2.1

billion people but at least 1-2-3-4 marvelous

young players to seize the day-and 1994Swedish Open winner Ding Song. China'sversatileehopper/attackerextraordinaire, had

no problem providing an easy win.As former Swedish Coach Anders

Thunstrom put it at tie's end, "In readinessforthis final, Sweden had on theirbench two

32-year-olds who couldn't be selected, andChina had on theirs two 19-year-olds whocould have been selected. That made a bigdifference, physically and pyschologically."Of course Anders was referring to the twoyoung Chinese, Kong Linghui, soon to bethe new World Men's Singles Champion,and the finalist he'd beaten, Liu Guoliang,both of whom would reprise their '94 Ana-heim U.S. Open final in Tianjin-an historicfirst.

Naturally Ill be coming round to de-scribe this China-Sweden final in some de-

tail, but, as Team play, especially the Men'sTeam play, is generally thought to be themost interesting part of the Championships,I'm first going to take you through the ties,the matches, that leading up to the (fore-gone'?) final seem to me most worth com-

menting on. (The U.S. Ties I'll speak ofelsewhere.)

Stage 1: Group A:Defending Champion Sweden, who

would come first in the A Group (see else-where my article explaining the system of

play) began with a 3-1 win over Romania-but Appelgren, playing this first tie withWaldnerand Persson, lost to Cristian Toi, 18,

21. A little later, in the Sweden over Russia

(3-1) and Sweden over Japan (3-1) ties, Lindh

would lose in straight games to DmitrijMazurtov and Hiroshi Shibutani. After this

halfway point in the Teams, in whichAppelgren and Lindh both played three ties,

Sweden, for its remaining two ties in Stage 1(it would pummel France and South Korea3-0) and for its quarter' s, semi' s, and final

ties in Stage 2, would play exclusivelyWaldner, Persson. and Karlsson, though notalways in that order.

In Sweden's last Stage 1 tie againstSouth Korea, Yoo Nam Kyu and Kim TaekSoo may have mixed up the largely un-knowledgeable Chinese audience by wear-ing each other's player numbers, but therecould be nodoubt ofthe beginning supremacyof the Swedes. Snapshot Persson as knee-down he followed through with an end-game loop. or Karlsson, as, after rallying todeuce, he finished off a game point with abullet forehand and a pumped-up fist. As forWaldner, who would play all 10 ties, hewould have a 13-1 record (would lose only toJorg Rosskopf. 19 in the 3rd. in the quarter'stie against Germany) and so would win theJoola Trophy and the 5,000 deutsche marksgiven the MVP for the Team competition.

At the other extreme of play in the AGroup, that Romanian Toi who, though not

ranked among the top 200 world-class play-ers, had given Appelgren his only loss, hadanother big win when he beat World #46Andrei Mazunov. 22,14, in the 5th match of

the Romania-Russiatie. As itturned out, this

first-day match was of great significance tothese two teams, for had Russia won, Roma-

nia (who finished 7th), not Russia (who

finished 8th), would have been relegated out

of the Top 16.Russia would 3-1 extend the Japanese,

losing the last three games of the tie. 19, 20,25 (really, it was getting so you couldn'ttake

any Group A or Group B team for granted).Later the Russians would have another

chance to avoid relegation, but would againlose a close 3-2 tie-to the Czech Republic(who finished 6th). The two Czechs who'd

formerly played for the Dusseldorf Club in

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July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 15

the German Bundesliga (all the Europeanplayers seemed to be paid to play in somefirst or second division League somewhere),the boundingly athletic, double-wing attackerPeter Korbel, a World#321ook-alike forand

thereby a quick responder to the nickname"Sampras." won two. while his teammateJosefPlachy, 19,20. again made poor AndreiMazunov the 5th match loser.

Japan. who, through its 7 Group A. 1Transitional, and 3 Second Stage ties,couldn't beat anybody 3-0, began encourag-ingly-first by getting by the Czechs, 3-1.then upsetting the French. the 1994 EuropeanTeam Champions. 3-1, when one of theMatsushita twins (can't tell them apart?). not

the penholder attacker. Yuji. but the

shakehands chopper, Koji, downed bothDefending World Singles Champion Jean-Philippe Gatien and his teammate Patrick

Chila, and Kiyonobu Iwasaki, a substitute

for the bespectacled Japanese National

Champion Ichiro Imaeda, stopped the al-ways determined Christophe Legout. semi-finalist, some may recall. in our 1994 U.S.

Open. So. even with the expected losses toSweden and South Korea, Japan was nowassuredofcoming a"safe" third in theGroupand so making the quarter' s?

Nope. Because the very next morningwhat did they do? Allowed themselves to bebeaten, 3-1, by future #15 finisher Romania.Very aggressive looper Vasile Florea won

the big 24-22 first game from Koj iMatsushita, then rallied to do in Shibutani. -

17, 24.18. while (have to give all the team

members a chance to play, do you, Cap-tains?) Vasile Calus. somewhere around

World#250. suddenly took it into his head to3-game upset the favored Ryo Yuzawa.

Of course. Japan was rather expecting

Sweden and South Koreatogive not only theJapanese but the French their second and

third loss, which would then give both Japanand France 4-3 records and, as a result of the

head-to-head tie-breaker, would allow Ja-

pan that "safe" 3rd place entry into thequarter's.

Sweden seemed strong enough but intheiropeningmatch South Koreahad lookeda little shaky when China's Yang Min, orrather now Italy's World #52 Yang Min.beat both'88 Olympic Champion Yoo NamKyu and World #5 Kim Taek Soo; but nei-ther Massimiliano Mondello, sleek black

hair in samurai bun, nor 36-year-old veteranMassimo Costantini.positioned well againstLee Chul Seung, the Korean third, could somuch as take a game, No, no upsets forCostantini (who later in the Singles wouldhave Kim Taek Soo down 2-0 and at 22-all

in the 3rd) or for Italy who would finish 5thin the Group.

When South Korea went up 2-0 againstFrance, Japan was looking good. But thenthe French staged a gritty comeback: littleDamien Eloi, posturing himself and his powerto full advantage, cock-a-snooked away LeeChul Seung: Gatien. after misserving to lose19 in the 3rd to Yoo Nam Kyu, returnedto...-hearhis interrupting fatherin the standsliterally tooting his own and his son's hornwhile good-humoredly urging all the Chi-nese around him to viva La France!-...to

score amustwin 3rdgame against Kim TaekSoo: after which Chilajust outlasted Yoo, 19in the 3rd, though earlier Yoo, up ]3-7.seemed to have all the spin/win control heneeded.

No wonder the French could rally.though: they've long had a reputation as avery supportive, very united group. They'dall matured as players together. Said oneCoach, "You can' t take singles-minded play-ers from a different generation or from adifferent country. as is happening more andmore with the fanning out of the Chinese.and expect to mold these players into a teamwith great spirit. You have to bring theplayers up together. nurture them, foryears.

16 Table Tennis Today

Moreover, said this Coach, -without a sin-cere team spirit, a team has no chance towi!1."

I'd heard that back in the summerof'91

the French had showed their camaraderie,

and also their Alpine mountain-bike train-ing, by riding from Paris to Barcelona topromote France's upcoming table tennis rolein the '92 Olympics. I'd also heard thatimmediately after the end of the rigorousTeam play here in Tianjin, at 9 a.m. on theone "Free Day" before the 128-entry Singlesproper started. the entire French Team, menand women, were at the Stadium ready tocheer on their players in the preliminaryQuali fying Rounds. Later, afterthe World's,they'll likely all get together with spousesand/or close friends for a wind-down "Re-

generation Camp" before the progressivelydemanding summertraining sessions fornextseason begin.

Stage 1: Group B:China of course posted a 7-0 record,

came first-but they didn't mind dropping acouple of matches along the way to showthey were fallibly human. Wang Tao Coldand fat but that's alright because he's aDoubles specialist) just got by-a case ofnerves surely-his former Julich teammate,the Netherlands' World #53 Trinko Keen,

20, -17,19, and then was beaten. 15. -19. -19 byAustria's 18-year-old,just-made-it-into-the-

top-300 Kostadin Lengerov (oh. alright,Lengeroviathe 1994 European Junior Cham-

pion). "Wang has not yet reached his form."said Coach Cai Zhenhua with a straight face,

"and has not got accustomed to the venueand lights. But I'm confident that he will

play betterandbetter." Me too. Liu Guoliang(young and inexperienced. now known as aSingles runner-up) also lost-to a man twicehis age, England's Desmond Douglas, inac-tive as an Internationalist for almost five

years while at home tending his Bit-ming-ham garden.

Atthe otherextreme, Hong Kong fought

hard in a series of ties to keep from beingrelegated. but to no avail.

The first tie they had a chance to winwas against Poland-especially afterthe first

match when the veteran current Common-

wealth Champion Chan Kong Wah, 14. 21,added to '88 World Cup winner AndrzejGrubba's stomach troubles. (Poor Grubba:

according to a recent article in HolidayWhich? magazine, Indiahasovertaken Egyptas the country most likely for holiday visi-tors to get sick at-but that was no May Day !consolation for Andrzej who. having had to

endure in B irmingham in 1994 an era-endingloss of a medal in the European Champion-ships forthe first time in 14 years, now had to

leave China for home halfway through thistournament).

But Poland's World #65 Lucjan

Blaszczyk (who later would beat our U.S. #1Cheng Yinghua in straight games and thentwo Chinese stars to get to the quarter's ofthe Singles) rose to the occasion, won thenext match. the 19-in-the-3rd swing game

over Belgian-based World #48 Lo ChuenTsung that gave his teammates the needed

impetus to carry on for Poland's on]y win-ultimately allowing them in a head-to-headtiebreaker to finish 7th to Hong Kong's 8th.

Chan Kong Wah takes some gettingused to: in the Singles he would have Gatiendown 2-0. and now he was working hisGuangzhou cum Hong Kong bat magic onboth World #1 Jean-Philippe Saive. 19. -19.21. and his Belgian confrere, Grubba'sBundesliga Grenzau leammate, AndrasPodpinka. 19. 13-but the Belgian 3-2 winwas otherwise uncontested.

Hong Kong's next chance was againstthe Netherlands-and a very good chance itwas too when Chan prevailed over World#64 Danny Heister, 17 in the 3rd. and Lo's

spinny long-pips -20,13,19 rubbed Keen thewrong way. But the Dutch manned the dikes,

worked their way up, stood tall, mindful thatthey were fighting for a 4th-place chance tosurvive and get to the quarter's via Transi-tional play. And in the aftermath of a 19-in-the-3rd fifth-match finish. it was Heister

who was high and Lo who was low.HavingjustbeatenEngland in theCom-

monwealth Games played prior to theWorld's, Hong Kong had a psychologicaladvantage over them? Or was it more some-thing physical? It was whispered even inSingapore that World#33 Carl Prean's kneeswere bad from having played on that rock-hard floor there. Now in China, where in an

aisleway just off the playing courts a guy ina white coat and a white surgeon's cap couldbe seen walkingconveniently by, Carl didn'twant to take injections, was treating hisknees with ice. Certainly his Altena

Bundesliga Club hoped he'dstay fit. After 10years in Germany and because his motherwas German. he had both an English and a

German passport and so could play in Ger-many as a domestic and not a foreigner.which greatly increased his League worth.

Another sufferer was England's AlanCooke, whose arm was still sore from

Singapore. Though Cookie had beaten Lo in

the semi's of the Commonwealth. he was

now playing the sure-match-for-England"C"position in this Hong Kong tie. So that leftsome up and comingEnglish 20-year-oldstotake on Chan and Lo, did it?

Uh. no. It left Chen Xinhua. the World

Cup winner 10 years ago when he was play-ing for China, and Des Douglas, "The Black

Flash." his up-at-the-table hand-speed stillso fast that. well. at least you could see the

shadow ofhisold self. Even without CaptainDenis Neale playing (an any time consid-

ered possibility?), the average age of thisteam was 33. Douglas, 11-time English Na-tional Champion, andonly acoupleofmonthsshy of 40, was still playing for the Groveteam, the best in England. buthe'donlybeensomewhat desperately called upon to play atthis World's when Matthew Syed, familiarto 777 readers as the '93 and '94 winner of

the U.S. Sears Invitational, opted to stay

back in England and take his Universityexams. (As one of his teammates said, "Hewants to be Prime Minister.")

Douglas had begun by giving his fast-hands best in the tie against Belgium, hadlost a 19-in-the-3rd match to World #35

Philippe Saive. Then with the help of thenow not so acrobatic Chen Xinhua, at one

time thehighestpaid playerin the Bundesliga,who has a spin-varying. sometimes high-bal] defense, and can swat forehands, Des

had won the day for England over the Neth-erlands. After Cooke's 25-23 loss in the 3rd

to Heister, and Chen's 17 in the 3rd stretch

win over Keen, Des. in the decisive 5th

match, held 21-18 strong in the 3rd againstGerard Bakker to give England their only

DR. MICHAEL SC4

A Born Romantic

by Tim BogganThere'* alw:ays a story ortwo totel

kept busy in Tianjin administering m<officials, he did find time to occupy hi

Remember, in '91, in Chiba City,

Nof "U.S.A.! U.S.A.!" which must have

win in their first six ties.

Afterwards, against winless HongKong, England got off to a bad start whenChan beat Douglas and Lo beat Chen, butthough the Brits battled back, Des could notwin the 5th match against Lo.

Hong Kong, then, though 1-5 going intothe last round of the Ist Stage, still had twooutside chances not to be relegated: if En-gland, with only one win and a loss to HongKong, would lose to Poland, also 1-5, thenEngland (1-6) would fall back out of the Top16: or. if Austria (who, regardless of theoutcome of this last tie, was locked into

finishing 5th) would obligingly lose to HongKong (elevating them to 2-6). then either

Poland or England. depending on who losttheir tie, would fall, 1-6, back.

But, as Poland seemed confident that

Austria. playing at the same time, would

beat Hong Kong to allow them. Poland, their7th place finish, they did not play eitherGrubba (who by now had left Tianjin?) grBlaszczyk. and so England had an easy 6-

game win over them and finished 6th with a2-6 record.

Against Austria Hong Kong foughtgamely to the end. In the first match the best

of the Austrian Chinese, World#25 Ding Yi,was the favorite over Lo (who every time I

saw him seemed to be playing a down-to-the-wirematch). But, though Loralliedfrom19-16 down in the 3rd to win 5 in a row and

keep the Hong Kong hopes alive, that wasthe Crown Colony's last hurrah.

Austria had started out strongly enough:after beating Poland, they at least battledBelgium, though in a losing cause. 36-year-oldDing Yi, who still moves penholder-fast.lost the 2nd at deuce to J-M Saive. After

which. 29-year-old Qian Qianli stoppedBelgian Bad Boy Thierry Cabrera. back nowafter (ask the court that's seen him play: this

big dude is scary) a year's suspension (saidsuspension thought to be too minimal afterhe'd later verbally beat up and knocked outof the Singles his Charleroi teammatePrimorac?). Qian then went on to extend the

#1 Singles seed Saive, losing 19, 23.But despite the good start, Austria then

dropped an early pivotal 3-2 match to theNetherlands, which as it turned out was the

4th place decider. Lefty looper Keen tookoutQian, HeisterDing; but the Yardo Stanek-coached Austrians struck back: Werner

Schlager over Bakker 21,18, and Ding overKeen in 3.The I-coulda-won-it-end? Heister

on top: -15,18,19.

Which leaves only the Belgium-Genmany tie to determine 2nd and 3rd place inthis B Group (with the advantage being thatthe 2nd place team in this or the A Groupwould be drawn into the quarter's so thatthey wouldn't have the possibility of meet-ing Sweden or China until the semi's).

Trying to compare the strengths of the

FT:

iufDr. Michael Scott. Although he was

ine and medical advice to players and:lfin other human-interest ways.

an, how Michael got a unified Korean

wn the startled attention ofthousands.

July/August 1995

cheerleader to lead a cheer for our U.S. Team? Well, here: at the Tianjin Stadium,during our Second Stage Men's Team tie against Turkey. Michael again couldn'tresist playing the spontaneous role of that mischievous, good-heated lei,rechaunhe so enjoys. On spotting 12 young Americans in the stands waving American f[ags(as it turned out they were going to school in Tianjin). Michael convinced somefriendly Chinese ushers to allow these students tocome down onto the flooroutsidethe playing court and close-up root for our Team.

Taking a cue from "CHINta! CHIN-a!" that was often ringing the Stadiumround, Michael 1-2-3 led his improvised chorus of 12 in several enthusiastic bursts

1

3 10,

WangTao (L)lost hisopeningmatch tc

*2<734 Jan-Ove Waldner, 19 in the 3rd, bui

two teams by their respective 3-0 losses toChina didn't seem to yield much. Against

Belgium, Wang Tao gave up a game toPhilippe Saive, and 19-year-old Kong

Linghui, whom someone called "The Chi-nese Waldner" because of his calmness and

control, lost one to Andras Podpinka -butneither Chinese player was everreally threat-ened.

Against Germany. Ding Song, China'sdefensive sensation-he plays with Friend-ship 802 on one side and Xu Shaofa 999 onthe other-gave up a game to Jorg Rosskopf,and Liu Guoliang, the penhold flipper whocan backhand loop with inverted orpips, lost

one to Steffen Fetzner. But only Ding wasever in danger. At 21-all in the Ist, Rosskopfserved into the net, then quickly looped oneoff. But, seemingly unaffected, he never

wavered, was never tentative in the 2nd

game, not even when Ding, down 19-13,scored again and again to move to 19-18.Good as Ding's returns were, Rosskopfsrocketing loops were better.

Surely observers are right when theysay that Rosskopf has the best backhand ofany German player ever. Because he thinksnothing of attacking serves. is indeed alwaysready ta attack (though who isn't nowadayswhen so many points are decided in the firstthi·ee balls?), it's been said of him that "he

often uses queer techniques and tactics thatborderon foolhardiness." But Zlatko Cor(las,

his Coach, told me that his #1 "is steadier

now, controls his strokes better." Still.

Rosskopf was not consistent enough to takeout Ding in the 3rd.

The Germans had gotten some verygood practice in Seoul with the South Kore-ans for a week before the World's started-

the young players there, they said, werefaster, and practiced more than the olderexperienced players. But perhaps playingpenhold opponents (or could the new gen-eration be diversifying?) was not the bestwa> to prepare to beat Belgium.

Fetzner, who'd lost 1.he German

National's to George Bohm after leading 1-0and 20-15 in the 2nd (Rosskopl-was injuredand didn't play). got to deuce in the Ist

against Belgium's J-M Saive, but that was asclose as he could get. However. Rosskopf. 8,

-20. 20 equalized. In another could-go-ei-they-way match. Podpinka. 21. -18. 15mitscored Peter Franz, who'd come back

sick from Korea. Perhaps. though, it wasmore than a little consolatior for Peter to

know that two of his upcoming-seasonBundesliga teammates at Ochenhausen(theyd alternate replacing Chen Xinhua)were Ma Wenge and Kong Linghui. (ChenXinhua, incidentally, did not play againstChina--said he "could not beat China and

could not stand to face his contemporarieson court.")

In the 4th match against J-M Saive.Rosskopf again tried hard to equalize, but 15.-18. -19 couldn't quitedo it. Someone saidhe

defeated Jorgen Persson in the 5th

match at 14 & 13. Ma Wenge (middle)

also lost to Waldner, 17 in 3rd, but also

beat Persson, 18 in 3rd. Ding Song (R)

won his only match in the Team Final,

against Peter Karisson. 14 & 11.Sitting

on the bench while these three played

were Kong Linghui & Liu Guoliang,who would later finish 1&2 in Men's

Singles.

was still weak on the forehand-that he

couldn't loop well from that side unless theball came out, and, further, that he didn't use

his superb backhand enough, that he ought tobe playing it from his forehand corner. Per-haps Cordas should be showing him someold tapes of Barna?Transitional Play:

Joining the six teams from Groups A

and B that had advanced to the quarter's andso theoretically still had a chance to win thetournament were Yugoslavia and Japan.

Yugoslavia advanced, first, by losingonly two matches in their 7-0 Group C win:Dimitry Abramenko of Kazakhstan beatAleksander Karakasevic (whose father,

Milivoj, a member of the '75 World runner-up Yugoslav team. once told me that he wasgoing to make sure that his sons playedtennis, not table tennis), and Chetan Baboor

of Indonesiabeat Zoran Kalinic (1983 World

Men'sDoubles Champ with Dragutin Surbekand 1994 European Men's Doubles Champ

with Calin Creanga).

Then, by downingsuccessively,Taipei,Denmark. and the Netherlands, all by 3-1scores, Yugoslavia reached the quarter's. Inthe official "List of Players,- Taipei, forthose who care about such political matters,was listed as "Taipei" (not "Chinese Taipei"as in the ITTF Directory) but was placedbetween"China" and"Columbia."How nec-

essary-to compromise and be compro-mised.

Against Taipei, the as yet undefeatedIlija Lupulesku (1987 World Men's Doublesrunner-up and 1988 Olympic Men's Doubles

runner-up with Primorac) won two turning-point matches he might have lost: against(1984 U.S. Open Champion) Wu Wen-Chia,

deuce in the 3rd, and against (the youngTaiwanese who at the 1994 World Cup inTaipei beat Peter Karlsson in 3 and forced J-M Saive into the 5th) Chiang Peng-Lung. -14,19,18. Had Lupulesku lost these matches,Taipei might well have been in the quarter's,not Yugoslavia.

Against Denmark Lupulesku won twoclose 19 games-and two niatches. Dittoagainst the Netherlands. Although he's not

yet finished with his mandatory one yearArmy service, and had to get special permis-

sion to play in these Championships, no onecould doubt thathere in Tianjin he served hiscountry well.

Japan, who'd finished#4intheAGroup,

©

R ; 8

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A

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backed into the quarter s by beating Croatia,conqueror of the U.S. 1994 Swedish Openrunner-up Primorac won as expected over

Shibutani, who in Japan plays for theKawasaki Steel Company: but thereafter,through the three 9th-16th placing ties tofollow, Primorac's Croat teammates would

have to play without him. But so what?Might as well give the other members of theTeam some much needed court time.

(Dragutin Surbek, Jr., Fl, and playing in hisfirst World's, could sure use some experi-ence.) After all, what, practically speakingfor the Manchester World's. did it matter if

Croatia finished 9th ar 16th-in any case.

they would be in a round robin that wouldgive them an edge. So Croatia, the team thatbeat us, finished with a 10-4 record (to our10-

1) and 16th overall (to our 25th).Of course the Croats did have to work

hard to win two Transitional Ties. AgainstSlovenia (Group G 3-2 winner over Indone-sia) Primorac won his two, but 5th-match-

finally it was up to Damir Atikovic whosome may care to remember had beaten

Cheng Yinghua in that first 18-in-the-3rdkey match with us. and who in the Singleswould 18-in-the-3rd fall to our own Khoa

Nguyen. And what did Damir do here? Losethefirst thenwinthenexttwo. 20,19. Against

Slovakia (Group E 3-2 winner over Turkey)Atikovic was still on fire, beat World #66

Tomas Janci-which made Primorac's fol-

low-up wins over Jaromir Truksa (19-in-the-3rd/5th-matchheroearlieroverBelarus) and

Janci that much easier.

Quarterfin(ItsThough of course there will be varying

degrees of competitiveness among the play-ers for precise finishing places in all Second

Stage Groups, I've only space here to con-tinue preoccupying mysel f with those teamsstill in contention for the gold, silver, andbronze medals.

Sweden (3)-Germany (1).Waldner (Nisse Sandberg's Stockholm

Angby Club) opened against Fetzner

(Bundesliga Berlin Club) and 19, 20 did justas much as he had ta do. Next time up,though, he showed he really was vulnerable

after all-he lost to Rosskopf, 19 in the 3rd.Rosskopf, whoplaysforthe DusseldorfClubwith Belarus' s Vladimir Samsonov, theman

who'd go on to beat him in the 8th's of the

Singles. may keep a poker face but he has

some nervous "tells," like running his handthrough his hair, or hitching his shirt up ordown over his left or right shoulder.

France (3)-Yugoslavia (1).

Lupulesku, after beating Chila for his12th straight win, finally lost to World Cupwinner Gatien, as did Kalinic. Slobodon

Grujic, '94 Bulgarian Open winner, theYugoslav #2 whose father was aplayerin the'50' s and i s now a National Coach. was

taken out by '95 English Open ChampionEloi. (Later in the Singles. he would lose toour Jim Butler in 5, and Jim would go on totake a game from ]995 European Top 12runner-up Erik Lindh. )Korea (3)-Belgium (2).

Philippe Saive looked to be the saviourof this tie when he won the opening match

gainst Kim Taek Soo. But olderbrother J-M

seemed to have a weight on his shoulders orsome other part of him and was -15. -12

draggin' before South Korean NationalChampion Yoo Nam Kyu's still fast foot-work and muscled-in winners. After

Podpinka's game -18, -23 try against LeeChul Seung, the European Champion was fitto be tied, was he? Anyway, against J-M itwas Kim's turn to become -13, -17 unglued.Korea 2-Belgium 2.

So now the ball was back in Philippe'scourt, along ofcourse with Yoo. After losingthe uncontested first game, Philippe per-sisted and resurrected what had seemed a

lost cause. Match all even. On into the (16-

15?...17-15?) beginning of the end game theybattled until-what do you think there wasto see? Apparently Yoo curved a ball into theside of the table ("A clear side" one fellow

said. "So low it could have hit a leg almost,"said another.) But the umpire on the opposite

side of the table looked inquiringly acrossthe way and raised a fist for Yoo.

This "Korean edge" infuriated the Bel-

gians. They demanded the Referee. Nevermind that he could rule only on a matter of

"Law" not"Fact." Fact? The Belgians wantedthe impartial spectators (of which surelythere were many?), the umpire, the Referee,even the Koreans to watch a re-play ontape....No one was interested? The more

infuriating.Sometime in all this eruption, Saive's

coach, was it? (Wang Dayong? DidierLeroy?) shoved the umpire-a no-no even

if, as I'd heard, the umpire first laid ahandon

the Belgian dissenter urging him to get thehell off the court. But so the Coach commit-

ted a no-no, it's not the ITTF but one's own

Association-or perhaps the Club of TableTennis Professionals (CTTP), of which J-M

Saive is the chief player-spokesman-thatreprimands, fines, or suspends a player. Andperhaps in this case Belgium was punishedenough. For after this mind-blowing inter-

ruption. Philippe Saive was 21-16 finished."If the Koreans want to win a medal that

much, Ill just give it to them," he suppos-

edly said-on court or later on to a knot ofChinese reporters.

Yes, the Saives were through-and so,

without them, in the last two ties againstJapan and Yugoslavia was Belgium. In sev-eral months the Belgians would be off toRome. Yep. we'd see them here. In. Rome,Georgia-to rehearse their part in ACOG'spre-Olympic Site-AcclimationProgram. Andwhy not? For Chance. always a factor evenin a game of skill, favors the have-to-be-

prepared-for-anything mind.China (3)-Japan (0).

Chinadidn't embarrass Japan, kept themin each match (though not as intensely comfy

as in the Singles World #29 Lin Zhigang,down 2-0 and at 23-al! in the 3rd with Koji

Matsushita, did). Against Ma Wenge who

around Christmas time had had an operationon his right shoulder, Iwasaku got to 22:against Liu Guoliang, Tamasu's KojiMatsushita, the only "professional player

in Japan, scored 20; and against Wang Tao,Shibutani, mixing attack and defense, won agame. Afterwards, against a Saiveless butstill feisty Belgium. shakehands chopper

Koji beat both Cabrera and Frederic Sonnet,

and quick hitter Toshio Tasaki, who'd haveWang Tao down 2-0 in the Singles, got the

better of Podpinka.Semifinals

Sweden (3)-France (1).Who cares that, according to some ob-

servers, the French don't show enough di-versity, that they all tend to play like Gatien?

Is that sobad? Against Sweden, whom they'dbeaten in the '94 European Championships,they went with their proven combination oflefties-Gatien. Chila, and Legout.

And they certainly seemed to know, atleast for a while, what they were doing.When Chila opened with a 19 in the 3rd win

over the 27-year-old European Masters Cup

runner-up Karlsson. who understandably out

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 17

there on court had been negatively shakinghis head, the little group of French support-ers, led by Gatien, Em, sang, if not theMarseillaise, something equally appropri-ate. The French are ready: bring on Gatien.fili, and Waldner!

In the first, from 17-15 down, Gatien

goes to 20-17 up. The French brass rallybehind him. Waldner wants to throw up?O.K., Gatien's eyes always follow the ball.But up 20-19. Gatien. receiving service. no-ticeably backs off-and makes an error. Andafter getting the ad. and along with it againan accompanying trumpeting roar. he makesanother error. At 21-all Waldner serves. im-

mediately follows with a forehand. misses.looks back at his team on the bench, and

shrugs. At 23-all he misses a killer loop. thenservesand aggressively follows...24-all. Butnow Gatien himself 3rd-ball wallops in awinner, then loops in Waldner's serve.

But. alas. for the French supporters theclimax has been reached tooearly. At6-all inthe 2nd. Gatien gets in a wild. off-balanceshot. You think such ashot whacky? In yearsgone by. players out of position like thatwould have been satisfied tojust try to returnthe ball, though of course even if the returnwere successful they would invariably justwatch heiplessly while the next one was putaway. On balance, Waldner is soon

outplaying Gatien, wins the 2nd easily. Inthe 3rd. Waldner, down 5-1, misses (halfdeliberately? self-deprecatingly?) a wind-up backhand, then talks to himself, as if tosay, "What the hell are you doing?" The onehalf of him seems to listen to theother. When

Waldner gets himself together. the Frenchhave nothing to cheer about: 7-all...16-all.Then Waldner pulls away. stretches out. andhis 20-17 ball goes in. France 1-Sweden 1.

And now Legout's one game againstPersson isnotenough. And Gatien's strugglewith Karlsson, in which the Frenchman has

the serve and 1-2-3 game points but fails towin. is ultimately fatal. At tie's end. every-one on the French and Swedish teams shake

hands as in a moving receiving line. Veryclubby. Very nice.China (3)-Korea (2).

With the China-Korea semi' s under-

way. Coach Cai Zhenhua. inwardly tensethough he might be. can take arms-foldedcomfort in the fact thatfinally. finally. WangTao is used to the venue. to the lights. Howlong it took him. eh? Those games he lost.Butnow....Tothe"CHIN-a! CHIN-a!"chant-

ing accompaniment of a white-T-shirtedgroupthat'sclapping andtlag-waving. Wangabsolutely destroys Yoo Nam Kyu

Next. Kim Taek Soo and Ma Wenge.They fight for table control. and along the

way play-in a succession of tracer-like,low skimming balls (somewhere in there tooMa floats back a long chop return)-maybethe greatest counter-killing point I' ve everseen. With games split. Kim, in red trunks,smells blood, is up 11-4...21-14. Shirt-drench-ingmatch to Korea.Tie: 1-1."CHIN-a! CHIN-a!"

There is, however. a conspicuous Ko-rean rooter in the stands. Though he' s bare-chested, a long-sleeved, billowy white shirt,vest-like. partially covers his torso; he hasgolden pom-pom balls. ornamental tufts, inhis hands and he's often lifting them highand shaking them vigorously; two Koreanflags stick out of his bandana. like long.gaunt ears. He's quite a cheerleading sight tosee and hear. appears in tact alittle deranged.But in adding color and vitality he comple-ments the play. and courts the audience to anenthusiasm. an imaginative interaction thatthe Sport so desperately needs. Not too sur-prisingly. I find out that in real life he's awell-known graphic artist.

-CHIN-a! CHIN-a!" The rhythmicdemand continues to ring out from all fourcorners of the Stadium world.

No chance for Lee Chul Seung againstKong (though the Korean 31-d could play-he'd have Karlsson down 2-0 in the Singles).China 2-Korea 1. A guy with a big red flag

goes running round the whole 10,000-seatlength of a balcony aisleway. The crowdgoes wild.

"Come On Skillful Ping Pong Play-ers"-that's what a high-up Arena bannerurges-and Yoo and Ma come out to obligethem. But with Yoo up 13-7 in the Ist. manyare wondering why China' s playing Ma in-stead of one of their young stars. But in the2nd Ma squares the match. The fast. angled-offattacks have the linejudges leaning back-wards. ln the 3rd, Ma leads 11-7. butthen Yoo

rallies, leads 14-13. Often balls are pitty-patted short until one or the other playermakes a topspin move. Ma's playing beforea home town audience. must feel the pres-sure. must want to respond, but themomentum's with Yoo. Down 20-17 match

point, Ma gets an edge. Hex not sorry. sticksup a finger. Yoo, up 20-19, serves and Ma.unfalteringly flip-return passes him on theforehand. But ' 'CHIN-a! CHIN-a!" not with-

standing. Yoo wins a long countering point.then closes out the match with an edge ball.

The audience is not silent for long.

Wang. off to a 4-1 start, looks like he has theeye ofthe sun. that much power. He heats upthe Stadium. His short serves and at-the-

table follows are devastating. and his off-

the-bounce backhand is ever at the ready tosnap into Yoo's far forehand should Yoo try

...BUT FINISH 25th!

1-9...BUT FINISH 20th!

U.S. MEN GO 10-1

U.S. WOMEN GO

What the Heck Happened?The System of Play For The 191by Tim Boggan

Since many readers are no doubt inter-

ested in the somewhat complicated system

of play for the Swaythling and Corbillon

Cup Team Ties that allow each individualTeam to be precisely ranked, let me briefly

illustrate the process and in so doing showhow our U.S. Men's Team could lose only

one Swaythling Cup tie in Tianjin and yet

finish 25th in the final standings, and howour U.S. Women's Team could win only

one Corbillon Cup tie in Tianjin and yetfinish 20th in the final standings. As you

will see. much of thi seeming paradox hasto do with our Women, but not our Men,

being initially grouped among the Top 16teams.

Although Im going to use by way ofexainple here.just the Men's teams. it shouldbe understood that the Women'% Corbillon

Cup ties followed the same system of play

(thoughthe numberol-W-omen'sTeams that

actually showed were 7] compared to 77 for

the Men, and though the Women's formatdiffered from the Men's in that. though bothneeded 3/5 matches a Lie to win, the Women

played: A vs. X, B vs. Y, a mandatoryDoubles match (that could involve, though

it almost never did, entirely new players),and, if need be, A vs. Y, B vs. X; while the

men played only Singles: A vs. X; B vs. Y;

C vs. Z; and, if need be, A vs. Y; B vs. X. (At

the next World's, the Women's 3/5 matches

a tie to win format, breaking with decades ofhistoric Corbillon Cup precedent, will bethe same as the Men's. That is, the Women

will not play Doubles either.)As of course was agreed upon before-

hand, the Top 16 ranked Men' s Teams fromthe 1993 World Championships were drawn,two at a time in order of ranking, into the1995 First Stage round robin competition.

The 8-team A Group was led by DefendingWorld Champion Sweden (#1) and includedSouth Korea (#5), France (#7). Japan (#8),Czech Republic (#10), Russia (#13), Italy(#15). and Romania (#16). The 8-team B

18 Table Tennis Today

Group was headed by home-court chal-lenger China (#2) and included Germany(#3), Belgium (#6), Austria (#9). Poland

(#11), England (#12), Hong Kong (#14), and,since the 1993 #4-ranked team. North Ko-

rea, didn't show, the 1993 #17-ranked team,the Netherlands.

Why, by the way, some may well wantto know. didn't the oft reclusive North Ko-

reans attend? (Not that their absence was

unexpected-they hadn't been participat-

ing in preparatory tournaments.) When

asked. a non-playing North Korean repre-

sentative reportedly said. "The players weretoo tired." (Oh? From practicing for their

own May Day-weekend festivities?) Ask a

too intimate and therefore absurd question

and get an appropriately absurd answer.One savvy explanation was that all North

Koreans were still in mourning torthe death

last year of their 'Father." Kim Ii-sung.But back to whath; been quite clearl>

established-the system of this 1995 World

Championship Team play.Because, in addition to the 8 elite teams

in Group A and the 8 in Group B, 72 other

Men' s teams wereentered (making 88 in all,

though fully 10% of them hadn't paid their

entry fees and weren't going to show), there

had to be eight more (9-team) round robinGroups. These consisted of Group C (led by

Yugoslavia who did not field a team in '93

but because of its strength was placed here);

Group D (Denmark. #18); Group E (Canada,

#19); Group F (USA, #20); Group G (Indo-

nesia, #21); Group H (Finland, #22), GroupJ, not the mysteriously missing I (Hungary,

#23), and Group K (Luxembourg. #24).

Theoretically, every team in the field

had a chance to win the Championship. To

be assured of staying in contention though.

a team had to finish in the Top 3 in the A

Group (as Sweden #1, France #2, and SouthKorea #3 did) or in the Top 3 in the B Group(as China #1, Belgium #2, and Germany #3

did). Those teams that were not originally in

Group A orGroup B (includingofcourse theU.S.) also hada chance to stay in contention,but their path of advancement was not easy.First, such contending teams had towintheir

9-team round robin C-J Group. Then theyhad to go on to play so-called Transitionalties: the winnerof C vs. K-Yugoslavia (K)beat Taipei (C)-had to play the winnerof Dvs. J-Denmark (D) beat Hungary (J); andthe winner of' E vs. H-Slovakia (H) beal

Belarus (E)-had to play the winnerof F vs.G -Croatia (G) beal Slovenia (F). The two

teams that would emerge from all this (Yu-

goslavia over Denmark and Croatia over

Slovakia) would now have to play one more

tie. would be drawn to face the 4th place

finishing team in Group A or Group B, and

the two winners (Yugoslavia over the Neth-

erlands and Japan over Croatia) would then

join the Top 3 from Group A and the Top 3

from Group B to make up the so-called

Group AA Second Stage.

On qualifying into these AA quarter' s.

each team. win or loxe. would play three

more ties. to determine not only the WorldChampion and runner-up. but the preciseorder of the Top 8 linishers. China beat

Japan. South Korea. and in the final Swedento finish Ist: Sweden beat Germany. then

France. to finish 2nd: South Korea beat

Belgium. then. after losing to China. beatFrance to linish 3rd: France. with its quarter' s

win over Yugoslavia, finished 4th; Ger-many rebounded from its quarter's loss to

Sweden by downing Yugoslavia and Japanand so came 5th; Japan, after its loss to

China, beat Belgium and so was 6th; andYugoslavia, after losing to France and Ger-many, also beat Belgium and so finished 7thto Belgium's 8th.

Group A and B teams that had origi-nally finished 5th, 6th, and 7th (Italy. Czech

Republic, and Romania; Austria, England,

and Poland) would be joined by the Nether-lands and Croatia, the two teams that almost

qualified for the AA quarter's (they lost thelast match of the Transitional ties), and, win

or lose, they would all play three more tiesin the so-called BB Group to determine the9th-16th places.

Thus in this system of play 14 of the 16top teams were guaranteed to stay in the

advantageous Group A and Group B roundrobins for the 1997 Manchester, EnglandWorld's.

The Group A and Group B teams that

originally finished 8th or last (Russia and

Hong Kong) were joined by the remaining

Group winners that had lost their first or

second Transitional tie (Taipei. Denmark.

Hungary, Belarus, Slovakia, and Slovenia),

and, win or lose. they would all play three

more ties in the CC Group to determine the

17th-24th pl aces.

Since the U.S. Men weren't originallyin either the elite A or B Group, they were

much more handicapped positionally than

the U.S. Women were. Because they lost

just a single tie iii their F Group-to the

Croatian team (headed by World #6 ZoranPrimorac)-and so, with a 7-1 record came

second, they were with the other second-

place Group C-K finishers vying in GroupDD for 25th-End place. and though theydidn't lose any of their three Second Stage

ties, the best they could do was 25th-which is where they finished.

The U.S. Women, on losing all 7 of

their original Group B round robin ties tofinish Kth orlast. fell into the CC (17th-24th )

Group. But because they won their first

Second Stage tie against Bulgaria. andont>

thal tie in their 3-tie quarter' s Group. the>finished 20th.

As toi-. 011. Catiada. who went into thi,

World'swith their Men ranked #19. they not

only lost World #13 Johnny Huang (for this

'94 Japan Grand Prix winnerhadjust signeda 3-year contract to play in a JapaneseLeague. a provision of which precluded himfrom playing in the '95 World's) but they

had to be satisfied with Joe Ng on hand as an

Assistant Coach rather than a player. So

they lost not only to favored Slovakia but toTurkey in Group E round robin play and

finally staggered in at #37.The Canadian Women, who were

ranked a lowly #34 at the last World's butwho now boasted two ex-Chinese stars

(Lijuan Geng Pintea, a former WorldWomen's and Mixed Doubles Champion,and Barbara Chiu), won 7 straight ties in

their original Group C and 3 more Transi-tional ties. Then (how much did it reallymatter if they were #th or 16th?), sure of

having advanced into the Top 16 at theManchester World's, they immediately con-

ceded their BB Group quarter's to Taipei bysitting out their Chinese stars. No doubt it

was politically correct to finally give theother two members of their Women's Team

a chance to play.

July/August 1995

to give him the run-around. Also. Wang notonly has intimidating loops and counter-loops-once the exchange came so fast 1 lostsight of the ball-but a great drop shot. Theoutcome is inevitable-Wang Taoover KimTaek Soo in straight games. That Wang willlater lose in the Singles to Kim only shows,some say. that (as somewhere unseen to my

eve. adrummerin the audienceaccompaniesthe "CHIN-a!" chants) Wang plays for hiscountry and not for himself.3rd Place:

Korea (3)-France (2).

Though both the 3rd and 4th Placeteams would receive identical bronze med-

als. Korea and France certainly put on a verycompetitive show with four of the fivematches going three games. After Kim TaekSoo has beaten Legout in straight games.

Yoo ties it up by losing the 1st at 19...then.

looking like "Do I really care?", by servingoff in the 3rd at 12. In the 3rd match. and bynow you'll notice that Gatien and Chila are

not playing, Nicolas Chatelain spoils Chu

Kyo Sung's 1lth hour Team debut by 21-7quickly running out the clock on him in the3rd.

At which point poor Mal Anderson,

who'susually on the tloor assessing umpiresbut who for this Medal Match is in an as-

signed Stadium seat. can't stand it another

second. Rather than suffer any more of thatnow unbearably close French horn-blowing

he leaves. says he'll watch the rest on TV.

Meanwhile, though China of course isn't

playing, a group of kids in white shirts andred ties want to have their "Chin-a, Chin-a"

faint voices heard.

After the horn-blowing dies, so gradu-ally does France's spirit. In the 4th match,

Eloi, who's known forhis emotional ups anddowns-he sometimes throws out his hands

to Fate, yells exultantly or slaps himself-looks victimized and loses to Kim. And in

the 5th Legout loses to Yoo.

Eiual:

China (3)-Sweden (2).

In the opening matchagainst Wang Tao, Waldnerwith a backhand flurry takes a3-() lead. At 7-all he loops inWang's serve. then 12-7...19-14breaks open the game. In the2nd. Wang gets off to an earlylead, holds it...10-5...15-

10....Once. though. when he

thinks he's won the point, hedoesn't bother to get back into Tianjin S]position for the unexpected Wall of Creturn. and on losing the pointsmiles sheepishly. Up 20-15

Wang seems to encourage Waldner to playan exhibition point: Wang drops. Waldnerlifts. but instead of putting the ball away

Wang swings easy and Waldner. as if indisgust. sideswipes his return into the net.Match all even. "CHIN-a! CHIN-a!"

In the 3rd, down 3-0. the Sw'ede loops inWang's serve; the world's in a hurry nowa-days: do it to him before he does it to you.

Sure enough. the Chinese immediatelyloopsin Waldner's return of serve. Each can do

what the other can, and they continue to

alternate points. Down 10-9, Wang makes apip of a shot-backhands Waldner's serve

in. The Swede wants to rise to the challenge,retaliate? When Wang serves, Waldner

swings and puts the ball into the bottom ofthe net. They exchange net winners...and it's

14-all. The Swede gets in apassing shot...and

Wang mishits: 16-14. The Chinese scores ona forehand...and Waldner pops up a serve

return: 16-all....18-17 Wang. "CHIN-a! CHIN-a!" Waldner serves: Wang loops into the

net....Down 19-18, Waldner serves: Wangmerely returns it and Waldner follows forthe point. At 19-all Waldner serves: Wang

tries to backhand it in, misses. Up 20-19

Waldnerserves: Wang pops it up. The Arena

is quiet enough for the question to be heard:

J[ce of the

iampionsifitil*ams

,, Liu Guoliang)

luoliang)

%33%.

Lme to try it!

IR:ti@R@FS

iyfr.· 940-085

I %

know said that though usually Ding servedshort. he could also serve long and some-times with slow spin or no spin. Often Dinginitially returned a heavy chop and ifKai-lsson. who's known not to be at his best

against choppers. looped that. Ding wouldtake thatlooped ball late and the spin comingback wouldn't be so readable Moreover,

continued this observer. Karlsson's fore-

hand is technically suspect: he doesn't havea good enough loop to Ding's backhand. Infact. Karlsson attacked too much with his

forehand; he should have looped more withhis backhand.

In the 4th match. against Waldner. Ma

quickly jumps off to an 114 lead, easily winsthe ist. What a smart move China made in

playing him! The 2nd game. however, is amirror reversal of the I st-Waldner. up 13-4,

wins easily. The points are just awful. Takeany 10 at random. as one fellow actually did,and they wouldn't average out to 3 seconds

apiece. One aficionado said that. though Mahabitually wins points with his forehand, he

didn't have the opportunity against Waldnerto hit his forehand that much. Waldner has

the instinct. like a good boxer quick withhand and eye, to anticipate when Ma is going

to step around. and so he can take advantage

of the opening. Rather than risk loss ofposition and the point, Ma plays more back-

hand against Waldner than he'd like to.

Play does pick up in the 3rd game,especially at the end where during one excit-ing point Ma is all over the court retrieving

and countering. But Waldner is just toostrong. If any one player is to give his team

confidence, surely it's Waldner. for he has

the ability to win when he has to. China 2-Sweden 2.

To Jorgen Persson the burly Wang Tao.

increasingly cheered on by ecstatic thou-sands ('CHIN-a! CHIN-a!") and flanked

off-court by at least 200 photographers, mayseem the fastest over-the-table player in theworld. He's a good blocker of course but,

forehand or backhand attack, his offrthe-

bounce hand speed is incredible. He beats

Persson very convincingly. then sinks to theArena floor, happy and tearful as his team-mates rush to embrace him.

One of the first questions a reporterasks Penson later is, "Did the highly parti-san Chinese crowd bother youT' "No." he

said "it's fun to play when the crowd'sintense." Undeniably though now, at this

long Teams-journey end. the only full isbeing had by theexuberant Chinese. They' rejoyfully tossing Cai Zhenhua into the air-

reminding him. I'm sure, that he himselfhadn't been a part of so much frenzied funsince '81,14 years ago. when China returnedwith a vengeance to win every event-all 7of the World Championships. Would any-one be surprised if, after having accomplished this win, Cai' s Imagination were onthe rise to think that perhaps....

1 '4340%1 T

(4 of 5 playeirs: Ma Wenge, Kong I..inghui,Wang Tae

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s Hall, the playing site, above; the Great i. right. 5

Does Waldner with the serve at the end

intimidate even the most experienced Chi-nese?

Next up: Persson vs. Ma Wenge-withthe U.S.'s Aly Salam as umpire. Forabegin-

ning moment my attention's on the wing: Iscareely know which player to watch. Mamay still have a little shoulder trouble-buthe looks very fit. Question is: Can he win? Atmid-game in the Ist there's some wonderfulcounter-driving. But then Persson nets twostraight serve returns and whiffs a third ! 14-:1 Ma. Persson fights back with a passingforehand and a beautiful backhand

placement....Up 19-16 Ma backhandsPersson's serve-off: then is caught wideopen on the forehand. Down 19-18 Pen;sonmisses what should have been a winner. In

the folksy contestthe English-speaking jour-nalists wete having, did someone choosethis point to be the turning point in the game,the match. the tie? But though he's down 20-18 Persson hasn-t lost the game yet. Indeednot. Ma backhand loops long, then tries toloop in Persson's serve. Deuce. And afterthe

Swede is partially pinned, caught trying toget offa cramped forehand. it' s deuce again.Finally, afterhaving had threechances togetthe one point he needs, Ma's the first-gameloser.

Swedish Coach Soren Ahlen couldn't

have been the only one who was "a little

surprised" that China had chosen Ma forthis

all-important lie. But later, Coach CaiZhenhua, when asked why he'd played Ma

after hisarm surgery and his two losses to theKoreans earlier, said."I wanted to strengthenthe Team's confidence."

Yeah? Well right now, after losing the

first match and that first game in the 2nd,Team China might not be too confident?

In the sudden echoing silence of the

Ma-Persson second game. with the Swede

up 9-5, the accelerating speed of either

player'shallcaroms back offhis opponent'sperfectly placed racket. To those who play

and those who watch, anticipation, courted,

rules, or ruins. the day. Quickly now. Marallies to 11-all ...Then it's 15-all. Up 16-15

Persson snaps a killer forehand; had it gonein. there'd bea different score-and a differ-

ent story to tell? For Ma goes on to win this

game 21-18. And from 6-all in the 3rd hebreaks away to an 11-6...14-8...20-16 lead.Persson is valiant to the 21-]8 end. but China

now has the tie all tied up.

The 3rd match? Karlssonvs. Ding Song.

It's soan apparent that defender Ding is aptto attack at any time: this is a chopper with avery clever offense."When the Chinese lose,

as they have for the last three World's. itmakes them more inventive"-that was a

line I heaid. Maybe Karisson heard it too. for

he's just not in the match.

Wang Dayong, the Belgian Coach and,

as a former Beijing Coach. mentor to theU.S.'s Wei Wang and Rong Li Lillieroos, islater to say after J-M Saive's humiliatingloss toDing in the Singlesthat "Ding's serveis hidden and very hard to judge." CertainlyKarisson cant always read it. and so can'treturn the one-ball forehands Ding sets upwith his serves. Someone who seemed to

€

1 July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 19

1

Photo by Mal Anderson ©1995

WOMEN'S TEAMSChina Beats South Korea 3-2

by Tim Boggan

Guess who won the Women's Teams?

Of the top 28 ranked women players inthe world, 14 are playing for The People' sRepublic of China and another seven areethnically Chinese. Twomore are from NorthKorea and didn' t participate here in Tianjin.The remaining five are European-two ofthem, the best at#14 and the worst at #27. are

fromonecountry. So. watch Romania? Yep,true to form they finished as the best Euro-pean team this year-World #4.

Of the top 50 ranked women players,38 are Asian-trained. "The European teamsare coming up fast." said China's HeadWomen's Coach Zhang Xielin after accept-ing still another World's Women's TeamTrophy-China has now won 10 of the last11 Corbillon Cup World Championships.The only team that beat them-in ChibaCity, Japan in '91. wa. an historically unique,combined North and South Korean team.

But none of the players on that team-including Hyun Jung Hwa, the only non-Chinese World Women' s Singles winnersince '79-are playing in Tianjin.

So who came second here?...South

Korea. Their top three players' world-rank-ing?-#39,#40, and#43.The South Koreanteam"made a surprise progress," said ZhangXielin. "Now they are at almost the samelevel withDeng [Yaping] andQiao(Hong),"said Chinese Coach Hua Zhengde. Almost

the same level? Really? Then why in theTeam final did they lose to China, 3-0 in 7

games? And why in the Singles did only two

not so onrushing Europeans and not a single

Korean make the last 16? Such polite non-sense from China Daily.

As it was with the men, so it was with the

women. (See elsewhere my article explain-

ing the system of play). The top 16 teams

were divided into two elite A and B Groups,

followed by Groups C through K (again no IGroup)-making, since there were 8 teamsentered in each Group (roughly 10% of whom

would not show), 80 teams in all.

Stage 1: Group A:In Group A, at the one extreme, China,

without giving up even a friendly match,was first with a 7-0 record.

At the other extreme, Slovakia was

0-7 (8th)-though they not only played agood match with the Netherlands but mid-

way through they came within a single gameof defeating a forever struggling Japan.

The Netherlands had gotten off to

an excellent start by upsetting the Roma-

nians, who wouldgoon to loseonly toChinaand so come 2nd in the Group. The always

intense Vriesekoop, now World #19, tookthe doubles with World #48 Hooman and

won both her singles over World #14 OtiliaBadescu and World #27 Emilia Ciosu-no

mean feat, forBadescu and Ciosu had playedan all-Romanian final in the most recent

European Top 12 tournament-with

Badescu, who plays in a Japanese league 60days a year, winning in 5.

But then the very next round what did

the Netherlands players do? And with thecooperation of all four of their private indi-

vidual coaches yet. They suffered acostly 3-

0 loss to the 1994 European Team Champi-ons, the Russians. Galina Melnik, who's

capable of ferocious screams (more in an-

guish than in triumph, I'm afraid), was allbubbly coming off court after her team'swin (she herself had upset Vriesekoop, re-ally upset Vriesekoopl. Turns out Melnik

herself plays in Holland and never expectedthis team victory. Perhaps the Netherlandsthought they wouldn't lose against theseRussian defenders either, for they played

20 Table Tennis Today

E

R

@

and Qiao Hong (background) continue tofinished 1-2 in singles, and won both

of these ties, win or lose, would go the fullfive matches.

Following their win over Sweden, Ja-pan played Romania and fell from the unde-feated. The tie comes down to the 5th

match-and point after point against de-fender Aoike, Ciosu, abandoning the hardlooping attack of which she' s capable, opts,in old tried and true fashion, for pushing andtop-spinning, pushing and top-spinning.Obviously she thinks she can score a patientwin this way. But down 18-16, Aoike pick-hits in a forehand. And then another. At 18-

all Ciosu misses a hanger Then misses

again. But from 20-18 game-point down sherallies to go ad up-then can't win it. In ageyser of exasperation she spins up not

expletives, not tears, but her racket. In the2nd game, however, she juggles her emo-tions and on balance wins easily. In the tie-

deciding 3rd, Ciosu begins by missing an

easy put-away, then too cutely drops an-

other set-up into the net, and, patience, pa-tience, hurries a forehand off. So Ciosi is

down 3-0...and up 10-3 ! You explain it.

Romania 3-Japan 2.

Japan rebounded though with a 3-2 win

over the Russians. It was a strange tie.World #61 Elena Timina had no problemwith tall teenager Fumie Kawano who toooften seemed to have a beaten look. This

was the first of only two ties Kawano would

play in singles, but surely the Japanesehopedher penhold attack might prevail against the

expected Russian defense. Then it was Sato'sturn to lose. She'd been a finalist in the last

Japanese National Championships to ChireKoyama, alias China' s ]987 World Cham-

pion He Zhili, traitorously ineligible to playin the Teams here. When World #38 Irina

Palina stubbornly prevailed over Sato deucein the 3rd, Russia looked like a

winner...perhaps in the very next doublesmatch? Granted Japan's Kawano and KeikoOkazaki were avery well prepared andquiteinseparable combination, still Russia's

Palina and Timina were '94 European

Women's Doubles runner-ups. But then theRussians just -11, -7; -18, -8: -13, -15 col-

lapsed ! What happened? Whatever, when

they went on to lose to Sweden 3-1, theythudded heavily into 6th place.

he most important tie remaining in

Group A (after Japan lost to the Netherlandsand finished4th) is between Sweden and the

Netherlands. If Sweden wins. they're 3rd,

safely in the quarter' s; if they lose, they're5th. If the Netherlands wins, they're 2nd,

China's Deng Yaping (hitting forehand);dominate women's table tennis. TheyWomen's Team and Women's Doubles.

World#76Emily Noor, their weakestplayer.when they might have played Hooman orGerdie Keen, runner-up in the'94 EuropeanChampionships. Interestingly, these samefour players-Vriesekoop, Hooman, Noor.and Keen-represented the Netherlands atthe '87 World's. Can China say that abouttheir teain?

Against France it was Vriesekoop' stwo singles wins and her doubles win withHooman thatcarriedthe day. Poor Hooman:she couldn't have felt too good about being9-0 down in the 3rd to World #202 SylviePlaisant. Oh, sorry, a mistake. Hooman wasreally playing World #119 Anne Boileau,though you couldn't tell by looking atBoileau's back...pinned to which was team-mate Sylvie's number. Of course that didn'tmake the loss any more Plaisant, oui?

France looked for a while like they

might get the better of Sweden. But they lost3-2 and, finishing 7th, only survived relega-

tion by beating Slovakia. A surprise in the

France-Swedentie was'94EuropeanChampMarieSvensson'stwolosses-firsttoBoileau

andthentoXiaomingWang-Drechou. Diane

Scholer, Secretary of the Swaythling Club,told me it was a "fact" that new mothers like

Wang-Drechou always played better whenthey came back after having a baby. But

maybe Marie just had a banana or two toomany? I'd heard that the health-consciousSwedes had started out with bunches of them

in their corner. World #45 Asa Svensson

contributed two singles wins fur Sweden in

this tie and paired with Marie Svensson to

take the doubles. You're wondering if theSvenssons are related? No. Osa, not Asa, is

Marie's sister. She plays too.

Earlier, the Swedes had opened shak-

ily-with a 3-2 loss to Japan. Two intensely

close matches had brought the teams to a 1-1 stand-off. Asa Svensson held20,20 strong

against Yumi Aoika (Ah-o-e-kay), a chop-per the Japanese wanted to use against Eu-

ropeans. But petite shakehander Rika Sato(Sahh-toe), World #55, outtasted Marie

Svensson 23-21 in the 3rd. Sato. whom I

believe is childless, is said ta play bettersince she gotmarried. Know why?...Becauseher husband, a former Chinese National, is

now her coach. The Japanese then won thekey doubles from the Swedes and split the

last two singles-Sato's 23-21 first gamewin in the 5th match over Asa Svensson

being more or less the decider.

Japan would play 8 ties, including oneTransitional one, to reach the quarter's. Six

and so spared the possibility of playingChina in the quarter's; if they lose. they're5th.

In their tie-opening match. MarieSvensson, up 1-0 on Hooman but down 20-19 in the 2nd, gives Sweden a shove in thewrong direction when she pushes her returnof serve offand loses that game and the next.

AgainstAsa Svensson. Vriesekoop. herhair threatening to go witch-wild but held inplace by a taut band. is up 19-18 in the ist butlails to return serve. "Don't be a coward!

Don't be paralyzed, play!" she might haveyelled-if such Europe #ls ever thought innegative"Don'ts." Svensson servesagain-and Vriesekoop flips in a winner. Down 20-19, Svensson serves again and. seeingVriesekoop's short. high return, leans tarover the table and socks it to Stockholm.

Deuce. Vriesekoop whiffs a backhand. thenfalls victim to a good drop shot but makesthe return and Svensson fails to score what

should have been the game point. Up 23-22,Vriesekoop again returns the Swede's servetoo helplessly high. At 23-all, Svenssontries to flip in Vriesekoop's serve, misses:but then Vriesekoop can't keep her servereturn in play. Finally the Swede serves andfollows with a mild loop that makes a point.

The "shot-making" here is so hit and miss as

they vie for control over the first three ballsthat whoever can keep the ball in play-

which, down 25-24, Vriesekoop can't do-

will win this game, this match. As

Vriesekoop falters, so does her team. She

and Hooman take 21-8 first game vengeance

in the doubles...but then are hopelessly

beaten 21-7 in the 3rd. And against MarieSvensson Vriesekoop againcan'tmake any-

thing happen when she has to-and losesthe 3rd at 10. So Sweden will have both its

Men's and Women's Teams in thequarter's.

Stage 1: Group B:In Group B, at the one extreme, South

Korea was 1st with a 7-0 record. At the other

extreme, behind the 7th place Lithuanians

(we were the only team they could beat) was

the USA, relegated, with an 0-7 record.(Their travails Ill discuss elsewhere.)

In the other Group, Group A, excite-ment as to which teams had a chance to

make the quarter' s peaked as the ties pro-

gressed. But here in Group B in two very

early ties-against Hungary and Germany-

Taipei was quickly knocked out of conten-

tion. When Taipei also lost, 3-0, to bothKorea and Hong Kong they finished 5th.

Importanttiesremainedfor Germany-

against Hong Kong, Hungary, and SouthKorea. They had to win at least one of these

if they wanted to move safely into thequarter's.

Hong Kong boasted two strong players

who were originally from the PRC. Some

stories I hear might be apocryphal, the factsa little mixed up-like the numbers on theshirts of players I've never seen before. Butfor me there's a reality in what I hear, what

I look at, and so I pass whatever truth I can

of it on to you. I'd heard that some years agoboth Chai Po Wa, who in the fall of'94 had

risen to World #3, and Beijing-born ChanTan Lui, 1991 World semifinalist, were

"rented" to Hong Kong with an unknown

date of entry so that they could immediately

start playing for the Hong Kong team-a

condition being that if they were to meetPRC players they were not allowed to win.

True story ornot, and one perhaps of interestonly to an innocent, it was now 1995 and

Hong Kong was not playing China in this orany other tie in this tournament. Hong Kongwas playing Germany-and free to 3-1 winthey obviously were.

Germany's tie with Hungary is key, for

presuming Germany loses to Korea, theteam who takes this tie will be (5-3) 3rd, and

the loser (4th) will be forced to play a

July/August 1995

Transition tie.

Germany's Struse, by opening with a16, 18 win over Park Hae Jung, and byteaming with Schall to win the 1st game ofthe doubles, tried her best to give Germanythe impetus it needed, but the follow-up justwasn't there. Park and Park had no trouble

with Schopp and chop.Undefeated Korea beat undefeated

Hong Kong in the climactic tie of this BGroup and so gained the strategic position inthe Draw opposite China.

Ryu Ji Hye, first off, is 15,13 routed byChai Po Wa who favors high-toss serves andforehand follows. change of pace blocks,and backhand thrusts into the corners. But

Chan Tan Lui can do no better against ParkKyung Ae. Tie: 1-1.

When Hong Kong's Chai and Chan,with theircome-close-to-winning World andWorld Cup doubles prowess, win the 1stgame from the Koreans but lose the match,it's again up to Chai to put her redheadband back on and see if she and her

racket can't find the rightcolorcombinationto outmaneuver fast-play, pips-out penholderPark Kyung Ae. Park's strategy is to warilyroll Chai's chop/block returns until she canget a ball to smash to her open forehand. Butshe has to be careful because Chai has a verygood forehand counter and if the ball Parkpicks isn't hit hard enough, beyond Chai'sreach, Park leaves herself open for a cross-court counter. In the end-game 3rd, Park is18-17 up. She fans herself with her racket, asif waving away any gnats or nots of badthoughts, then serves, swings, and misses.But Chai blocks badly, gives the point back.The Korean supporters chant encourage-ment, but Chai puts together a succession of

controlled placements that give her a well-deserved 19-all point. More chants. Andnow Park takes a very long time to serve,

and Chai pushes her return off. Park thenspots the ball on the table, adjusts herself,picks up the ball, serves-and Chai movesover, takes the ball on her forehand, and

loops off. Korea 3-Hong Kong 1.Transitional Play:

Joining the 6 teams from Groups A andB who theoretically still had achance to winthe tournament were Japan and Germany,both of whom backed into the quarter's-Japan by beating Canada, Germany by beat-ing Belgium.

Canada had advanced to its final play-off spot for the quarter's, first, by defeatingthe strong Yugoslav team, 3-2, to win its"C" Group. Li Geng Pintea, 1985 WorldWomen's Singlesrunner-up, and'85 WorldWomen's Doubles and '87 World Mixed

Doubles Champion had to go three to beatWorld #106 Fatima Isanovic of the histori-

cally famous Zagreb Mladost Club. ButWorld #44 Jasna Fazlic-Lupulesku, oncethe #1 European qualifier for the '88 Olym-pic Games but who often looks now like shedoesn't want to play at all, squared the tiewith a 3rd game win over (no Americannicknames on the official Players List,please) Xiaowen ("Barbara") Chen Chiu,1990 Canadian National Champion beforetemporarily retiring to have a child. Fortu-nately for Canada, '85 Pan-Am ChampsGeng and Chiu then survived a scary 21, -19,17 doubles match-else, after Geng's easywinoverFazlic-Lupulesku, World#86 Chiuwould likely have had a difficult time withthe Bosnian Isanovic, who later in the Singleswill be up 2-1 on Sweden's Asa Svensson.

Canada then 3-1 eased by Australia,though China emigrant Catherine KwokYing, another recent mother, was too goodfor Chiu. Against the Ukraine, Canada hadto 3-2 struggle. Though losing the doubles,19 in the 3rd, Geng beat both World #114Marina Kravchenko and World #82 Elena

Kovtun before, to Coach Mariann

Domonkos's delight, Chiu downedKravchenko for the win.

In the Canada-Japan tie for entry intothe quarter's, Geng, who'd just had a 9-pound baby boy, James Ross, in mid-Janu-ary, and who'd then stretched herself to bringhome to her tiny tot 1-2-3-4 eye-catchinggold medals from the Argentina Pan-AmGames in mid-March, played a suspenseful -15,19,19 match againstOkazaki, the Japanesewith the ceremonial serve. Okazaki's more

conventional weapons are a dead chop re-turned sometimes rather high, a shove block,and a hard-hit forehand. This combination

continued to give Geng lots of trouble. Butcould she lose from 20-14 in the 3rd?

Canada, weakening, can't hold on towin the games it needs. Chiu, who'd madethe '92 Olympics (by beating our InsookBhushan among others), played a trouble-some up-at-the-table block/shove defenseagainst Sato but was topped in the 2nd, 21-19.Then, when the Canadians lost the doubles,23 and 17, Geng's win over Sato wasn'tenough, for Barbara had already shown inthe doubles that she hadn't the slightest ideahow to read Okazaki's semaphoric hand-play and the often fast serve withthe you're-gonna-lose message that so flagged her spirit.

Belgium had advanced to its play-offspot for the quarter' s, first, by outlasting theCzech Republic to survive what must have

been the closest 3-2 tie of the whole tourna-

ment. Belgium's Cecile Ozer, World #115,opened with a 19-in-the-3rd victory overWorld #109 Renata Peluchova, then pairedwith World #126 Els Billen, "Jean-Mi"

Saive' s pretty blonde girl friend, to beatPeluchova and World #156 Hana Placha.

And finally, after World#79 Jana Dobesova,22-20 in the 3rd held off Ozer and all Bel-

gium, Billen rallied to down Peluchova in 3to give Belgium their Group "C" win.

Then they moved 3-0 through Israeland 3-1 over Armenia when, though Billenand Ozer lost the doubles, deuce in the 3rd,

to World #105 Anna Pogossian and World#144 Armine Makinian, Ozer bested both

Makinian and Pogossian in 3, and Billenscored over Pogossian 21 and 19.

Of course, despite these heroics, Bel-gium had no chance against Germany in theplay-off.Ouarterfinals:

China 3-Germany 0.Germany can't win a game, but Struse

fights-loses 23-21 in the 2nd to 1989 WorldChampion Qiao. Schopp drops two straightto 1991 World Champion Deng. And whenthe Chinese let up in the doubles, as theysurely do, there's quite a 4, 21 difference.Go, Struse/Schall!

Later Deng denied that there was anytruth to the rumor that she might go toGermany to play. "It's not necessary," shesaid, as if she'd never heard of Deutsche

marks. "My main rivals are in Asia."Romania 3-Hungary 0.

Once the Romanians win their 18-in-

the-3rd matches-Ciosu over Batorfi and

Badescu over Toth-the lefty/rightyshakehands Hungarian duo, who'11 go on to

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Table Tennis Today 21

be bronze medalists in the Women's

Doubles, seem a little sluggish, a little slow,to stretch for the doubles win here.

Hong Kong 3-Japan 0."Japan-China cooperation is vital" read

a headline in China Daily. But to the fans inthe stands what kind of 7-game collapse ofcooperation is this? Well, Hong Kong isn'tChina yet. Individually, Okazaki and Satoin areplay of the Women's Team semi's inthe '94 Hiroshima Asian Games, still have

no clue how to beat Cha and Chan?

Korea 3--Sweden 1.

Great. No three straight here. At leastnot until after the first match. Asa Svensson

continued to play the tournament of her life,and her 20, 17 win may suggest that Ryu JiHye needs more than just a little improve-ment before she's a match for China's Gengor Qiao? Marie Svensson, though, who'11soon be abronzemedalist with Erik Lindh in

the Mixed, can't beat Park Kyung Ae evenwith a game spot-she and her teammatesgo spinning spirally down: 12,11; 9,13; 17,9.

Perhaps it's just as well that the TV

coverage didn't include these anticlimacticties?

I must say, however. that the Swedes

did go on to beat Japan and Germany and sofinish their best ever 5th. Credit for this

should go in part to the Swedish Association

who finally allowed Women' s Coach Ulf"Ticken" Carlsson, 1985 World Men's

Doubles Champion with Mikael Appelgren,

to work full time on improving the women's

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COACHING BY DANA JEFFRIESUSATT Certified National Coach

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play.Becarefulnow, you Swedes, youdon't

loseCarlsson to Tourpros Helen Alfredssonand Liselotte Neumann. Ticken's quite agolfer, you know-thoughhereinthe Stateslast year on a little vacation with The Apple,the two of them weren't allowed to playAmold Palmer's Bay Hillcourseuntil they'dgone into the Pro Shop and shed their T-shirts for something permissible to play the$160 round in.

Semifinals

China 3-Romania 1.

Chinese Coach Zhang Xielintold ChinaDai 13 rather poetically that "Today's Euro-pean men players will be the tomorrow oftheir women counterparts." That is, "theEuropean women are changing their waysof playing to the man-like style withdanger-ous drives and loops." Perhaps to see Ciosu,who can snap the ball in hard from any-where, and who on missing a winner shebadly needs is capable of cutting an arc intothe unoffending air with the best of them, isto realize that the European women aregetting better, feistier. How else explainCiosu beginning this most-seriously-takentie with a 14, 20 win over World #2 Qiao

Hong?"CHIN-a! CHIN-a!" Badescu tries but

can only extend Deng to 19 in the 2nd.After which, China decides to stop the

nonsense-wins the doubles 14 and 7 and

the remaining singles, Deng over Ciosu, 4and 9. Coach Zhang also said that the skills

of the Europeans "will surely count in thefuture though they are still immature atpresent."Korea 3-Hong Kong 0.

There was some speculation that the

Hong Kong Chinese might not really want

to beat the Koreans and have to play Chinain the final. With China's 1987 WorldCham-

pion He Zhili branded atraitor forbecoming

Chire Koyama of Japan, the argument was

that the Hong Kong players might not want

to risk subjecting themselves to any jingois-

tic targeting. Butsurely mitigatingthattheory

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was the fact that both in Tianj in in the AsianChampionships last September and inHiroshima in the Asian Games in October

China and Hong Kong played in theWomen's Team final, with China winning3-2 and 3-1.

Certainly it would appear that in thesemi's Hong Kong tried their best againstthis new generation of Korean players.

Park Kyung Ae began by beating ChanTan Lui in straight games-something shecouldn't do six months ago in the AsianGames when she lost to her 21-12 in the 3rd,

Park Hae Jung then took down ChaiPo Wa, 9 in the 3rd. Down 18-17 in the 1st,

Chai' s bent over the table, thrusting back-hand to backhand, then abruptly angles theball over to Park's forehand-a no-no, for

Park isn't caught off guard at all and socksit soulfully in. Then 21-18 finishes the game.A bouncy band plays and Korean flagsjumpbig time. Chai has very fast hands-occa-

sionally she'll nervously bring one to herlips, as if she' s hiding something, a littlecough perhaps, but mostly she keeps themmoving, blocking or hitting. But if a ball

doesn't come to her forehand, if Park's got

her predictably defending, she's likely to

lose the point. Still, her anticipation's so

good that many of the balls Park cracks inkeepcomingback, aresometimesevencoun-

tered by this bat of hers that has something

of a hard rubber sound to it. Up 16-13 in the

2nd, Chai serves off, and then, pressured,

her blocks get a little higher...and it's 19-all.

Park attacks, but each of her two good

forehands are countered, and Chai goes up20-19. Then she serves and follows for the

game. As for the match, though, Chai, down11-2 in the 3rd, will not be able to contest it.

In Hiroshima, Park Hae Jung and Ryu

Ji Hye had lost to Deng and Qaio 22 and 19;here they beat Chai and Chan 22, 21. Whichmakes them all about even, does it?

3rd Place:

China Daily, not daily but on this day,

said that Hong Kong

played "well below their best." And a

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Hong Kong Coach reported that his twoplayers were just "too mentally and physi-cally exhausted to raise their game in thesemi's." Hong Kong was the only Top 16team to use just two players in their ties-something at the next World's, when theWomen's format is brought into alignmentwith the Men's, that teams won't be able to

do. But the Hong Kong players did manageto recover enough to beat Romania for 3rdPlace when World #68 Adriana Simion-

Nastase, who'd be winless in this tie, re-

placed Badescu in the singles.Final:

China 3-Korea 0

Qiao Hong opens to cheers, but her

points with Park Kyung Ae are horrible. Asthe big View-Graph screen above so clearlyshows, the players don't want to keep theball in play. This is no exhibition. At 17-allPark gets two point-winning forehands in,and Qiao misses an easy put-away. Up 20-

17, Park loses a good exchange, then misses

a forehand, then serves...and Qiao tops the

ball long. Korean flags wave happily toPark. Elsewhere in the stands a Chinese

fellow in a red headband conducts a chorus

of flags and cheers.

In the 2nd game there's a mild dispute,a need for tolerance. Did the ball hit or not?

The Hong Kong woman umpire (all the

umpires for this match are women) awards

the point to China, and this seems to break

Park' s concentration. Can she get it back?

Qiao immediately loses 5 in a row. Nowwhat? Qiao wins 5 in a row. As Qiao's lead

stretches to 19-10 the electric scoreboard

seems puzzled, reacts chaotically.

One game each-the scoreboard's

fixed. How about turning on the air-condi-

tioning? For a while the points are better-though one-sided. Afterscoring on twopass-ing shots, forehand and backhand, Qiao is

up 17-9. Atmatch's 21-12 end, someone in ananimal suit-he?...she?...suggests the Yearof the Dog?...ahot dog?...saucily parades allaround the length of the upstairs aisle way.

Against Park Hae Jung, Deng Yaping,who will win the Joola Trophy and the 5,000Deutsche marks for her perfect 10-0 Teamrecord, breaks away, as if from an 8-all drumroll to action. Park, down 13-11, shadow-

strokes in preparation forDeng' s serve, thenmishits it. A whistle blows from the gallery,but...17-14...20-14...play doesn't stop. China2-Korea 0.

Girls in red hats and short white skirts,

waving pom-poms, join the Dog in march-ingroundthe Stadium's upperreaches. Soonthey all come over to the Korean section andmix in mock rivalry. The doubles? China: 3-0,4-0,5-0. After twice serving into the net,China leads 17-12, confidently wins the 1st.The 2nd game is 13-12 close until China, up17-12 again, threatens deja vu. Now, how-ever, the Koreans do play well and are at 19-all. At which point, China serves, once,twice, and Korea fails to return either serve.China 3-Korea 0.

I' d heard it said that the upcominggeneration of South Korean players are stron-ger than the young Chinese players waitingto be made light of in the shadowy wings of

history. Do you believe that? lt's been 22years since a South Korean Women's Teambeat China in a World Championship. Doyou think such a win will happen again...inManchester?

What's that? You can't understand the

Chinese? Can't understand what they

say?...Well," said one wit, "wait till youhear the English in Manchester."

Meanwhile, here in Tianjin, all the Chi-nese newsmen-the photographers, the re-porters-surround Coach Zhang Xielin, snap

photos of him from every conceivable angle,thrust tape recorders and writing pads at himso as to take note of every word he says.

.lulv/August 1995

1995 WORLD CHAMPION-

SHIPS RESULTSMEN'S SINGLES-Final: Kong Linghui d. Liu

Guoliang, -17,16.-15,14,10; SF: Kong d. Ding Song,12,18,18; Liu d. Wang Tao, - 17,15,18,16; QF: Dingd. Lucian Blaszczyk 13.10,16; Kong Linghuid. PeterKarlsson, 18,-23,11.11: Liu d. Vladimir Samsonov,

18.18,18 : Kim d. Wang Tao 18.16,1 8 C Wang advancesupon Kim disqualification), 8ths: Ding d. Jorgen

Persson, 13.-18.-17.23.18: Blaszczyk d. Ma Wenge.18,15.16; Karlsson d. Peter Franz 17, 19.16; Kong d.Jean-Philippe Gatien. 18.-18,10.-17,8. Liu d. Jan-

Ove Waldner. 17.20,-16,-17.19: Sanisonov d. JorgRosskopf, 20.-15,-15,13,16; Kimd. Wang Yonggang,

16.-19.-16,18,9: Wang Taod. Ding Yi, 6,11 ,17; 16ths:Ding d. Jean-Michel Saive, 17,17.1 ]; Persson d. C.

Creanga, 21.12,9, Blaszczyk d. Fen Zhe, -13,19,17,21;Ma d. Carl Prean, -11,18.14,11; Franz d. Shibutani

Hit-oshi, 14,-9,19,18, Kai-Isson d. Desmond Douglas,12,19.11; Kong d. Yang Min, 14.15,15: Gatien d.Mikael Appelgren, 15,12,9, Waldner d. IljiaLupuleskii, 16.15.181iu d. Patrick Chila, 17,10,19;

Satnsonov d. Chen Xinhua, 9,17,14: Rosskopfd. LinZhigang, 17,-17,17.15: Kim d. Erik Lindh. 17,-

12,19,19, Wang Yonggang d. Petra Korbel, 16.19,17:

Ding d. K. Nemeth, 22,16,19; Wang Tao d. Damien

Eloi, 14,-20,8,-12,12; 32nds: J. Saive d. T. Keen,

14.9,13;Ding d. Claudio Kano(BRA),5.6,12; Creangad. Euan Walker, 15,20,14, Persson d. Steffen Fetzner.

13,-12,19,-19,18; Fen d. Christophe Legout. -18,10,10,18; Blaszczykd. Cheng Yinghua, 14,17,22.Prean d. Qian Qian]L 17,-16,-17,15,8; Ma d. A.

Karakesevic,-18,16,19,17, Franz d. Thierry Cabrera,18,11,11; Shibutani d. Zoran Kalinic, 15,9,17; Dou-

glas d. V. Dvorak. -18,18,18,14; Karisson d. N.Chatelain, 14,19,6; Kong d. A. Bentsen, 13,13,20;

Yang Min d. D. Mazunov. 14,-17,10,9; Appelgren d.J. Truksa, 17,15.11; Gatien d. Chan Kong Wah, -22,-14,9.8,10; Waldnerd. V. Florea, 16.15,15; Lupuleskud. Philippe Saive, 19.14.18; Chila d. D. Cioca, -5,15,15,-17,13; Liu d. P. Skierski, 11,11,14; Chen

Xinhua d. R. Vyborny. 19,-20,18,17; Samsonov d. T.Janci. 17,17,9: Lin Zhigang d. Matsushita Koji, -17,-12,23,16,14; Rosskopfd. A. Mazunov, -23,18,14,11:Kim Taek Soo d. M. Costantini, 49,-19,22.10,19;

Lindh d. Jim Butler. -17,7,10,10; Korbel d. HugoHoyama, 7,19,17; Wang Yonggang d. A. Smirnov,7,16,-21,16; Nemeth d. M. Shmyrev, 17,14,19; DingYi d. D. Gustafsson, - 1 9,20,16,16; Eloid. A. Podpinka,-19,19,14,-22,7; Wang Taod. P. Valasti, 14,7,14.WOMEN'SSINGLES-Final: Deng Yapingd. QiaoHong, -14,17,17,-14,14, SF: Deng d. Liu Wei, 12,-14,17.19; QiaoHongd.Qiao Yunping, 21,17.14; QF:Deng d. Geng Lijuan. 12,13,10, Liu Wei d, WangNan, 6,16,15: Qiao Yunping d. Tang Fei Ming, 13,-19,18.9; Qiao Hong d. Chen Jing, 12,12,16; Sths:Deng d. Zhu Fang, 18,13.19: Geng d. Chen Zihe,16,8,12: Liu Wei d. Jie Schopp, -8,7,9,15, Wang Nand. Xu Jing. 47.12,-19,9,17: Tang d. Nicole Struse,19,16,-20,-21,22; Qiao Yunping d. Csilla Batorfi,8,20,12; Chen Jingd. Yang Ying,-14.14,18,16:QiaoHong d. Chan Tan Lui, 13,19,7; 16ths: Deng d. F.Abbate-Bulatova, 18,14,12; Zhu d. Bettine

Vriesekoop, 19,-12,21,18; Gengd. Tu Youg, 7,18,17;Chen Zihe d. Emilia Ciosu, 13,20,13; Liu d. Asa

Svensson, 8,14,8; Jie Schopp d. Sato Rika. -15,22,20,17; Wang Nan d. K. Toth, 15.-12,19,18; Xud. Chai Po Wa, -17,19,14,14; Tang d. V. Popova, -17,16,14,11; Struse d. Li Ju, -18,-15,20.12,17; QiaoYunping d. Badescu, 17,17,9, Batorfi d. G, Melnik,17,19,10; Chen d. Amy Feng , -18,8,18.13; YangYing d. A. Ansi, 13,11,10; Chan d. Z. Poliackova,13,12,11 ; Qiao Hong d. Ryu Ji Hye, 20,19,11 ; 32nds·Deng d. V. Pavlovich, 9,10,5, Abbate-Bulatova d.Okazaki Keiko, 16,-17,20,10, Zhu d. P. Fichtinger, -19,-19,16,17,15; Vriesekoop d. S. Horsch, 17,8,15.Geng Lijuan d. C. Kwok, 14,7,13: Tu d. Wan ShukKwan, -21,11,-17,18,11; E. Ciosu d. Kravchenko,14,-17,16,12; Chen Zihed. V. Ello, 4,-20,10,19; LiuWei d. H. Placha, 10,5,-14,14, A. Svensson d. Kim

Boon Sik, 21,-17,18,11: Sato Rika d. Zhang Ling.,9.9,14; Schopp d. Lily Yip. 14,19.14; Toth d. JingJunhong, 18,17.15:Wang Nand. P. Frelih,-7,14,15,16.Xu Jing d. D. Zerdila, 8,11,5; Chai Po Wa d. A.Simion-Natase, 7,18,25: Tang Fei Ming d. WangChen. -20.13,22,20; Popova d. X. Wang-Drechou,-15,16,9,7. Li Ju d. M. Hubert, 12,4,15: Struse d. M

Hooman, -15,13,19,16; Badescu d. T. Kostromina,

15,15,16,15: Qiao Yunping d. S. Bachtina, 13,17,11,16; Batorfi d. J. Dobesova, 18,14,-17,15: Chen

Jing d. V. Paviovich, I 2,12,12; Feng d. MarieSvensson, 20,16.-15,14: Arisi d. M. S teff, -

16,10,10,18; Yang Ying d. Ni Xialian, 13,19,22.Chan Tan Lui d. K. Albustin, 14,14,2; Poliackovad.

G. Keen, 16,18,20. Ryu Ji Hye d. Aoike Yumi,15.15,14; Deng d. R.P. Dipoyanti. 1 1.18,4.

MEN'S DOUBLES-Final: Wang Tao/Lu Lin d.Zoran Primorac/Vladimir Samsonov. -18.15,14,17;

SF: Wang/Lu d. Liu Guoliang/Lin Zhigang, -10,14,-

14,14,13;Primorac/Samsonovd. Jean-Phillip Gatien/Damon Eloi, -17,15,15,17; QF: Wang/Lu d. Peter

Karlsson/Mikael Appelgren, 13,18,10:Liu/Lind. Jean-Michel Saive/Philippe Saive, 11,10,10; Gatien/Eloid. Jan-Ove Waldner/Jorgen Persson, 23,-15,18,16.Primorac/Samsonov d. Shibutani Hiroshi/Matsushita

Koji, 22,13,-19,17.WOMEN'S DOUBLES-Final: Deng Yaping/Qiao

Hong d. Liu Wei/Qiao Yunping. 19,17.-17,19: SF:Deng/Qiao d. Wang Chen/Wu Na, -14,-20,11,18,9.Liu/Qiao d. Csilla Batorfi/K. Toth, -18,17.19,16: QF:Liu/Qiao d. I. Palina/E. Timina, 13,10,12; BatorfUToth d. Chen Zihe/Sato Rika, 16.-13.19.17; Wang/

Wud. Chai Po Wa/Chan Tan Lui, 18.16,6. Deng/Qiaod. Park Hae Jung/Ryu Ji Hye, 20,17,19.

MIXED DOUBLES-Final: Wang Tao/Liu Wei d.Kong Linghui/Deng Yaping, 22,18,9; SF: Wang/Liud. Erik Lindh/Marie Svensson, 13,-23.9,8, Kong/

Deng d. Lee Chii I Seting/Ryu JiHye, 18,18,-16,7: QFWang/Tao d. Peter Franz/Nicole Struse, 8,13,11;Lindh/Svensson d. Matsushita Yuji/Ono Tomoko.14,13,-19,14: Lee/Ryu d. Calin Creanga/Otilia

Badescu, -17,14,-23,16,13: Kong/Deng d. LinZhigang/Yang Ying, 10,18.-19.20.MEN'S TEAMS

Final

China d. Sweden, 3-2: Jan-Ove Waldner (SWE) d.

Wang Tao (CHN), 16,-15,19; Ma Wenge (CHN) d.Jorgen Persson (SWE), -22,18,18: Ding Song (CHN)d. Peter Karlsson (SWE), 14.11: Waldner d. Ma

Wenge, -13,12,17; Wang d. Pei·sson, 14.13.Semifinals:

China d. Korea, 3-2: Wang Tao (CHN) d. Yoo Nam

Kyu (KOR), 17,9; Kim Taek Soo (KOR) d. MaWenge (CHN), 18,- 12,15; Kong Linghui (CHN) d.Lee Chul Seung (KOR), 18,18; Yood. Ma, 12,-16,20;Wang d. Kim, 14,18.Sweden d. France, 3-1: Patrick Chila (FRA) d. PeterKarlsson (SWE), - I 3,16,19; Jan-Ove Waldner(SWE)

d. Jean-Phillipe Gatien (FRA), -24,15,17; JorgenPersson (SWE) d. Christophe Legout (FRA), 15,-17,17; Karlsson d. Gatien. 22,16.

Ouarterfinals

Chinad. Japan, 3-0: Liu Guoliang (CHN) d. IwasakiKiyonobu (JPN), 22,16; Ma Wenge (CHN) d.Matsushita Koji (JPN), 20.13; Wang Tao (CHN) d.Shibutani Hiroshi UPN), 16,-15,18.Sweden d. Germany, 3-2: Jan-Ove Waldner (SWE)d. Steffan Fetzner, 19,20; Jorg Rosskopf (GER) d.Jorgen Persson (SWE), 18,18; Peter Karlsson (SWE)d. PeterFranz (GER), 13,-13,16; Rosskopfd. Waldner,-16,15,19; Persson d. Fetiner, 19,-16,13.

Franced. Yugoslavia,3-1: Ihia Lupulesku(YUG)d.Patrick Chila (FRA), 17,15; Jean-Phillipe Gatien(FRA) d. Zoran Kalinic (YUG), 14,14; Damien Eloi

(FRA) d. Slobodan Grujic (YUG). 11,-17,17; Gatiend. Lupulesku. 15.17.

Korea d. Belgium, 3-2: Phillipe Saive (BEL) d. KimTaek Soo(KOR), 13,-14,16; Yoo Nam Kyu (KOR)d.Jean-Michel Saive (BEL), 15,12; Lee Chul Seung

(KOR) d. Andreas Podpinka(BEL), 18,23; J, Saived.Kim, 13,17; Yood. P. Saive, 13,-22,16.

Plavoffs for 3-4:

Korea d. France, 3-2.

Playoffs for 5-8:

Germany d. Yugoslavia, 3-0; Japan d. Belgium 3-2.5th-6th: Germany d. Japan, 3-1.7th-8th: Yugoslavia d. Belgium. 3-1.Final Men's Team Standings:1. China 2. Sweden 3. Korea 4. France 5. Germany 6Japan 7. Yugoslavia 8. Belgium 9. Austria 10. Italy11. Czech Republic 12. Poland 13. England 14. Neth-erlands 15.Romania 16. Croatia 17. Taipei 18.Belarus19. Russia 20. Hong Kong 21. Hungary 22. Denmark23. Slovakia24. Slovenia25. United States26. Ukraine

27. Turkey 28. Nigeria 29. Indonesia 30. Brazil 31.Norway 32. Greece 33. India 34. Spain 35. Finland 36.Estonia 37. Canada 38. New Zealand 39. Luxem-

bourg 40. Jamaica 41. Kazakhstan 42. Bulgaria 43.Suriname 44. MAS 45. Egypt 46. BIH 47. IRI 48.Wales 49. Australia 50. Lithuania 51. Portugal 52.KSA 53. Ireland 54. Latvia 55. Pakistan 56. Sri Lanka

57. Argentina 58. Qatar 59. Singapore 60. Scotland61. Kuwait 62. United Arab Emirates 63. Uzbekistan

64. Mexic065. Macedonia67. Jordan 68. Ecuador69.

Cyprus 70. Laos 71. Panama 72. Nepal 73. Mongolia74. Turkmenistan 75. Tahiti 76. Seychelles 77. MaltaWOMEN'S TEAMS

Final

China d. Korea. 3-0: Qiao Hong (CHN) d. ParkKyung Ae (KOR), - 19,14, 12, Deng Yaping (CHN) d.Park Hae Jung (KOR), 16.16: Deng/Qiao (CHN) d.Park/Ryu (KOR), 19,18.Semifinals

China d. Romania, 3- 1: E. Ciosil (ROM) d. QiaoHong (CHN), 14.20; Deng Yaping (CHN) d. OtiliaBadescu (ROM),14,19: Deng/Qiao (CHN) d. BadescidCiosu, 14,7, Deng d. Ciosit, 4,9.

Korea d. Hong Kong, 3-0: Park Kyung Ae (KOR) d.Chan Tan Lui(HKG), 18,18;Park Hae Jung(KOR)d.Chai Po Wa (HKG), 18.-19,9, Park/Park (KOil) d.Chai/Chan (HKG), 22,21.Ouarterfinals

China d. Germany, 3-0: Qiao Hong (CHN) d. N.Struse, 13,21; Deng Yaping (CHN) d. Schopp Jie(GER), 11,18, Deng/Qiao (CHN) d. Struse/Schall(GER). 4,20.

Romania d. Hungary, 3-0: Emilia Ciosu (ROM) d.Csilla Batroti (HUN), 14,-13,18; Otilia Badescu

(ROM) d. K. Toth(HUN), 17,-13.18: Ciosu/Badescu

(ROM) d. Batorti/Toth CHUN). 18,14.

Hong Kong d. Japan, 3-0: Chai Po Wa (HKG) d.Okazaki Keiko (JPN), 11,15; Chan Tan Lui (HKG) d.Sato Rika(JPN), 13,14, Chai/Chan (HKG) d. Kawano

Fumie/Ok:zaki (JPN), -18.18,11.

Korea d. Sweden, 3-1: Asa Svensson (SWE) d. RyuJi Hye (KOR). 20,17; Park Kyung Ae (KOR) d. MarieSvensson (SWE), -17,12,1 1, Park/Ryu (KOR) d.

Svensson/Svensson (SWE), 9,13; Ryu d.M. Svensson,17,9.

Plavoffs for 3-4:

Hong Kong d. Romania, 3-2.Playoffs for 5-8:

Germany d. Hungary, 3-1: Sweden d. Japan, 3-1.

5th-6th: Sweden d. Hungary. 3-0.

7th-8th: Hungary d. Japan, 3-1.Final Women's Team Standines:

1. China 2. Korea 3. Hong Kong 4. Romania 5.

Sweden 6. Germany 7. Hungary 8. Japan 9. Russia 10.

England 11. Netherlands 12. Taipei 13. France 14.Belgium 15. Lithuania !6. Canda 17. Ukraine 18.Italy 19. Slovakia 20. USA 21. Bulgaria 22. Armenia23. Australia 24. Israel 25. Yugoslavia 26. Belarus 27.Croatia 28. Finland 29. Czech Republic 30. Nigeria31. Austria 32. Luxumbourg 33. Slovakia 34. Poland35. Indonesia 36. Brazil 37. Greece 38. Denmark 39.

Spain 40. Malaysia 41. India 42. Suriname 43. Viet-

nam 44. Portugal 45. Turknienistan 46. Kazakhstan47. BIH 48. Norway 49. Wales 50. Latvia 51.Uzbekistan 52. Turkey 53. Sri Lanka 54. Macedonia55. Egypt 56. Mexico 57. Estonia 58. Pakistan 59.Philippines 60. Laos 61. Ireland 62. Scotland 63. SanMarino 64. Singapore 65. New Zealand 66. Mongolia67. Malta 68. Ecuador 69. Nepal 70. Jordan 71.CyprusUSA RESULTS:

USA Men's Team

(Cheng Yinghua, Jim Butler, David Zhuang, DarkoRop, Khoa Nguyen)1st Stage:

USA d. Panama, 3-0: Butler d. G. Donadio, 8,7,Zhuang d. A. Buckley, 3,11 , 3rd match defaulted toUSA.

USA d. Ghana. default

USA d. Columbia. default

USA d. United Arab Emirates, 3-0: Butler d. E

Mohammed, 9,6, Cheng d. A. Al-Attas, 7,14; Zhuangd. M. Al-Attas, 13.13.

USA d. Portugal, 3-(): Cheng d. R. Alfar, 11,8;Zhuang d. A. Silva. 12,19; Butler d. R. Roberto,12,12.

USA d. Suriname, 3-0: Zhuang d. T. Miller, 17,-10,12; Cheng d. R. Schmid, 14,15; Butlerd. J. Sidler,14,18.

Croatiad.USA, 3-0: D. Atikovicd.Cheng,-16,11,18;Z. Primorac d. Butler, 17,18; D. Karlovic d. Zhuang,17,18

USA d. Spain. 3-2: D. Torres d. Butler, 12,20; Chengd. R. Casares, 17,17; V. Sanchez d. Zhuang, 13,-8,15:Butterd. R. Casares, 15,14; Cheng d. D. Torres, 16,6.2nd Stage:

USA d. Norway, 3-0: Butler d. G. Erlandsen, 16,-22,12; Cheng d. S. Winther, 15,15; Zhuang d. R.Gonzales, 8,20.

USA d. Turkey, 3-0: Butler d. I. Eren, 18,17; Chengd. G. Yaldiz, -15,15,14; Zhuang d. O. Gimen, 22,-17,16.

USA d. Ukraine, 3-0: Butler d. O. Danchenko. 15,9;

Chengd. V. Dvorak, 19,13;Zhuangd. S. Sokolovskij,17,10.

USA Men's Team Individual Records

Cheng Yinghua: 8-1Jim Butler: 8-2

David Zhuang: 7-2

Khod Nguyen: 0-0Darko Rop: 0-0Women's Team

(Lily Yip, Virginia Sung, Tawny Banh, Amy FengFeng not eligible for team events.)Ist State:

Hong Kong d. USA. 3-0: Chai Po Wa d. Yip, 16,20;

Chan Tan Lui d. Sung, 10,7, Chai/Chan d. Yip/Banh,10.16.

Korea d. USA, 3-0: Park Kyung Ae d. Tawny Banh,18,16. Park Hae Jung d. Yip, 17.20; Park/Ryu d. Yip/Banh, 10,10.

Hungary d. USA, 3-1: C. Batorfi d. Sung, 7,9; Yip d

K. Toth, 19,-15.21 i Batorfi/Toth d. Yip/Banh, 8,13:Batorfi d. Yip. 11,15.

Germany d. USA, 3-0: N. Struse d. Yip, 16,11;Schopp Jie d. Sung, 6,10; Struse/Schall d. Yip/Banh, I 2,19.

Lithuania d. USA, 3-0: J. Prusiene d. Yip. 14.15;

R. Garkauskaite d. Sung, 9,12; Prusiene/Garkauskaite d. Yip/Banh. 19,14.Englandd. USA. 3-1: A. Holli Banh. 15,19; Yipd. L. Loinas, -10,14.16; Lomas/Holt d. Yip/Banh,14.14: Holtd. Yip.-15,17.19.Taipei d. USA. 3-0: Chen Chiu Tan d. Sung. 12.18;

Xu Jingd. Yip, 17,17; Tsui/Chend. Yip/Banh. 16,13.2nd Stage:

USAd. Bulgaria. 3-1: K. Vitchevad. Banh.-15,18,17;

Yip d. I. Dimitrova, 16,10; Yip/Banh d. VitchevidDimitrova, 10.7; Yip d. Vitcheva, 23,-19.18.Ukraine d. USA, 3-2: E. Kovtun d. Sung, 5.9,

Kravchenkod. Yip,-20,14,11. Yip/Banhd. Kovtun/Kravchenko, 23,19: Yip d. Kovtun, 17,18:Kravchenko d. Sung, 15.13.

Slovakia d. USA. 3-1: Yip d. J. Mihockova, 20,1 1.V. Popova d. Sung, 11.10: Mihockova/Popova d.

Yip/Banh. 12.7: Popova d. Yip. 16,18.USA Women's Team Individual Records

Amy Feng: Not EligibleLily Yip: 6-9.

Virginia Sung: 0-8Tawny Banh: 0-3

Doubles: Lily Yip/Tawny Banh: 2-8

USA Men's Singles

Cheng Yinghua: Bye through Qualifying Rounds.ist Round (round of 128): d. M. Bratanov (BUL),

14,10,14; L. Blaszczyk d. Cheng, 14,17,22.

Jim Butler: Bye through Quali fying Rounds. 1 stRound (round of 128): d. S. Grujic (YUG), I 9,-16,19,-13,17; Erik Lindh (SWE) d. Butler, -

17,7,10,10.

David Zhuang: QualifyingRounds: 1stroundbye;d. T. Wosik(GER), 13.17; S. Aiyemojuba(NGR)d.

Zhuang,-8.12,17.

Darko Rop: Qualifying Rounds: H. Al-Hammadi(QAT) d. Rop, -10,17,21.

Khoa Nguyen: Qualifying Rounds: d. Hadzijahic(BIH), 14,11: d. R. Alfar (POR), 14,13; d. D. DaCosta (INA), 19,-15,18. 1 st Round (round of 128):

T. Janci (SVK) d. Nguyen, 19.15,18.USA Women's Singles

Amy Feng: Bye through Qualifying Rounds. 1 stRound(round of 128): d. C. Ozer(BEL), 12,9,17;d.

M. Svensson(SWE),20,16,-15,14; Chen Jing(TPE)

d. Feng, -18,8,18,]3.Lily Yip: Bye through Qualifying Rounds. IstRound (round of 128): d. Shwets (UKR), 11, 16,18;

Schopp Jie (GER) d. Yip, 14,19,14.Virginia Sung: Qualifying Rounds: 1 st round bye;d, M. Ghosh (IND), 19.16: S. Bachtina (RUS) d.

Sung. 17.17.Tawny Banh: Qualifying Rounds: d. Ang GuatKeng (MAS). 16.13; 2nd round default; V. Ello(HUN) d. Banh, 17.-17,13.USA Men's Doubles

Cheng Yinghua/Jim Butler: Bye through Quali.fying Rounds. 1 st Round (round of 64): d. Qian

Qianli/K. Lengerov (AUT), -12,18,12; Jean-PhilippeGatien/Damien Eloi (FRA) d. Cheng/Butler, 14,15.David Zhuang/Darko Rop: Qualifying Rounds:1 st round bye: d. S. Diaa/M. El Demertash (EGY/PAL). 17,11; d. Wong Kit/Chan Tin (MAC), 15,20.1 st Round (round of64): Jean-Michel Saive/PhilippeSaive (BEL) d. Zhuang/Rop, 20,-19,10.Khoa Nguyen (USA)/R. Gonzales (PHI): Quali-

fying Rounds: Stoianov/Bratanov (BUL) d. NguyeWGonzales, 15,12.

USA Women's Doubles

Amy Feng/Lily Yip: Bye through QualifyingRounds. 1 st Round (round of 64): d. O. KartuzovalI. Jozepsone (LAT), 13,9; Chen Jing/Chen ChiuTan d. Feng/Yip. 15,-19,14.Virginia Sung/Tawny Banh: Qualifying Rounds:I st round default from Ghana; P. Fichtinger/A.Januszyk d. Sung/Banh, 11,18.USA Mixed Doubles

Cheng YinghuWAmy Feng: Bye through Qualify-ing Rounds. 1 st Round: d. Z. Harczi/V. Ello, 17,20;

Lee Chul Seung/Ryu Ji Hye d. Cheng/Feng, 18.8.Jim Butler/Lily Yip: Qualifying Rounds: d. K.Lengerov/K. Albustin (AUT). 18.-18.23. d. J. Kox/

C. Bremer (LUX), 6,12.1st Round (round of 128):

d. J. Salamanca/J. Diaz (CHI), 12,8, Zhang Lei/Qiao Yunping (CHN) d. Butler/Yip, 14.15.David Zhuang/Tawny Banh: Qualifying Rounds:d. T. Avradinis/M. Mirou (GRE), 12,12; d. L.Crisostomo/J. Tayag (PHI), 12,4.1st Round (roundof 128): d. lwasaki K,yonobu/Okazaki Keiko(JPN),13,-14,18, T. Wosik/E. Schall (GER) d. Zhuang/Banh, 16.13.

Darko Rop/Virginia Sung: Qualifying Rounds:

G. Bakker/E. Noor d. Rop/Sung, 19.5.

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 23

USA MEN'S

SWAYTHLING CUP PLAY

by Tim Boggan

Because the U .S. Men. ranked #20 from the 1993 World's,

were not among the Top 16 Swaythling Cup teams, andbecause they had the misfortune, through a so-called "snake"system. to draw in their initial round robin Croatia. a teamheaded by the 1993 World Cup winner Zoran Primorac, they

were badly positioned from the start to improve their WorldRanking. Indeed. although they won 10 out of the 11 ties theyplayed, it was impossible for them to do any better than 25th.(See my System of Play article elsewhere for an explanation.)

Out we come to play Panama in our first tie (not exactly

a challenge)-and find that they've only two men! Whichmeans of course that they' ve already forfeited the third matchof the lie. And that since they're so weak there's little (8,7)

practice for Jimmy and for (3.11) David. and none for Darko.U.S.A. (3)-Panama (0). Bravo!

And now, unbelievable, the next tie's with Ghana-and

do three players show up, or two. or one? Nope. The court'sthere: we walk over, walk back.

And now, unbelievable, the next tie's with-wait a minute!

Wait a minute! What's happening here? Didn't I just write that?There must be some mistake-the next tie's with Columbia.

isn't it?...What?...They didn't show either? Unbelievable!

Our 4th tie is with United Arab Emirates. Hoorah! Theycan field a team ! Though not as good as ours: Jimmy beats

Mohammed. 9,6. Cheng beats A. Al-Attas, 7,14. David beats

M. Al-Atlas, 13.13.

TheTeammatchesinourroundrobinarehalfover. Butit's

hard to say whether we're undefeated or not: everybody wantsto play but nobody's played. Maybe that'11 give us an edge?

Ah, 5th match-against Portugal. Who's gonna get thepractice? Cheng beats Alfar. 11,8. David beats Silva, 12,19.Our National Champion, U.S. Closed finalist for the last threeyears, looks a little shaky, he needs more play. But whodoesn't? Jim beats Roberto, 12,12. Anything wrong, anythingright, with Jim's game? Can Coach Li Zhenshi tell? Tellanything yet?

Thisisahellofaway to prepare for Croatia. There'sonlyone tie in between us now. Can Switzerland be any good? Wecouldn't lose that tie. could we? We'd better not lose it!

Reader. you want to be Li Zhenshi? Against Switzerland whodo you play?SWITZERLAND

In the 1st Davids quickly behind. 6-2 to World #177Thierry Miller. He draws 16-a]1 even, then falls back. Up 18-16,Miller tries to flip in David's serve, misses. Now, though,there'saturning point: David's maneuveredtheball sohe'sgota forehand he can swat. but strangely he passes up the oppor-tunity; and as Millercomes into attack position to win the pointDavid is shaking his head. He sticks up a finger to his bench,as if to say. I know, you don't have to tell me. and exclaims toself, "So Stupid!" Miller then 21-17 runs out the game.

Back out on court, David, offto another bad start, is soon

Ilapping his towel over his side of the table. Down 5-2, hehimself needs a shaking? His game plan needs to be given agood dusting, with here and there a strategic thought or tworeplaced, rearranged?.

Ah! That's better. David's keeping the ball short, isn'tgiving Miller much chance to loop from either side. And what adifferent look the match abruptly has. Whereas, before, it lookedlike David might throw in the towel, now it's clear he's nothaving any trouble at all. He totally dominates Miller 10 and 12!

David's back to his old self-and Cheng and Jim bothwin in straight games. The tie is over and we're looking prettygood, aren't we?Croatia-Spain:

Apparently not knowing that Croatia wasn't going toplay Primorac, Spain' s highest-ranked player, #177 RobertoCasares, rather than accept the expected loss from World #6.was put into the "Z" (best chance for him to win a match)position. Which left #297 Daniel Torres as "X" to start offagainst Croatia's #2]9 Damir Atikovic, and Spain's #327Victor Sanchez as"Y"to follow against #246 Davor Karlovie.

As it happens, on this very day that Zagreb, the Croatiancapital, is unexpectedly cluster-bombed, the Croatian Teamin far-off Tianjin was suffering not the terrible death andmayhem going on so distant from them, of which as yet theywere unaware, but "wounds" of a sort that were very real tothem: Torres over Atikovic, 16. -19, 16, and Sanchez overKarlovic, -19,19.14. giving Spain a 2-0.

So now the highest ranked of these Spaniards, the #177Casares, faced the #206 Karkovic, also the highest ranked ofthe Croatians (who were engaging in a jittle positional games-mansllip of their own?)-and they seemed to be in gravedanger of losing 3-0, which would be disastrous to them. But,surprisingly, Casares was 14,12 never in the match.

24 Table Tennis Today

9*Em :: ars>·:·5#'<

6#a TABLE TENNIS 4

....

Perhaps, though, it's better for the U.S. Team th.at

Cesares lost. Why? Because with Sanchez (20-13?...) 20-15 upin the Ist against Atikovic-a player our own ex-YugoslavJunior star Darko Rop said had a good loop from either sidebut not much control-a 3-1 win for Spain will be moreadvantageous to us in a tie-breakerthan the 3-0 win they mighthave had. Naturally if we beat Croatia and then Spain, we've

no problem. But even if we lose to Croatia 3-2 and beat Spain3-1. we'll win our Group. It only remains for Sanchez to winthe second game from Ait-NO! Victor...Victor, what areyou-NO!...Victor is not the victor in the first game against

Atikovic! He's blown that (20-13?...) 20-15 lead!

Atikovic of course can't possibly lose his match to thestricken Sanchez. But Karlovic, can he come through victoryto defeat for us? Despite the adrenaline rush of his encourag-

ing teammates he loses the first game 23-21. Terrific! Welldone!...But, oh, Fortune, you are a tease....Karlovic turnsaround and wins the next two. Croatia 3-Spain 2.

"That was the biggest choke I ever saw," says one

disgusted U.S. player.So, forget any thoughts of a tie-breaker. We have to win

this next tie.

USA.-Croatia:

Primorac is back-and since he's playing "Y," he'll gettwo matches in for sure, won't he?...No.

Cheng opens for us against Atikovic. who opens againstCheng with bullet backhand loops. No soft pushes are permis-sible any more, for any half-decent player just loops themaway. Cheng quickly rallies by exchanging backhand top-spins then attacking the first ball to his forehand, First gamecomfortably to Cheng, 21-16.

In the2nd Cheng is again down at the start-back homejust one ofhis backhand loops might win him the point; herethey're routinely returned by hundreds of players. Down 7-2,Cheng serves off-he' s lost all 5 of his serves....Down 10-2-a lot of nets the Croatian's been getting-Cheng finallybegins to come back...but it' s too late.

Ah, our man's up 5-1 in the 3rd! But he has to be Catefulabout returning short, this Croat can put it away. Down 7-2Atikovic is not making the forehands he was, but he's showingno hesitation in going for shots. And how intense he is: down7-3 he puts Cheng's serve into the net, then with the edge of hisracket makes as if he'd like to hammer the ball into the

table....Cheng, on a roll, loops in a backhand and is up 9-3....Then Cheng tries a fast serve into Atikovic's forehand

and catches him absolutely flat-footed. Wonderful-exceptthe serve is long. Atikovic then scores on a backhand loop anda net...In what all seems only a moment, Cheng is 12-9 down-has lost 9 straight! Who would think it possible? That's tabletennis, is it?...But then who's up 14-12? Cheng. And down 16-14. Masses of uniformed Chinese students thunder in, take their

assigned seats in the stands. Will they cheer for our U.S.#l?...Down 18-17 Chengtries to loopin Atikovic's serve, whiffsit. Down 20-18 he tries to soft-loop a serve, but the ball is tooshort. No finger injury to Cheng-but, oh, how this loss hurts.

Can Jim beat Primorac? Since he's quickly down 12-3,what do you think?...That he'd get as close as 19-17 beforePrimorac finishes him? In the 2nd, Jim's making a 16-15 go-ahead fight of it. snap-backhanding a ball into Primorac'sopen forehand. But a slow loop doesn't work, nordoes a pop-up of a Pri morac serve and a push into the net. Still, Jim's at18-all....But a sensational forehand puts Primorac at matchpoint. Jim goes for his towel, wipes the table, plays a greathead-together point. but doesn't win it. Croatia 2-U.S.A. 0

Cheng has hurt his back?-he's stretching it. Jim ob-serves dryly that it wouldn't be stretching it to say he playedtoo much ta Primorac's backhand.

We're not getting off to a good start. David is down 7-0

H

ir

ti

U

The USA Men. Clockwise from lower left: Darko Rop,.hoa Nguyen,Jim Butler, David Zhuang, Cheng Yinghua.

i the Ist to Karlovic. Again and again it's taking him so muchme to get afeel for playing. But back he comes-only to bestopped when Karlovic winds up on David's high toss andpowers it in. Game. 21-17, to the Croat.

Davidstartsthe2ndgamewithanotherhightoss, Karlovic,on't smack this one in-it goes into the net. Where is)avid's concentration?...A warning goes out-not to David.p 9-4, but to one of the coaches the umpire sees coaching.

Karlovic ties it up at 12-all, then goes ahead 16-13. and never

gives up the lead. Croatia 3-U.S.A. 0.O.K., guys, regroup against Spain. for. if. like the Cana-

dian men, we were to lose a second tie in this round robin we

might finish embarrassingly where they did, where no U.S.

team has gone before, in 37th place. Bad enough to have to·explain why we finished 25th-that is, if wecould finish 25th.we had to win four more ties even to hold that position. Firstthere was Spain who, Primorac aside. seemed pretty evenly

matched against the Croatians. Khoa, Darko, can one or bothof them be played now?USA-Spain:

Thistime Jim starts us offbadly: he's upset by Torres twostraight-the 2nd at deuce when, after cracking in two

backhands. he gets caught by a very good short return by theSpaniard... Nor can David. who Li is understandably playingin the "C" position, win out in 3 over Sanchez. But the

seeming crisis is solved whenboth Jim and Cheng take the 4thand 5th matches with ease.

That, at least, puts us safely in the Group DD quarter'sand ready forthe Second Stage ofTeam play. Three more tiesto go. Norway first-lose that tie and the best we can finish is29th. Lose all three-and we're 32nd. But so we lose a tie or

two or three. what does it matter? We've two players whohaven't played a tie. What are our priorities now? Is it theCoach's priority to share the play? Or is his priority to try towin every remaining tie with the players he thinks are bestprepared todo that?What's the most professional thing to do?

It can be no big surprise that Darko, who as it happenswon't get to play a single Team match, will lose, verydisappointingly. 23-21 in the 3rd, to World #410 Hamid Al-Hammadi of Qatarin his first Quali fying match in the Singles.You simply can't come out cold and expect to play your best.Khoa, who won't get to play a single Team niatch either, inretrospect did seem ready-at least after two preliminaryQuali fying Singles matches that, had we early Team matcheslike those for him to play, might very possibly have been afactor in the Coach's thinking. In his 3rd Qualifying Singlesmatch, Khoa, 19. -15,18 outplayed that same Atikovic thatfought so splendidly in the Team's,.. then in the Ist round ofthe Singles proper lost to that same Janet 3-0, that Atikovicbeat. David. in his first Singles match. lost to World #144Torben Wosik, younger brother of the former German Inter-national Ralf Wosik, but this scarcely demanded a hang-doglook. Actually, none ofthe players Khoaor Darko might havereplaced in the Teams failed to perform there: Cheng wouldgo on to be 8-1; David 8-2. Jimmy 7-2.

Coach Li knew that Khoa and Darko (and their friendsand supporters) would understandably be unhappy that hedidn't play them. But pleasing them was not his first priority(as perhaps it would have been with a conscientious but moreamateur-minded Coach).

Against Norway, Li played Cheng. Jim, and David. AndI personally doubt if many of those who've done soineamateur Captaining in Li's place and offered criticism of himknow what it means for our Team to have come 25th and not29th-which is where at best we'd finish should we lose to

Norway. Allow me to explain: 25th and not 29th means in '97at the Manchester World's that instead of possibly being the2nd seed in the 17th place Team s initial round robin Group(that Group could well be headed by the very strong NorthKorean '93 World's #4 team). we might possibly be the 2ndseed in the 24th place Team's initial Group. That's a sneaky,snake-in-the-grass difference that a professional, but not afriendly, seducible amateur looking for friends, would havethe foresight to be coldly, clearly aware of.

We didn't lose our tie to Norway, or to Turkey. or to theUkraine, who'd beaten both Nigeria and Brazil (the team thathad knocked out India 3-0). So you can hardly fault Coach Lifor rationally bringing in the best result possible. We beat allthree teams 3-0. We seemed, in other words, to get better themore we played, and (with the exception of Croatia, whom 1believe we were unprepared for) the better the opposing team,the better we played. (Later, too, in the Doubles. Cheng andJim beat the Austrians Qian and Lengerov, and David andDarko played the Saive brothers a very respectable -20,19,-10 match.)

Repeatedly I keep hearing the query, "The U,S. finished25th? Why aren't they as good as they were before?"

I always answer, "What makes you think they're not?"

July/August 1995

l

USA WOMEN'S

CORBILLON CUP PLAY

by Tim Boggan

The first and most damaging setback that befell our U.S.

Women's Team in Tianjin occurred even before any of the

players went out onto the court. Our 3-time U.S. ChampionAmy Feng was not going to be allowed to play in theWomen s Corbilion Cup Team matches!

1 first heard all the pertinent details of this story whenTeam Leader/Manager Bob Allshousecame hurrying over tome to show me a letter he'd drawn up and signed -the mostrelevant passage of which was as follows:

'The USATT registered her (Amys) name in goodfaith. The registration was not questioned until after the U.S.Team was selected: The People's Republic of China theninformed us that she had played in the 1985 Polish Open. Shewas 16 at the time. The Tianjin Club sent a junior team to thistournament: it was registered as a Chinese National team toallow thejuniors tocompete. She did not become a memberof the Chinese National Team until four years later. Whenasked if she had ever represented China. she answered no ingood faith. not realizing that this junior team had beenregistered as representing China instead o f Tianjin.

Naturally.being the responsible fellow he is. Bob wantedto know if I. as North American Vice-President. couldn't

please get the ITTF Executive Board together to try tosuccessfully appeal this for us disastrous eligibility block.

God knows as quickly and as competently as I could Ispoke on Amys behalf. appealed to the highest court. and atleast got listeners. But in Tianjin at that 1 I th hour nothingcould be done. However, as there ilm extenuating circum-stance in Amy's case, perhaps with the right approach asuccessful appeal is still possible?.

Without Amy the U.S. Women in the elite Group B werejust hopelessly outclassed. We had ourexperienced Lily Yipof course, but though Virginia Sung had been on our Team in'93 in Gothenburg and had even gone to Shanghai to practicebefore this World's. it was still all a bit overpowering for herto have to face again and again some of the world's mostexperienced and accomplished players, and of course ratheroverwhelming for Tawny Bahn, too, who was playing in herfirst World's. Moreover, we'd sure better hope that none ofourthree players got sick or were injured, forthat would makethe burden even worse. Our former U.S. Champ Wei Wangwas with us a supporter, as was herhusband Diego Schaaf, butit was as impossible for us to play the one as it was the other.

So. What would our Coach Zhang Li, China's '79World Women's Doubles Champion have us to do but try.Hong Kong 3--USA 0

First off, we faced Hong Kong. Lily, World #119,beautifully kept her poise, was unintimidated by her oppo-nent, World #3 Chai Po Wa. and played a strong -16, -20match. However, against World #21 Chan Tan Lui's attack,World#245 Virginia had nodefense. As forourdoublesteamof Lily and Tawny-we were dependent on that combinationfor up to the table play-they too could do little against oneof the world's best pairs.Korea 3-USA 0

Well, we could take some consolation in that the Draw

favored us, for we were meeting the toughest teams first.South Korea would giveusanother warm-up-indeed. Tawnyand Lily had moments when they were not just warm but hot.Against World #40 Park Kyung Ae's fast, pips-out penholdgame, Tawny playing aggressively but down 19-13...20-15,didn't shaken and, putting pressure on Park to miss, drew to20-18 before picking a good ball to attack, she, ohh, whiffedit. Then in the 2nd game she got a respectable 16. All in al]she was pretty pleased with her play. as well she should be.

Lily also made a good showing against World #39 ParkHae Jung, 1994 Global Youth Semifinalist. Park, along withher doubles partner, World#43 Ryu Ji Hye, plays for a Koreantextile company, while '93 World Women's Singles Cham-pion, Hyun Jung Hwa, now retired, coaches acosmetics team.Asian women players are protected by "jobs" with suchcompanies until they marry (generally in their mid-twenties?)and end their table tennis careers. As pockets of blue andyellow Stadium sections yelled "CHIN-a! CHIN-a!," Lily,down 1-0, built up a 20- 171ead in the 2nd. ("CHIN-a! CHIN-a!"-the yell was repeated: Deng Yaping and Liu Wei hadjust gone 2-0 up on Slovakia). But, despite having the serve,Lily couldn't score the game-winning point. At 20-19 shewhiffed a forehand, then jabbed Park's serve into the net, andfinally watched helplessly as the Korean got an edge to closeout the match.

In the doubles against this practiced pair we couldn'tcompete.

Hungary 3-USA 1Except for Lily's slightly controversial 19, -15, 21 win

July/August 1995

··t:

over World #54 Kriszlina Toth. we were beaten very badlythis tie-Virginia had an unsolvable problem with World#22Csilla Batorfi' s high-toss. sidespin-hop serve; Lily. too, couldnot get into her match with Batorti. and in the doubles we hadno power and so no confidence to contest. if not the best. oneof the best European teams.

In the 3rd against Toth, Lily'x behind at the turn ]0-7.But, knowing she has to take the offense when she can or shewon't win, she thrusts forcingbackhandsto left-handerToth'sopen forehand and ties it up at 10-all...A good fast serve winsLily a point (Toth had trouble with those), but then she missesa winner that should have given her not a 12-12 tie but a 13-11 lead. As they move into the end game Lily gradually pullsaway. Then, up 19-15, she serves into the net. Lily! Now,having gotten the serve, Toth immediately catches Lily bysurprise- she hadn't seen that serve before?... But, o.k.,Lily's up 20-17-and surely she isn't thinking of that last 20-17 lead she had with Park?...Is she? No, Lily!...No! After afailed forehand, and a passive block, Lily isad down! But shestays alive.

Suddenly. though, at this suspenseful moment, play isinterrupted. The umpire gives the Hungarian Coach theyellow-card, a warning for coaching-surely one of thestupidest rules in all Sportsdom. The umpire's our Y.C. Lee?Assuredly not. Usually Y.C.'s kept busy in some court orother on the playing floor-later, he'll lead the umpires in forthe Men's Doubles final-but right now he's courtside forthis Hungarian tie and rooting for Lily...And apparentlyeffectively-Lily'sup match point. Now, as theball'sinplayI see from the adjacent court a ball come into Toth's view andthe court wherein she's playing Lily (I'm sitting behind herbut to the opposite side from where the ball' s entered). and Ipersonally think she' s been distracted as near simultaneouslyshe both puts up her hand and loses an exchange in whichneither player seemed to have an advantage.

The umpire who'd carded the Hungarian awards thepoint, the game, and the match to Lily despite vehement protestsfrom the Hungarian players, coaches and spectators. Lily, whodoesn't know whether World#54 Toth's plea is justified, staysout of this littlefuror (little because everybody understands thatHungary can't lose this tie) and returns to her bench next to me.I tell her, our bench, and all the Hungarians that I think Tothreally was distracted. However, I don't press my viewpoint.That I'm the ITTF Vice-President for North America is beside

the point: 1 don't think I have any authority here to insist on are-piay. And certainly no one onour bench wants it. However,1 will definitely not win the Good Sportsmanship Award fromthe Hungarians whose respect I want, and later it seemed to methat Toth stared quite resentfully at me. Father, is this guilt?...Are those lines here expiation?

Of course itdidn't take long forthe Hungarians to strikebackwithvengeance: 17-1-that'swhatthey had usinthe lstgame of the doubles.Germany 3-USA 0

Olga Nemes, a Romanian defector, won her first Ger-man National Singles Championship in 1986, her latest thisyear, two months after giving birth. But, as being pregnantwas not the best way to train for the World' s, she was not onthe German Team and we didn'thaveto worry about her. Allwe had to worry about was World #11 Jie Schopp and World#18 Nicole Struse. You can guess at the scores? And you'dprobably be close: 16,11: 6,10; 12...and 19 when Lily andan ever-wanting to be determined Tawny just wouldn't giveUP.

Lithuania 3-USA 0

Lithuania avoided relegation only by beating us: 14,15;9,12: 19,14. Putting up an occasional good fight in thedoubles seemed our forte.

The USA Women. Clockwise from lower left: Tawny

Banh, Amy Feng, Lily Yip, Virginia Sung.

England 3-USA 1Against the English Champion Andrea Holt. runner-up

to Bettine Vriesekoop in the'95 English Open, Tawny did 15,19 commendably well. Getting out to the table for doubles tieafter tie was helping her to concentrate. She was beginning to

see that against these world-class players she had to be evenmore athletically intense. really move constantly to the attack.

Lily played two more good matches this tie. Her firstsingles opponent was World #60 Lisa (nee Bellinger) Lomas

who. though she plays in England for the prestigious GroveClub. is married to an ex-football-goalkeeper who runs aprinting press in Gothenburg, Sweden. Even very experienced

players have to make adjustments on court. Down 10-2 in the[st. Lily must be careful about pushing high. Lomas. who wasrunner-tip to Vriesekoop in the 92 European ChampionNhips.will Nock it in. But beginning with the 2nd game. Lilys founda patient, slow-looping pattern of play that will win for her.

After playing singles and doubles in every tie, and rolling

so many balls in this last match, it wasnh surprising that Lily'sshoulder might be bothering her and that I could see MalAnderson working on it. Anyway, ready or not. Lily's secondopponent is World #70 Holt, Mixed Doubles winner with An-drew Eden ("The Ginger Ninja') in the '95 CommonwealthGames, Later. in the Singles, youd be able to see how competi-

tive she is, for, down 2-0 in games to the Chinese AustralianWorld #123 Catherine Kwok Ying, she'd rally to win. 29-27 inthe 5th. Here the Englishwoman. helped by some clever serves.comes back after losing the ist to beat Lily, 19 in the 3rd.Taipei 3-USAO

So against the U.S. is Taipei playing Lily's friend TangFei Ming? No?...She's noton the Team, will justplay Singles?Don't be disappointed; you'll see her at our Open and by thenyou'll have heard she made the quarter's here. It would havebeen fun to have played her a friendly match? No need. though,for the other Taipei players to be friendly, or unfriendly. Sixgames into the tie they had quite an impersonal win over us.Virginia, I'd like to say played well in getting 18 one game fromWorld #110 Chen Chiu Tan. This same Chen, paired with '93World runner-up Chen Jing. would beat Amy and Lily in the2nd round of Women's Doubles.

USA 3-Bulgaria 1

You read it right, we're a winner here. And if we weredestined to win only one tie in our Second Stage quarter' s, wewon the right one-any other would have put us farther back.Inthis tie Bulgariadid not play 1990 European Champion andcurrent World #57 Daniela Guergueltcheva whose two winsover Belarus had allowed Bulgaria to win their "H" Group.Instead they went with players ranked World #172 and #269.Still, it has to be to Tawny's credit that she 17-in-the-3rdcompeted with the best of these, Katalina Vitcheva, whomLily herself 23, -19, 18 was uncomfortably pressed by.Ukraine 3-USA 2

Because of Virginia's back-from-the-table defense, itwas reasonable forCoach Li tothink(compare, say, Germany'sdefender Jie Schopp who played not doubles, only singles)that Virginia wouldn't partner very well with Lily. There wasthus more opportunity for Tawny (adding Lily' s strength toher own) than for Virginia to take pleasure in the games she'splayed. This was even more true after the previous tie withBulgaria in which Tawny had made her best singles showingand had actually won a match-the doubles with Lily.

It was readily borne out in this kind of major competi-tion that unless Lily won her two singles and the doubles wecouldn't win the tie. Against the Ukraine, represented byWorld#82 Elena Kovtun and World#114 MarinaKravchenko.

Tawny played perhaps her best match of the tournament. Sheand Lily posted a second doubles win-and a very exciting23, 19 one at that. As it happened, Tawny had an addedincentive, for a doubles win meant that for the first time in a tieshe wouldplay asecond singles match. Which meant, I'm sorryto say, that Lily had lost a singles-match to Kravchenko, wholater in the Singles would beat the German #3 Schall. Whichmeant, ready as Tawny was to play, we couldn't win the tie.Slovakia 3-USA 1.

Losses in straight games in this tie-except for Lily'sstraight game win over World #103 Jaroslava Mihockova.

Amy, Amy, you wanted to play and how we neededyou!USA 20th-that was the best we could do.

Well, on to the Individual events. And, by gosh, therewas Virginia-almost a qualifier with a win over India'sWorld #238 Mantu Ghosh. Bravo, Virginia, way to persist.No wonder you get so many balls back.

And Tawny, too. almost a qualifier, but still not able tosolve Vitcheva's game. But Tawny. that Tawny-that 18 inthe 3rd win with David over Kiyonobu Iwasaki and KeikoOkazaki. That was sensational !

Did Japanese TV catch that one?...Did ours?Never mind. Any success at a World's is always sweet.

Table Tennis Today 25

THE 43rd WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Through the Eyes of the Video Cameraby Gary Ruderman of R(flex Sports

5 ..22./.:.i ---- --i=- 3 *maity

ITennis Championships since 1985, and each tournamenthave made videotape documentaries of World Table

has been a unique experience. Not only have I gotten tosee different parts of the world. but also I have learned to

resolve the ever-existent problems no matter what the lan-guagebanier. In China. ourcapable interpreters were lifusav-ers iii solving problems, including one that almost stoppedour production before it got started.

Upon arriving in Beijing, where we planned to spend afew days before going to Tianjin, I found that my worstnightmare had become a reality... a bag containing a large

portion of vital videotaping equipment was missing. Afterthree days of "we can't locate it" from the airline, the

interpreter-expediter assigned to journalists came to therescue. He managed to wheedle my admittance into the

normally off-limits lost and found room at the airport, where,

to my relief, I spotted the missing bag among some 300 or soother "lost" articles. Now we could settle down to concen-

trate on some serious sightseeing...the Great Wall. ForbiddenCity, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven--all spectacular

sights.With ourtouristing behind us, we headed for the tourna-

ment in Tianjin, an industrial port city of about nine millionpeople, 75 miles north of Beijing. We readied ourselves forthe usual two weeks cf the unrelenting pressure of videotap-ing world championship tournaments. Table tennis players

and fans could not hope for a better facility than the flyingsaucer shaped stadium which was built just to get this

tournament. The championships had been scheduled to beheld in Belgrade, but the war there forced a change of venue.

When Tianjin decided it wanted the tournament, the residentsand business people of the city joined together and raisedenough money to get the stadium built-and finished ontime. The main arena had eight tables comfortably spaced,with seating for ten thousand. The second room, separatedfrom the main area by a long hall alongside a sales area. hadtwenty-eight tables in two rows, with typical gym grandstandseating. Adjoining the stadium was a huge new press com-plex. capable of handling the needs of the more than onethousand newspaper and television journalists.

On the evening of the opening ceremonies, a bus pickedus up to take us from our hotel to the stadium. We were givenVIP treatment, a police escort, no less. The city was deckedout, with thousands of banners with the tournament logoalong every street and table tennis tableaus in blinking lightsat strategic locations. As we got closer to the stadium, wewere treated to the equivalent of a ticker-tape parade. Eveninthe rain, throngs, in colorful costumes, lined the streets,waving flags and balloons to welcome the visitors. Thou-sands of residents at the stadium entrance strained to catch a

glimpse of their table tennis heroes. An incredible sceneunfolded on the monumental steps of the stadium...therestood hundreds of beautiful young women in angel costumes,holding lit candles and singing, while searchlights created alight show in the sky.

The outside festivities, however, were minor comparedto the opening ceremonies inside, with a cast literally ofthousands. We set up our camera high in the stands to get abetterperspective as the entire tloorofthe stadium was turnedinto a stage. Our video can only begin to communicate thespectacle...a colorful laser light show... intricate dance andmusic routines... four hundred six or seven yearold girls withpenhold paddles performing synchronized table tennis strokesto rock music...all at the same time.

And, now, the games begin ! During the first few days ofthe team event, we try to identify hot new players or potentialupsets that would be appreciated by our viewers. Our impres-sion this time was that there was a much broader distribution

of quality players than in the past. The Chinese team includedsome new young players who would soon prove their mettle,and the Swedes had their established superstars. The teamsfrom Belgium, Germany. France and Korea were strongerthan ever.

As I watched the team competition, I sensed the speciallevel of intensity that goes with the honor of representingone's country in an event of this magnitude. There was somuch fierce competition and high quality play that I had toput half the team final on the second tape.

I could have been a hero to the Belgian team in theirquarter-final match against Korea if instant-replay wereaccepted. Philippe Saive, who had earlier beaten Kim TaekSoo, was playing Yoo Nam Kyu in the fifth and deciding set.With the games at 1 -1 and Saive down 15-16 in the crucial

26 Table Tennis Today

third game. Yoo Nam Kyu looped a ball that was unplayableas it hit the side-edge of the table. When the umpires ruledthat it had hit the top, the Belgians protested vehemently. andtheir coach looked to me to see if I had caught the point ontape. Since I had shot from a perfect angle to see where theball hit, 1 nodded "yes" and pantomin-ted the downward tlightof the ball...but the ruling stood. Saive, now down 15-17.seemed to lose his composure...and that was the ganie. setand match. Many spectators crowded around to see the

controversial point on my monitor. You can judge for your-

selves when you view the tape.The match we taped between Germany and Sweden also

went down to the wire. After Rosskopf outlasted Waldner to

make the match even at two sets apiece. Persson outpoweredFetzner in three games to give Sweden the win.

Some of the best and most exciting play prior to the team

final took place in the semifinal match between Korea and

China. Perhaps it was the long-standing rivalry, or just thestyle of play. but as I studied the match later on our editing

room monitor, I realized it could be a highlight tape on its

own. The crowd showed its appreciation as it loudly cheeredthe long counterlooping rallies.

The spectators were a show in themselves. Korean fansconstantly beat drums while the Chinese blared their horns

after winning a point... well, during a point... actually all thetime! The top cheerleaderprize would be a close call between

a bare-chested (male) Japanese with painted face. sporting aheaddress of small flags held in place by a sweat band... andGatien's father. who. after every French victory, would blow

his bugle and lead a singing chorus. even getting sections ofChinese to cheer along with him.

The team final pitted Sweden against China, and antici-pation grew to a fever pitch. With hordes of photographersand T.V. news crews focusing on this match, we had to stakeout our optimum camera position well in advance. BobAllshouse volunteered to use his girth, as I believe he put it."to reserve room foryour whole crew."Thefloorpolice oftenobjected to the fact that I place my camera two feet higherthan anyone else's, but I am adamant about shooting fromjust the right angle and location. I can't believe I actuallyasked, and got, the entire Swedish contingent of players andcoaches to move when the spot where they were sitting towatch in the men'squarters was the exactspot where I neededto put my camera.

Back to the Swedish-Chinese final. The atmosphere wascharged as 10,000 fervid fans rooted for their countrymenwith a continuous chant of China, China, China...to the

accompaniment of those ever-present horns. Persson, whoseemed to have recovered from an auto accident a year ago,fought Ma Wenge to the wire, but didn't quite make it. DingSong wore down and baffled Karlsson in a manner reminis-cent of his play a few months earlier in winning the Swedishopen. thus setting the tone for his rampage to come in theindividual events. Waldner's artistry almost saved the dayfor Sweden as he disposed of Wang Tao and Ma Wenge.When Persson bowed to Wang Tao, the six-year Swedishreign as team champions came to an end, and the Chinesenational anthem played for the first of many times at thistournament.

We had some time before the first round of individual

competition, so my assistant, Victor, and 1 caught a taxi toAncient Culture Street for some shopping. Taking a taxi inChina, particularly the tiny mini-vans that seem to run onlawnmower engines, is an experience all its own. Driving isa constant game of chicken as pedestrians, cars, taxis, busesand slews of bicycles compete for space on the narrow roads.Taxis refuse to give an inch, pedestrians and bicyclists dart infront of 40 mile an hour traffic... all seeming to avoid hittingeach other by only the width of a coat of paint. At first Ishuddered at the thought of the potential mayhem, but I soonrealized that somehow things were under control, and I wasable to laugh at the chaos in the streets.

Whenwegotto Ancienteulture Street, we were mobbedfor autographs. We tried to explain in pantomime that weweren't players, but we realized that we were giving theimpression that we simply did not want to sign...so wehanded out autographs and had our fifteen minutes offeelinglike celebrities.

After this brief respite, we had to face the usual problemwith preliminary rounds. Each night I would spend an houror more going over the next day's matchups to determinewhich ones would be the most exciting for fans to watch andthe most crucial to the outcome of the tournament. To add to

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Filming the Men's Singles Final, Kong I.inghui

(far side) vs. Liu Guoliang.

the challenge, good matches were scheduled in both playingareas. My father. as m> designated spotter, had to remain inone room with a walkie-talrkie so he could let us know when

an upset was in the making or a match looked promising.

Then we had to make a quick decision as to whether to staywhere we were or ru•;h to ihe second arena.

I thought the biggest chance for an upset waN Tasaki. themad hitter from Japan. against Wang Tao, but it was not te be.

Tasaki was up 2-0. but Wang fought back to win. My educatedguess did pan out. however, when 1 taped Yoo Nam Kyuplaying Fen Zhe. In a most spectacular first round match, FenZhe, a Chinese teenager. won at 19 in the fifth. The match was

particularly interesting as Fen Zhe, like Liu Guoliang, is apenholder with a forehand smash and backhand loop. Therewasonelong and amazingerchangeas Yoo Nam Kyu, trailing2-1 and at a crucial point in the fourth game, time after timeacrobatically dove back to the barrier to return Fen Zhe'ssmashes. then .somehow managed to win the point.

As the second round started, thouiands of partisanChinese fans filled the stadium. The Chinese players wontheir matches quickly and left the arena but on the othercourts major upsets were in the making. Gatien. the 1993World Champion, was trailing 0-2 to Chan Kong Wah. anunknown Hong Kong player, and Kim Taek Soo was down0-2 to Massimo Costantini of Italy. Gatien's experience wonout, however, as he breezed through the last three games.Kim Taek Soo. on the brink of elimination in games 3 and 5,somehow managed to eke out a victory. Unfortunately, onlyour crew and a smattering of fans remained to witness KimTaek Soo's dramatic comeback.

The third round had the most anticipated match in thetournament, World #1 Jean-Michel Saive vs. Ding Song.Even though Ding had become most feared player in thetournament. man> thought Saive was too strong and experi-enced forhim. As itturnedout, Ding's unique style had Saivecompletely at a loss. Saive did come clohe in the secondgame, but, believe-it-or-not. this topseed lostall threegarnes,with the third game at 11. Although Ding Song had won theEnglish Openfive years ago he was not well known as he haddisappeared from competition. Duringthisperiod, hechangedfrom purely offensive player into a chopper who viciouslyattacks any topspin shot that is not an all-out winner. Hisvictories overKarlsson and Saive in Tianjinhad Chinese fansin an absolute frenzy, and all the media focused on him. TheEnglish-language Chinesepaperheadlined."Who could stopmighty Ding?"

If I were scheduling a tournament of this magnitude, Iwould try to stagger at least the later matches so fans andjournalists could give each match the attention it deserves.The organizing committee did not have the same agenda,however, and many top matches were scheduled at one time,with a break of several hours before the next round. In

addition. matches with some star players, such as Ma Wengeand Waldner, were assigned to courts in the second arena. Forthe round of 16. I decided to circulate a petition requestingthat the matches be staggered and played in the main arena.The first thirty journalists we asked signed immediately, andthe committee did change the schedule to some degree,Maybe Waldner would have preferred the relative anonym-ity of the second arena as he lost that match to Liu Guoliang.

In the round of 16. it was Persson's turn to play DingSong, and miracle of miracles, Persson, up 2- 1, had justexecuted an incredible lunging forehand slap kill (of a DingSong loop kill) followed by a backhand swal kill to put himat match point in the fourth. Undismayed. Ding proceeded tokill both the next serve and Persson's chances, winning thematch 3-2. Liu Guoliang's win over Waldner was a five-gaine thriller. Kong Linghui got past Gatien in the fifth gameof their match, and Samsonov used his double-wing loopattack to beal Rosskopf. A multi-talented Polish powerplayer, Lucjan Blaszczyk (yes, that's the correct spelling)became a surprise quarterfinalist by out-hitting Ma Wenge.

July/August 1995

4

Photo by Gary Ruderman ©1995

World's #2 Wang Tao faced Kim Taek

Soo in the quarters and became a victim of the

upset curse of the tournament. Kim domi-nated Wang. getting into a "zone" where he

was able to play the majority of the offense,an incredibly difficult thing to do against this

block-smash and loop-o ff-the-bounce player.

Kim's victory was short-lived, however, asthe greatest controversy in recent years un-

folded when he was disqualified for usingillegal glue. It seems a shame that the first

major exercise of this rule happened in the

quarterfinals ofaworldchampionship. Kim'sbat had been tested several times earlier in the

tournament. with no problem, but this timehe, inadvertently we are told, used a different

glue mixture. You can draw your own con-

clusions about this disqualification when yousee part of the press conference on the tape.

Ding Song made short work ofBlaszczyk whocould not fathom how to beatachopper with ahittinggame as strong as hisown. Liu Guoliang. with his penhold fore-

hand smash and backhand loop, moved pastSamsonov. This unique style avoided the

weakness ofatypical penhold backhand andneutralized the normally more potent

Samsonov backhand. Kong Linghui beat

Karlsson by utilizing the European style

better than the European star. It' s hard tobelieve that anyone can excel in every aspect

of the game. but Kong Linghui does.We now hadan all-Chinese semifinal. In

the Liu Guoliang/Wang Taosemifinal match.it seemed that Wang's heart just wasn't in it

after the emotional controversy surroundinghis victory by disqualification. Those whobelieved that Ding Song would take it allobviously had not seen the U.S. Open matchbetween Kong Linghui and Matthew Syed of

England, where Kong blasted Syed's heavychops into oblivion. In his match against

Ding Song. Kong Linghui proved again thatno one in the world can be more dominatingagainst a defensive player, even one with anattack gaine as strong as Ding's.

The final between Liu Guoliang andKong Linghui was a rematch of last year'sU.S. Open final, with the same outcome.The tenor of the match, though. was quitedifferent. In the U.S., the match was slow

and technical, while the Tianjin match was

an all-out slugfest between two of the hard-est hitters in table tennis. both highly skilled

in all aspects of the game. The result wasoneofthe most intenseexhibitions of smash-

ing and loop-killing ever witnessed. withthe match seesawing back and forth as one

player or the other dug deeply to generate astring of winners. Neither would give in-Liu won the first and third. and was far

ahead in the fourth, but Kong found a com-bination that worked, and he persisted with

power and precision to take the last twogames. A new World Champion was

crowned (do we dare suggest calling himKing Kong'?) in his first try for the title. Itwas a match to remember.

You have probably learned by now in

TimBoggan's reportthatthe Chinese women

also dominated in their events, as DengYaping and Qiao Hong finished one-two insingles, followed by two of their

countrywomen, andthe Deng-Qiaoduo tookthe women's doubles. The only non-Chi-nese to win a medal in a women's event was

the doubles team of Batorfi and Toth of

Hungary with a bronze. No surprises there.Back home, we have been asked many

times how the Chinese men managed tocome back to win all the top medals. To us,

itseems like the Chinese. withtheir vastpoolof talented young players, chose to workwith a variety of styles rather than concen-

trating on one. They have taken the Euro-

pean style to its ultimate, and they have alsomodified the penhold and chopping styles tocreate new styles without the weaknesses of

the old. Whateverthey have done. it worked.We'l] have to wait for the Olympics or thenext World Championships to see if anyonecan rise to the challenge.

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o The Official ITTF Source for World-Class Table Tennis Videosfl«'

vbpbs,5Videos

productions

The 43rd

World Table Tennis

ChampionshipsCHINA RETURNS WITH A VENGEANCE

AS NEW SUPERSTARS DOMINATE!

Tape A - Team CompetitionFrom your courtside seat you'll see some of the most exciting table tennis in the 43rd Wl-8are stronger than ever, the defending champion Swedes and the ever-powerful Chinese aga

Tape B - Continuation of Team Final • liThe Team Final goes down to the wire in two hard-fought matches. Despite Waldner's heroiiand the 1995 top ranked player all fall to the new Chinese stars...Waldner to Liu Guoliang;chopping and devastating hitting. The feeling prevails that this exciting new star will win it a

TAPE C - Individual CompetitionLiu Guoliang's speed, forehand smash and backhand penhold loop prove too

much for Samsonov, and Kong Linghui shows all-around perfection in his victory :i

over Karlsson. Kim Taek Soo defeats Wang Tao, but in a major controversy isdisqualified for using illegal glue. In the semi-finals, Wang Tao bows out to Liu Guoliang, while Kong Linghui is incredible against Ding Song's no longerunbeatable style. The final between Liu Guoliang and Kong Linghui is a slugfestbetween two of the hardest hitters in the game. This highly-charged battle oftechnique, overwhelming power and determination is a preview of the future of 1table tennis!

REFLEX SPORTS PRODUCTIONS 'i3231 Ocean Park Blvd. #216Santa Monica, CA 90405

Phone & FAX: (310) 450-7929 • Alternate FAX: (310) 545-18121

July/August 1995

D...too much quality play to put on just one tape! Although France, Germany, Belgium and Koreain meet in the Final. Watch the sparks fly in this renewal of their intense rivalry!

ndividual Competitioncs, the Chinese team prevails. In Individual Men's Competition, the last three World ChampionsGatien to Kong Linghui; Persson and J.M. Saive to Ding Song's unique combination style of heavy

111!

(PLEASE PRINT)

RDER FORM

lE 43RD W.LLC.NAME PHONE C - )

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2 *SPEC/AL * Only $115.00 for set of threeC]Tape A $45.00 (120 minutes)E]Tape B $45.00 (120 minutes)

J5 TIANJIN E]Tape C $45,00 (120 minutes)

Make checks payable to: Reflex Sports Productions, 3231 Ocean Park Blvd., #216, Santa Monica, CA 90405Shipping Included in U.S.A. & Canada. Add $10 per delivery in other countries. Allow 3 weeks for delivery.

Table Tennis Today 17

The Step- -round Footwork of KONG LINGHUI1995 Men's Singles World Champion ... 1994 U.S. Open Men's Singles Champion

by Wei Wang

USATT Certified National Coach...1990 National Champion

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1995 $ 15,000 Sears InternationalTable Tennis Tournament

Matthew Syed of England will attempt to win his third straight title at the Sears InternationalTable Tennis Tournament at William Rainey Harper College in Palatine, Illinois Sept. 17, 1995.

In addition to Syed, an Olympic Team member and chopper extrodinaire, this year's tourna-ment features 12-time World Champion Liang Gellang. Liang was a member ofthe Chinese NationalTable Tennis Team during the Ping Pong Diplomacy and is regarded as the greatest defender of alltime.

The fourth annual tournament also features numerous world-ranked players. Some oftheplayers expected to compete include:

* Jim Butler -- U. S. Olympic Team Member* Leszek Kucharski -- Poland Olympic Team Member* Alan Cooke -- England Olympic Team Member* Khoa Nguyen -- 1995 U.S. World Team Member* Kazuyuki Yokoyama -- Japanese National Collegiate Champion* Michael Hyatt -- Jamaica Olympic Team Member

Also, the Sears/Harvard Sports Open for USA Table Tennis members is scheduled for Sept.16,1995 at the beautiful William Rainey Harper College Gymnasium. To receive an entry blankcontact Primo Madrigal at (708) 837-8053 or Scott Preiss at 1-800-456-PONG. All players playing inthe tournament receive two free tickets to the Sears Tournament.

Sponsors for this year's event include Sears Roebuck and Company, United Airlines, BP Oil,

Craftsman, Holiday Inn, William Rainey Harper College, Harvard Sports and USA Table Tennis.Hotel reservations can be made at the luxurious Holiday Inn of Rolling Meadows. The hotel is

a Holidome facility with an indoor pool, whirlpool, billiards, basketball and volleyball courts and table

tennis for your enjoyment. Holiday Inn will also provide shuttle service to and from the tournament

site for spectators and players on both days. For reservations call (708) 259-5000 and mention tabletennis for a price reduction.

2 KONG LINGHUI'S

STEP-AROUND FOOTWORKA by Wei Wang

* When Kong Linghui came to the U.S. Open last year, he was somewhat of0 an unknown quantity. I had read about

him in a Chinese magazine, but there

were not many results to indicate his

level. All I knew was that he was sup-

posed to be goad. Well, as many of you

that had the pleasure of watching himperform in Anaheim know, that is anunderstatement. At 18 he already knewevery shot in the book and then some. In

fact it was the completeness of thisadolescent's game that impressed me at

least as much as the beauty of his style.He displays a degree of gracefulness andinventiveness that so far had been re-

served for Waldner, and yet he succeedsin making it look straight forward andeasy. Never in a rush, rarely out of bal-ance and always ready with a surprise, he

is a pure joy to watch.

Kong Linghui'sinventivenatureex-tends into all areas of his life. His team-

mates tell me that everything he does heapproaches with the same dedication,

learning things quickly, and immedi-

ately applying new knowledge. He is abig sports fan. He follows soccerclosely,

knows every NBA player and is familiarwith the Tennis circuit.

This ability to assimilate new infor-

mation is very apparent in his game:Frequently he shows clearly where a

particular idea originated. He can emu-late Primorac' s characteristic backhand

& serve from the middle of the table, do© Waldner' s backhand "chop-block," and1 to each of these acquired techniques he1 adds his own touch.

9 In Tianjin, Kong played only three& matches during the team event. all ofS which he won, including thecrucial third

g point in the five-match semifinal againstKorea. On May 14th of this year, Kongwon the Men's Singles Title at the first

World Championship he ever entered, at

the age of 19-making him the second

youngest Men's Singles World Cham-pion ever, after 17-year-old StellanBengtsson in 1971.

ThesuccessofKong'sgameisbasedon his great ability to vary spin. Hispush is incredibly effective. He told methat as a kid, he won his first few tour-

naments by just pushing, and even now

his opponents are struggling trying to

read the length and spin on his push. Itis also not uncommon to see him

counterloop two, three shots with anopponent-the European players'

"bread and butter"-and then suddenly

see the opponent miss the table not by a

couple of inches, but by a couple offeet-all because of an invisible changein the way he contacted the ball.

This sequence shows Kong during

his quarterfinal match against PeterKarlsson. We have subdivided it into

full frame pictures at 15 frames/sec forthe footwork portion of the shot andthen cropped the actual stroke to fit at

30 frames/sec. We've also highlighted

the ball to make it more recognizable.

Karlsson is pushing Kong's underspin

serve long to his wide backhand, and

Kong decides to turn and loop the ballwith the forehand.

Kong gets himself into positionwith the same two "hops" we have seenin an earlier series. when we showed a

"right-handed" Gatien attack a shortball. From 0.0 sec to 0.2, he scoots over

about 12" with his right foot, and a littlemore with his left which opens his stance

a bit. At the same time, his backswingstarts. His racket angle is graduallyclosing as he pulls his arm back. Helands on the front of his feet and "rolls"

out for the second, more precise posi-tioning. By now he has recognized the

exact placement of the ball and knows

how wide he needs to turn to get to the

ball. Although he might have been ableto turn wider, he chooses not to do so,

because he wants to retain control over

the wide forehand corner. In fact, afterthis shot he does block Karlsson's shot

with his backhand. Due to his excellent

flexibility and his willingness to use thepower in his legs, his range from one

positionisgreaterthanmanyotherplay-ers', and he uses most of that range. At

0.4 he finds the support point for his leftfoot. Now, already crouched very low,he shifts his waist even farther to his left

and continues the backswing. At 0.5 he

finishes the full weight transfer. Notice

that the backswing includes droppingthe shoulder somewhat. His arm never

extends much beyond a 90 degree angle.During the whole motion his eyes stayfocused on the ball. He starts his for-

ward motion at 0.6a. His shoulders and

his upper arm, almost as one piece, starta quick rotation to the left, for twoframes, while his still relaxed lower arm

seemingly snaps back under the accel-eration, and with the same motion he

lets the racket angle flatten out to wherethe forehand striking surface points al-most straight down. At 0.7 the shoulderrotation stops. and his lower arm, nowunder maximum acceleration, catches

up. He makes contact with the ball maybe

3" in front of the imaginary line extend-ing from his shoulders. Right after con-

tact his elbow snaps upward as he fin-ishes the stroke with his forearm in front

of his forehead. The whole motion is

supported by a strong push with his leftleg which powers the forward rotation.At 0.8 he briefly catches his weight withhis right foot and, as he finishes the

follow-through, his weight ends up onhis left (the picture before 1.0 sec). Inthe pictures between 1.0 and 1.2 hemoves back to his right to cover theforehand, in case he ball is blocked

there. At 1.2 he has already recognized

the placement of the block and movesover for a backhand block.

Kong instinctively has found theright formula for how much each com-ponent of the three possible dimen-sions-forward, upwards and side-ways-he must apply to his body mo-tion for any given ball. Combined withthat correct mix of vectors, Kong findsthe right racket angle for each situation

to produce an efficient shot.

When learning these shots, find-

ing that balance is often a problem,either resulting in strokes that go uptoo much, which produces a spinnybut powerless ball, or strokes that goforward too much, resulting in ahigh-risk, flat trajectory shot. In additionto that balance, careful attention to

the racket angle should be given,because it determines the quality ofthe contact. Brushing the ball toomuch-a common problem evenwith relatively strong players-willwaste most of the energy generated

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so carefully with the stroke. The di-rect translation of the Chinese ex-

pression for a good contact is "bit-ing" the ball. It describes the ball

pressing through the rubber onto thewood. That is where most of the

drive energy is transferred.At 19, Kong has learned most of

this not so much by being told, but bycopying others. In Tianjin he told mehe had carefully studied videotapesfrom all available sources.

Andnow, soonerthansurelyevenhe thought, it's already time for thenext generation to study him.

CLASS PRACTICE"

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i

1995 NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIPSSouth Bend, Indiana

fter inadvertently scheduling the North American Championships last year on the sameend as the St. Joseph Valley Open (thereby sp

the top players), it seemed only fair that this year theAmerican Championships were held at the St. JValley Open this year. Which meant that this year, ttplayers from both the U.S. lind Canada were all on

At stake in the Men's event was the right to repNorth America at the World Cup Singles Championwhere the winner would win at least $2000 or so jishowing up--and the opportunity to win far more.MEN'S SINGLES

In the entire men's singles draw (35 matches) thwere exactly...zero upsets, as the higher ranked pia)won every time. In the rounds of 32 and 16 (16ths,8ths), 20 of 24 matches were 3-0, and the other foumatches were 3-1.

Quarterfinals:

Top-seeded Johnny Huang of Canada had little twith David Zhuang until the third game, winning at20. Cheng Yinghua had even less trouble witlSeemiller, winning at 5.12,5

Jim Butler had lost to Khoa Nguyen twice atthe Louisiana Open, but this time won the first twogames at 18 & 17. (Down 14-16 in the first. Jimscored all five on his serve.) Khoa won the third, 21-18, and was up 14-7 in the fourth. But Jim went ona rampage. and soon ties it up, 18-all. At 19-all, Jingot a net ball, but Khoa loops in back--a counter-n{20-19 Khoa. But Jim deuces it, and at 22-all. Jim gehis loop in two straight points, Khoa misses two bloc]and Jim wins the match, 18, 17, -18, 22.

Even closer was Canada's Joe Ng versus BMasters. In the first. Brian goes up 11 -8, then loses 1a row and the game. Brian pulls out the second gam19, but falls behind 11-0 in the fourth! After losin,game at 11. he wins the fourth at 15. In the fifth, Joc13-11,..17-11,21-16. Match to Ng, 16.-19,11,-lf

Semifinals:

Cheng Yinghua (USA) vs Joe Ng (CAN)In the first game. from 15-all, Joe scores four in

to go up 19-15. Serving from down 16-19, however, Ipulls a rabbit out of his service game as long-time irtional Joe Ng fails to return four of the five serves, arblocked down the other point! First game to Cheng.According to Todd Sweeris (who was coaching between games), Joe had trouble with Cheng's bacno-spin variations, and sudden fast deep serves.

Down 10-12 in the second, Cheng runs off fiprow, and pulls away to a 21-15 win.

In the third, Joe again leads. this time taking a20-18 game point lead--only to have Cheng deuceitJoe took another ad, but failed to return another of C]

serve, and finally Cheng takes the match, 19,15,21.Johnny Huang (CAN) vs Jim Butler (USA)

Huang seemed to have trouble with Jim' s serve, and

from 11-all in the first, loses 21-14. Jim keeps going toHuang's wide forehand, then back to the backhand, catch-ing the pips-out shakehander (on both sides) a step off thetable and vulnerable. Jim had used this strategy to win hislast three meetings with World #14 Huang.

The rallies here were far different from the other

semi's, which finished just after this match began. While

Cheng & Ng were spinning balls back and forth, Jim &Huang was a constant barrage of close-to-table bang-bangexchanges.

But the next three games belonged to Huang, whopulled away early each game. Huang stayed closer to thetable, and began to go after Jim's forehand more, movingJim. Match to Johnny Huang, -14,16.18,11.Final:

Johnny Huang (CAN) vs Cheng Yinghua (USA)"

As the umpire called out, "zero-zero, a boy of aboutnine fell backwards off a railing by the court, causing ascary moment and delaying the match a moment as he waschecked out. He was unhurt.

Cheng had beaten Huang the last four times they'dplayed (along with Jim Butler's three in arow, USA seemedto give the top Canadian a real headache!). but this time itwas not to be. In the semi's against Joe Ng, Cheng had

aggravated the same back muscle he'd strained at the

30 Table Tennis Today

by Larry Hodges

-- SJohnny Huang,top,capturedthe North American Men's Singles &Doubles Championship, teaming withteammate Joe Ng, center, for thedoubles.Canadatom 's Lijuang Geng, bot-, captured the North AmericanWomen's Singles Championship.Worlds shortly before, and the next day would default in thesemifinals of the Allstar Men. But this match was too

important, and from the sidelines, there was no hint ofinjury.

But Huang completely dominated this time, and al-though Cheng made several "mini" comebacks, Huangalways followed by pulling away even more. Match, andNorth American Championships to Johnny Huang, 14.15,15.

WOMEN'S SINGLES

Just as in the men's singles, the higherrated player wonevery match in the women's singles as well, and fromquarters on, every match was 2-0.Semifinals

In the first semifinal, Amy Feng played chopper Vir-ginia Sung. Amy, who probably plays choppers better thanany other style, had no trouble, winning at 13 & 8.

In the other semis, Canada's Lijuan Geng won the first

May 27-29, 1995 Ii[PT19

against Lily Yip 21 -14, and led 20-16, with Lily serving." , playing very aggressively, deuced it up, and went

) when Geng missed a backhand. Lily served the, Geng backhanded it hard to Lily's waiting fore-it she just missed the smash, deuce, as the USA·oaned. It was not to be as Geng scored the next twowin the match, 14&21. Lily and coach/husband

arry Dattel were quite understandably upset that95-rated Lily had to play top-seeded Geng (Worldin the semifinals, while 2285-rated Virginia Sunged second-seeded Amy Feng.l:

ng Geng (CAN) vs Amy Feng (USA)my seemed to have a style advantage going into thesince she was left-handed, meaning that Geng's

1-long pips-out backhand blocks would tend to goforehand. (Geng uses Magnitude pips, a mediumips that was discontinued by Butterfly a couple ofo. Geng still has a stockpile for herself.) Any ballshes Geng either loops or (more often) backhandnd follows with a forehand. But if Amy can loopntly over and over, taking away Geng's smash,tuld probably win.13-10 in the first, Amy looked comfortable, butgan to smash Amy's soft backhand topspins, andstraight to lead 18-13 in winning the first, 21-17.

he second. Geng begins to pull away halfwayand pulls ahead 18- 12 enrout to winning the game,id North American Championship, 17 & 17.cording to USA Coach Zhang Li, Amy lost becauseildn't continue looping over and over enough, she1 her 3rd ballloop too often, her serves weren't welli, and she missed too many backhand loops whenforced to move.

)OUBLES

:n doubles was marred by a controversial default infinals. Khoa Nguyen and Darko Rop's semifinalagainst Cheng Yinghua & Todd Sweeris), had had

to be rescheduled because Cheng was in the

middle of a singles match at the scheduled time.Nguyen/Rop were told by the control desk to"stick around. and we'11 reschedulethe match right

afterCheng finishes."Nguyen/Rop saythey thought,hat meant to wait until after Cheng had finished ati

is matches--and so they went back to the hotel and

atched a basketball game. However, the desk

heduled the match shortly after Cheng finished hisgles match, and when Nguyen/Rop didn't show,y were defaulted, putting Cheng/Sweeris into the1.

In the other semifinal, Canada's Johnny Huang &

Ig were battled with U.S. National Doubles Cham-David Zhuang & Dan Seemiller, with Canada

coming from behind both games to pull out a 22-20, 21-19 win.

Results:

Men's Singles--Final: Johnny Huang d. Cheng Yinghua,14,15,15; SF: Huang d. Jim Butler,-14,16,18,11;Cheng d.Joe Ng, 19,15,21; QF: Huang d. David Zhuang, 14,13,20;Butler d. Khoa Nguyen, 18,17,-18,22; Ng d. Brian Mas-ters, 16,-19,11,-15,16; Cheng d. Dan Seemiller, 5,12,5;8ths: Huang d. Dennis Su, 15,19,9; Zhuang d. SeanLonergan, 16,12,11; Nguyen d. Todd Sweeris, 2,16,11 ;Butler d. Barney J. Reed, 17,14,9; Ng d. Derek May, -16,12,13,19; Masters d. Gbena Ogundimu, -19,9,11,11:Seemiller d. Dave Fernandez, n.s.; Cheng d. Darko Rop,15,14,8.

Women's Singles--Final: Lijuan Geng d. Amy Feng, 17,17;

SF: Geng d. Lily Yip, 14,21; Feng d. Virginia Sung, 13,8,QF: Geng d, Janine Gelb, 7,6; Yip d. Irina Elkin, 13,10;Sung d. Joannie Fu, 16,16: Feng d. Michelle Cada. 15,19;QF: Geng d. Janine Gelb, 7,6; Yip d. Irina Elkin, 13,10;Sung d. Joannie Fu, 16,16; Feng d. Michelle Cada, 15,19.Open Doubles--Final: Johnny Huang/Joe Ng d. Cheng

Yinghua/Todd Sweeris, 23,5; SF: Huang/Ng d. DavidZhuang/Dan Seemiller, 20,19; Cheng/Sweeris d. KhoaNguyen/Darko Rop, def.; QF: Huang/Ng d. Derek May/Randy Cohen, 12,12; Zhuang/Seemiller d. Todd Peterson/Brandon Olson, 14,17; Nguyen/Rop d. Jim Butler/BrianMasters, def.; Cheng/Sweeris d. Amy Feng/Sean Lonergan,18,13.

July/August 1995

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July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 31

We're at your side.

ST. JOSEPH VALLEY OPENSouth Bend, Indiana by Larry Hodges May 27-29, 1995 ...[C.A.

C/

$,

-, ,Arc

.05%25 f,ZO

Men's Allstar Runner-up Darko Rop

lith 279 entries. the St. Joseph ValleyOpen (in only its third year) is nowthe fourth largest tournament in the

U.S., with only the "Big Three" (U.S. Na-

tionals, Open, Open Teams) getting moreparticipants. Players also entered more events

this year then last year's 263 entries, with an

average of 3.76 events per person, up from

last year's 3.27 (based on figures given me byJason Denman, the computer operator). But

with 50 tables (also the fourth most used in

any U.S. tournament), there were plenty oftables for them all in this Escalade Sportssponsored tournament.

Many of the participants this year wereinspired by HBO's coincidental showing the

night before of the movie "Rudy," whichtakes place near the tournament site. Those

of us from Maryland were inspired by thestories of our cab driver, who told us, "I used

to play table tennis in college with a memberof the Grand Cayman Island Olympic Team.

He played with sandpaper and switched handstohittheball."Cheng Yinghua, Todd Sweerisand Sean Lonergan were all inspired by a

baby who sat behind them, crying the entireflight. "I'll never have kids!" swore Todd.

There were some complaints about theAllstarevents carrying overto Monday when

there were easily enough tables to finish on

Sunday. Director Brad Balmer told me thatit was so the 45 juniors playing in the open &regionaljunioreventsonMondaycouldwatchthem play. "That's what we do in South

Bend--we want to help out the kids." he said.There was also a shortage of urnpires

(several who were supposed to come didn't

show), although I didn'thearany complaints.The tournament staff wanted me to thank the

players fornotcomplainingaboutthis, andtopromise that next year there will be moreumpires.ALLSTAR MEN

8ths

All but one match in the 8ths were 3-0.

The exception was Derek May versus Gbena

Ogundimu, a formermemberof the NigerianNational Team. AfterDerek won the first 21-

19, Gbena won the second 21-2! But Derek

turned it right around, winning the last two

games almost as easily. Match to Derek, 19,-2,5,10.

Todd Sweeris faced practice partnerSean Lonergan here. The rules say thatplayers should be separated by geography,

Men's Allstar Champion David Zhuang

but the referee ruled it was too late to changethe draw, despite their protest. (Similarly,Todd Sweeris & Cheng Yinghua faced SeanLonergan & Amy Feng in an all-Marylandquarterfinal in Open Doubles. while DylanMartis & Ashu Jain, practice partners from

New Jersey, faced each cther in the firstround of both the Allstar Men and the Allstar

Under 18!) Sean Lonergan had beaten Todd

several times in the past, but Todd won thisone 3-0. at 20, 15, 10.

Quarterfinals

Two of the quarterfinals were quick 3-0's, as Cheng defeated Brian Masters at 15,

14, I 0, and David Zhuang defeated ToddSweeris at 15,19,8 (down 2044 in second,

Todd scored five in row, only to lose 21-19).The other two matches were 5-game battles.Khoa Nguyen vs Derek May

The way Khoa had been playing inrecent times, he was tile clear favorite over

chopper Derek. Khoa won the first, 21-17,

but gradually fell behind in the second, and

suddenly couldn't seem to score at all asDerek won game #2,21-11.

Thethird was closeall the way to 17-all,

but Khoa won three in a low and won it, 21-

18.

The fourth was Derek all the way, 21-16

It was becoming obvious that Khoa'sstrategy in the first game--loop everythinghard--wasnt working

anymore. In the sec- pEEFflF'P,99.*Flond and fourth games, 1'| DJ I »zf=99=*--Khoa had really looped aggressively, and lost. 1 In game three, he'd 'played a far more pa- tient game winningwith both power andcontrolled looping and

drop shots. Khoastarted the fifth off bylooping over and overhard into Derek's de-

fense--and Derek goesup 4-1. From here on,

Khoa played more |careful, longer rallies,and tied it up at 6-all. 1At 13-all, Khoaplayed

perfectly--and won the I F 0--2€ 1, 3***1last eight points in a

17,-11,18,-16,13.

Jim Butler vs Darko Rop

This was a classic match-up of strong 2-

winged attackers, with both players hitting or

looping winners from both sides over andover. Jim has the better backhand smash,

quicker block and better serves, but Darkohas a more consistent topspin attack fromboth sides. Most rallies ended up with oneplayer attacking, the other blocking, or de-fendingwithtopspinfromway back. Darko'sheavy backhand push offJim's serve provedto be very effective, especially at the end.

Jim won the third game convincingly

21-10 totake a 2-l game lead in the best offive, but Darko stayed with him to 19-all inthe fourth--then promptly hit two backhandkills to force the match into the fifth.

Darko took an early lead in the fifth, butJim came back and soon led 16-13. At 19-all,

Jim serve & looped off to give Darko matchpoint. Jim serve & looped again, Darko

counterlooped, and Jim began to block himall over the table. But Darko kept spinning,

and finally Jim blocked off. Match to Darko,-21,15, -10,19, 19. According to Darko,"After a couple of games, I found the rightspot to stand to loop Jim' s deep serves."Semifinals

Cheng Yinghua vs Darko RopCheng had hurt his back at the World

Championships a couple of weeks before,and had aggravated it

- 1

B - =22 34,1 was encouraged todrop out in the 8ths.but decided to con-

tinue. He finally de-

cided to drop out here,and defaulted. It was

one of the few times

the indestructible

Chenghad shown montality--he hadn't had a

single injury in seven

years in the U.S.David Zhuang vs

P-Eal Khoa NguyenEarly in the first

Ae | game, both playerse- /1 9,1 showedtheirpowerby

2#-2-222 each mis-hitting a ball"4 *41.= on consecutive points

9=3/PE pletelyoutofthearena!

and smacking it com-

Women's Allstar Runner-up Lily Yip

Few saw it, however--the match started with

only nine spectators in the arena, as the restwere watching the hugely entertaining Un-

der 12 Boys' Final being played outside thearena. (As soon as that match ended, the

arena filled up.)

The first game was close to the end.David took a 19-17 lead, with the serve, but

Khoa deuced it. Down 22-23. David got anet--but Khoa returned it. and David pushedthe return off to lose the first, 24-22.

When Khoa won the second game eas-

ily (21-13), it looked like a quick 3-0. ButDavid won the third 21-15.

In the fourth, Khoa took a 17-13 lead,

with David to serve. At 18-16 Khoa's lead,

David returned a ball that hit either the side or

edge. The umpire/scorekeeper wasn't sure,and Khoa and David had greatly divergingopinions on the shot. The crowd mostlythought it was a side (Khoa' s point), but the

David supporters ('It'san edge!") were muchlouder. Finally, Referee Jimmy McClure iscalled. and a let was played.

Khoa immediately loses the next point,so instead of being up 19-16 as he'd thought,

he's only up 18-17. But at least he"s serving.But David gets a game point at 19-20, andanother at 20-21. He converts the second

one. and ties the match at 2-2.

In the fifth, it's once again close all the

way. Down 12-13, Khoa scores four of fi veon David's serve to lead 16- 14 with theserve.

But Khoa's first ser,,e hits his shirt. losing

him the point. David blocks him down thenext two points to lead 17-16. Then, at 18-

all, Khoa loops a serve off the end. and thenhits a backhand into the net to give David

double match point. Khoa pulls off a spec-tacular off-the-bounce loop of Khoa' s drive

to pull to 19-20, but hits a backhand long inthe next point, and looks stunned--how hadhe lost this, from up 2-0, leading 17·-13 in thefourth, losing a controversial point at 18-16,and from up 16- 14 with the serve in the fifth'?

Match to David Zhuang, -22, -13,15,20,19.Final

David Zhuang vs Darko Rop

These two have played each other doz-ens of times, since Darko use to live in New

York, nearby David Zhuang's New Jersey.

Darko had only won one of their matches.and so went into the match a decided under-

dog. However, contrary to some expecta-tions, Darko not only didn't roll over and

Artwork by Paul George ©199531 Table Tennis Today July/August 1995,

Photo bv John Oros ©1995

W

T.J. Beebe, Under 2200 Champion

play dead, he almost played David to a deadheat--forthe record, David outscored Darkoin the match 93-92.

However, after Darko lost the first in aheattbreaking 21-19, his chances of win-ning were severely diminished (even thoughhe would outscore Davidtherest of the way--by one point).

In the second, Darko led 1 3-10--then

lost six in a row, 13-16. But Darko ties it up17-all, goes up 20-17, and wins 21-18 to tieit up 1-1.

The third's close all the way, but Davidpulls away at the end. and leading 20-17,gets an unreturnable net-dribbler.

In the fourth, at 3-2, Darko gets anunreturnablenet-dribbler. On thenextpoint,David gets an identical unreturnable net-dribbler, and both players (especially David)laugh. But Darko gets the last laugh here,scoring The next eight in a row (loopingperhaps 30 balls to win those eight) to lead11-3, as he cruises to an easy 21-12 win toforce a fifth game.

The fi fth looks like a laugher as David goesup 10-4 at the switch. They play the point ofthe match, with Darko doingjust about every-thing imaginable in winning the next point.Spurred on by this. Darko goes on a binge.David's playing really well--but suddenly it'sDarko, point after point! Darko pulls to 1213--but finally the bubble bursts. But from 4-10 to 12-13, the two have puton an exhibitionthat the Chinese & Swedes would have diffi-

culty in matching. But it's all David Zhuangthe rest of the way as he continues to play hisnormal 2700 level. and Darko drops from2900 to 2500. Match and Allstar Men' s

Singles to David Zhuang, 19,-18,17,-12,14.ALLSTAR WOMEN

There were only six entries in the event,which was run with two round robins of three

each, with one advancing. Amy Feng had notrouble against either Irina Elkin or JoannieFu, and Lily Yip similarly won 2-0 againstboth Virginia Sung and Sandy Spilker. Thefinals would therefore be between Amy Fengand Lily Yip.

Because the finals took place in the arena.out of sight of most of the other matchestaking place, and because I was watchingother matches at the time, and because I lost

track of time, I missed the finals here betweenAmy Feng & Lily Yip. Will I be forgiven?!Since Vve seen them play a million timesbefore (as Dell Sweeris always says, "If I'vetold you once, I've told you a million times--don't exaggerate!"), 1 can only surmise thematch-up was a battle of Amy's topspin andLily' s smash,ofAmy's consistency andLily'squickness. of Amy's serve and Lily's aggres-sive receive. Amy won the first easily, 21-14,and pulled out the second, 23-21.SENIOR EVENTS

Once again, Dan Seemiller swept the

over 40 events, winning both Allstar Se- niors and Over40. How dominant is he? Ing· the Over40's. opponentsdefaulted tohimin4 both the quarterfinals and finals rather than# face him, a common happening. For the© record, he defeated Parviz Mojaverian in the3 Aplstar Seniors, but received a default from0

© Parviz in the Over 40's.G Tim Boggan defeated Primo Madrigal2 at 18&18inthe Over 50 final, while Ercel

Kernerdefeated Tim Boggan in the Over 60final.

JUNIOR EVENTS

Norman Yeh went on his usual hittingbinge in upsetting top-seeded DaveFernandez in the semifinals of the Alistar

Under 18 Boys' event. Barney J. Reed hadno trouble with Yeh in the final, or with

Sunny Li (who'd upset Deepak Jain thequarter's) in the semifinal, although An-thony "Football-Man" Torino won the first

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Keith Alban eyes the ball as hemakes final of Under 2200 and

splits final prize with AnthonyTorino in Allstar Under 16 Final

game against Reed in the quarterfinals.Dylan Martis & Ashu Jain, practice part-ners from the New Jersey Table TennisClub, were disgusted at flying halfwayacross the country, only to play each otherin the first round. Ashu won, and made it

to the quarters, where he went down toNorman Yeh. 11-year-old Keith Albanwas the final quarterfinalist, losing to DaveFernandez.

Keith, who'd lost to T.J. Beebe in the

Under 2200 final, got his revenge here inthe Allstar Under 16 semifinals. AnthonyTorino defeated Greg Kagavovich in theother semifinals. Keith & Anthony, prac-tice partners from Miami, split the final.

The turnout for the Allstar Boy'sevents was large; however, the turnout forthe Allstar Girls was not so large, withonly two. Irina Elkin defeated NicoleBalmerin the final. Nicolewentontowinthe Under 10 Girls' event over Dorela

Subonj, while Dorela won the Under 12Girls over sister Simona Subonj.

Mark Hazinski was the local hero, de-feating Florida's Casey McLeod in the Un-der 12 final in a rematch of last year's U.S.National Elementary School Final.It mayhave been the most watched match in the

tournament, outdrawing even the AllstarMen' s Singles matches. Jordan Lynch wonthe Under 10 Boys event over Brett Baker.RATING EVENTS

Long-time "Road Warrior" BrandonOlson, who'd disappeared from the scenefor several years, made a grand reappear-alice this tournament, upsetting Barney J.Reed, Dave Fernandez and Dennis Su to getto the finals of the 2500's. Too tired to goon. he defaulted to Brian Masters.

Brandon was also eligible to play in the2350's, but was upset by Mark Dubin, who thenwent down to Dave Sakai in the semifinals.Local Head Coach Victor Tolkachev, who toldme he had "No chance" against chopper Vir-ginia Sung in the quarters, went on to win theevent over Dave Sakai. Victor would also team

up with Randy Hewitt and Jordan Lynch to winthe U3600 and U2800 doubles, respectively.

The under 2200's was a preview of theMen's Singles Final at the Nationals, circa2001. 13-year-old T.J. Beebe defeated 11-year-old Keith Alban in the final, -15,15.15.

In a display of undeniable greed, QiangCheng swept both the 2100's and the 2000's.

This year's honesty of the yearaward goesto Ali Shafai. Ali, top-seeded in his under 2000group, was upset by one of the players in hisgroup, and ended up in a 3-way tie. The refereemistakenly advanced Shafai, but Shafai re-turned later to show that a mistake had beenmade, and that he was not the one to advance.Results:

Allstar Men--Final: David Zhuang d. Darko Rop,19,-18,17,-12,14; SF: Zhuang d. Khoa Nguyen, -22,-13.15,20,19; Rop d. Cheng Yinghua, def.;QF: Zhuang d. Todd Sweeris, 14,19,8: Nguyen d.Derek May, 17,-11,18,-16,13; Rop d. Jim Butler,-21,15,-10,19,19; Cheng d. Brian Masters,15,14,10; 8ths: Zhuang d. Randy Cohen, 13.8,13;Sweerisd. Sean Lonergan, 20,15,10; May d. GbenaOgundimu, 19,-2,5,10; Nguyen d. Barry Dattel,15,14,15; Butlerd. Randy Seemiller, def.; Rop d.David Fernandez, 15,21,16; Masters d. DanSeemiller,def.;Chengd. Barney J.Reed, 15,15,14.Allstar Women--Final: Amy Feng d. Lily Yip,14,21; RR#1: Amy Feng 2-0; Irina Elkin 1-1,Joannie Fu 0-2; RR#2: Lily Yip 2-0; VirginiaSung 1 -1; Sandy Spilker 0-2.Allstar Seniors--Final: Dan Seemiller d. Parviz

Mojaverian, 16,14; SF: Seemillerd. Paul Pashuku,17,14; Mojaverian d. Dave Sakai, -16,15,19; QF:Seemiller d. Barney D. Reed. 17,17: Pashuku d.

Local star Mark Hazinski, Above,won Under 12 Boys over the U.S.'syoungest chopper, Casey McLeod,right, reversing their result when

Casey had won the U.S. ElementarySchool Championships at the Nation-

als. It was one of the most watchedmatches of the tournament

Morris Jackson, 15,14; Sakai d. HoushangBozorgzadeh, -20.8,16: Mojaverian d. TimBoggan, 14,12.

Allstar Under 18 Boys--Final: Barney J. Reedd. Norman Yeh, 16,12; SF: Reed d. Sunny Li,9,12; Yeh d. David Fernandez, -17,18,12: QF:Reedd. Anthony Torino, -21,11,11; Li d. DeepakJain, 17,18; Yeh d. Ashu Jain, n.s.; Fernandez d.Keith Alban, 15,15.

Allstar Under 18 Girls--Final: Irina Elkin d.Nicole Balmer, 7,2.

Allstar Under 16--Final: Anthony Torino &Keith Alban split final; SF: Torino d. GregKagavovich, n.s.; Alban d. T.J. Beebe, 10,13; QF:Torino d. Nate Troyer, 17,19; Kaganovich d. LoriSpilker, 10,8, Beebe d. Casey McLeod, 12,9;Alban d. Mehdi Paryavi, 10,7.

Over 40--Final: Dan Seemiller d. ParvizMojaverian, def.; SF: Seemiller d. DaveSakai, 18,18; Mojaverian d. Paul Pashuku,16,20: QF: Seemiller d. Ralph Stadelman,def.; Sakai d. Morris Jackson, def.; Pashukud. Ed Hogshead, def.; Mojaverian d.Mansoorali Abdulraso, def.

Over 50--Final: Tim Boggan d. Primo Mad-rigal, 18,18; SF: Boggan d. Paul Pearson,16.15; Madrigald. Leszek Filipowicz. 15,8.Over60--Final: Erce] Kernerd. TimBoggan,-16,20,21; SF: Kerner d. Gordon Barclay,1 1,9, Boggan d. R. Gerasta, 11,10.U2500--Final: Brian Masters d. Brandon

Olson, def.; SF: Mastersd. Barry Dattel, 18,-18,15;Olsond. Dennis Su, 16,17; QF: Mas-ten d. Lily Yip, n.s.; Dattel d. Norman Yeh,14,13; Su d. Petroi Florin, -15,12,15; Olsond. Dave Fernandez, -18,15,17.U2350--Final: Victor Tolkachev d. Dave

Sakai, 17,15: SF: Tolkachev d. Sharad Pandit,19,19; Sakai d. Mark Dubin, 13,15; QF:Tolkachev d. Virginia Sung, n.s.; Pandit d.Parviz Mojaverian, 18,18; Dubin d. BrandonOlson, -14,14,17; Sakai d. Todd Peterson,17,17.

U2200--Final: T.J. Beebe d. Keith Alban, -15,15,15; SF: Beebe d. Andy Ibanigor, -15,15,15; Alban d. Dylan Martis, -20,15,17.U2100--Final: Qiang Chen d. Jason Miller,16.14; SF: Cheng d. Barney D. Reed, 18,14;Miller d. Andy Ibanigor, 20,-19,15.U2000--Final: QiangChend. YusofRidzan,-14.16,10; SF: Chen d. David Amick, 14,14;Yusof d. Michelle Kada, 19,7.

U1900: AntonioGutierrezd. MichelleCada,18,-8,13.

U1800: Yi Liu d. Gary Podis, 12,13.U1675: Dennis Cobbd. Sherri Wilson, 11,19.

U1550: Sherri Wilson d. Michael Squires,def.

U1400: Randy Hewittd. Jerry Gullen, 13,11.U1200: Mark Hazinski d. Kashif Shaith, 19,-15,12.

U1000: Joey Clemmons d. Arthur Grundy7 Jr., 12,-13,12.g Novice Singles: RogerBlackd. Daniel Black,8 16,16.

F Under 12 Boys: Mark Hazinski d. Caseyt• McLeod, 18,-17,21. Under 12 Girls: Dorela Subonj d. Simonap Subonj, 9,17.g Under 10 Boys: Jordan Lynch d. Brett Baker,@ 8,14.

G Under 10 Girls: Nicole Balmer d. Dorela2 Subonj, 23.14.

Regional Under 18 Boys: Attila Viragh d.Michael Head, n.s.

Regional Under 16 Boys: Nate Troyer d.Greg Kaganovich, 19,-11,17.Regional Under 14 Boys: Stas Jelkovski d.Mark Hazinski, 13,18.

Regional Under 14 Girls: Simona Subonjd. Lori Spilker, n.s.

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U3600 Doubles: Victor Tolkachev/RandyHewitt d. Qiang Cheng/Joe Buckley, 14,14.U2800 Doubles: Victor Tolkachev/Jordan

Lynch d. Don Hamilton/James Hamilton, n.s.

July/August 1995

Dhaf„ 1- 146. A.ne 100&

1ST ANNUAL UNITED STATES CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPSAugusta, Georgia by Larry Hodges June 2-4, 1995 %/Butterfly

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Todd Sweeris, Cheng Yinghua and Brian Masters, representing the National Table Tennis Center from Maryland, won the National Club Championships in its first year.

0nly a few of us remember when the

U.S. Open Team ChampionshipsinDetroitwereactuallyacitycham-

pionships, where all players were requiredto be from the same area. Now, of course,

that tournament is open to any group of

players who gets together, leaving avacuum in our system.

Pete May's filled the vacancy, run-

ning the first annuak U.S. Club Champion-

ship in Augusta in June. instead of theannual Hall of Fame Open he'd been run-ning for years. The object of the tourna-ment, besides filling the obvious vacancy

was to let players play as many matches aspossible, especially for lower rated play-

ers. The higher rated players, of course.played for the $4,500 given away in theClub Championships, and over $3,500 inother events. Some also received free

rooms and free rental cars for the weekend,

care of Enterprise Rent-a-Car.It wasn't just a Club Championship.

Other events Call ran on Friday night)include the USATT's Allstar events:

Men's. Women's, Seniors, and Juniors.

The ever-popular Parade of Cham-

pions event was the only non-club, non-Allstar event, and this year the final was,well, how many ways can you say, "TheButler did it?" Or Butlers, that is, as Jim

Butler defeated brother Scott Butler in the

final, 3-0, for $100 and $50 (with $25

going to semifinalists Xin Peng & BrianPace. (Format for event is one game to

three points--you don't have to win by

two.) A change in the service rule led tosome interesting consequences. Previ-

ously, players alternated serves. Thisyear, whoever wasbehind served, while if

it was tied, whoever served the previouspoint served again. This led to morecomebacks and close matches, but also

ledtothe"Receiver'sLament" syndrome,

as Cheng Yinghua and Randy Cohen bothlost in the quarterfinals, both 3-2, with theopponents (Jim Butler & Scott Butler)

serving all five balls!U.S. CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS

The format for ihe first few rounds

were best of nine, with three players play-

ing for each team. Starting in the

quarterfinals, a new best-of-seven formatwasused. Each team listed theirplayers as

either ABC or XYZ, and each player

would play two of the opposing players,with neither team knowing who would

play who until both teams showed their

34 Table Tennis Today

order. This added some randomness to

the matches as well as some psychologi-cal tactics as each team tried to guess inadvance whattheotherteam's order would

be so they could match up their players inthe best order. I f the match was tied up 3 -3, the deciding seventh match would be adoubles match between any two playersfrom each side.

SemifinalsNational Table Tennis Center

(Rockville, Maryland)VS

South Park Table Tennis Club

(Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)

Both sides knew going in that for theunderdog South Park Team (DanSeemiller, Dave Fernandez, Barney J.

Reed) to win against NTTC (ChengYinghua, Todd Sweeris, Brian Masters),

they'd probably need Dan to win twomatches, which meant they'd want an

order where Dan would avoid playing the

NTTC ace, Cheng. ("Cheng = 3," saidBrian.) However, the NTTC team cor-

rectly guessed the South Park order (onechance in six), and got the order theywanted.

Cheng started things off with a 8,14

win overDave "Why'dyouputnze againsthim.7" Fernandez. Cheng prepared forthis tournament in his usual way--he slept

about 14 hoursaday fortwodays inarow.

"He's a world-class sleeper," said room-mate Todd Sweeris of Cheng' s pre-tour-

nament preparation. On 8 hours sleep,

Cheng's a 2700-2750 player. With 10-12hours, he's 2800. With 14 hours--who

knows?

In match two, Dan and Todd were

going at it like tigers, with Dan taking an

early lead, only to see Todd start to scoreover and over on Dan's serve in winning

the first, 21-18. Dan won the next game

easily, 21-14. In the third. up 8-7, Dan ranit out, winning 21-9 on a 13-2 spun. Thismatch won the "best rallies of the tourna-

ment" award, with vicious topspin rallies

punctuated by sudden Seemiller chops.The next two matches were relatively

uneventful, as Brian Masters pulled away

at the end of each game to defeat BarneyJ. Reed at 17 & 16, and Cheng ran overSeemiller, 11 & 4.

Brian Masters won the first againstDave, 2 1 - 16, but from 1 3- 11 up loses the

second, 21-16. In the third, Brian pulls

away, and despite a last-minute come-

back by Dave to pull with in three at 19-16, Brian serves it out, 21-17 in the thirdto advance NTTC intothe final over South

Park, 4-1.

USA Augusta

(Augusta, Georgia)VS

Potomac Country Table Tennis Club

(Potomac, Maryland)It started out as a rout for Augusta, as

they pulled to a 3-0 lead in the best ofseven format. Augusta's Razvan Cretu

started it off by defeating Sean Lonerganat 16 & 17. Sean O'Neill of Potomac

came from way down to win the first

against Jim Butler, but fell short in thematch, -18, 10, 13. Match three was

between Augusta's chopper Derek Mayand Potomac's Amy Feng, but long be-

fore this match made it co the final game,

Augusta's Jim Butler had defeated SeanLonergan (avenging his loss at the lastU.S. Nationals), at 13 & 10, giving Au-

gusta a 3-0 lead. When Derek won the

first against Amy, 21- 14, the lead lookedinsurmountable

So Potomac went about trying to sur-mount it. Amy won the next two gameseasily, at 14 & 13, to set up the BIG AmyFeng/Razvan Cretu match.

Why was it big? Because if Amy(who has a history of defeating left-

handers) defeats Razvan, it's 3-2, with

Sean O'Neill up against Derek May, whohe'sneverlostto. The O'Neill-May match

began with O'Neill winning the first, 21-

5. If Amy wins against Razvan, then it's

all down to the Sean O'Neill/Amy Fengversus Jim Butler/Razvan Cretu doubles

match, both strong lefty-righty doublesteams. You call it.

However, Razvan seems to be win-

ning in a rout, taking the first 21-11, and

leading 13-7,19-15 in the second. Amy

scores the next point. but now it's 19-16,Razvan to serve--and Amy scores all fi ve !

21-19, Amy, and it's into the third.

Talk about a topsy-·turvey match, howabout this?

From 8-9 Amy's lead in the third:

• Amy scores four in a row to lead 8-13;• Razvan scores three in a row, 11-13;

• Amy scores three in a row to lead 11- 16;• Razvan scoressixinarowtolead 17-16;

• Amy scores three in a row to lead I 7-19;• Razvan scores four in a row to lead 21-

19...and win the game, the niatch, and the tie!

Final

National Tabk Tennis Center

(Rockville, Maryland)VS

USA Augusta(Augusta, Georgia)

Once again, the order counts, as the

NTTC team wants Cheng Yinghua to play

Jim Butler, while the Augusta team wantsJim to get the two "sure" wins over ToddSweeris and Brian Masters. For the sec-

ond time in a row, the NTTC team cor-

rectly guesses the opponent's order, with

Cheng and Jim to play in the first match.

In the first, Jim is up 19-16 with theserve...and Cheng scores all five to win,21-19!

In the second, it looks like a rout as

Cheng goes up 12-5. Jim pulls to 17-13and 19-16, Cheng serving. Jim rips a

forehand loop off Cheng's first serve to

pull to 19-17,butmissesabackhandsmash

the next rally as Cheng gets a 20-17 match

point. This time it's Jim's turn to come

back, scoring the next three to deuce it.

But Jim tries to smash Cheng' s backhandloop and misses, and then gets caught

when Cheng serves fast down the line.After a rather wild rally with Jim blockingfrom about eight feet back, Jim gets backto the table, only to block off. Match to

Cheng, 19 & 20.Match #2 is an all-lefty affair be-

tween NTTC"s Brian Masters and

Augusta's Razvan Cretu. Brian leads thefirst 20-17, but Razvan comes back to

deuce...only to lose it, 23-21. In the sec-ond, from 14-all, the two are never more

than a point apart, until Brian finally pullsit out, 22-20. Match to the Master, 21 &

20. NTTC is now 4-0 in deuce or 19

games.

Match #3 is between Todd Sweeris

and chopper Derek May. Well before thefirst game is over, Cheng and Razvan

have played match #4, with Cheng again

winning easily, 14 & 8, to give NTTC a 3-0 lead.

Todd leads 20- 17, but after missing

an easy smash of Derek's soft topspin at

20-19, it's deuce again as for the thirdtime in this final tie, a 20-17 lead is blown.

Up 21-20, Derek pops a ball up, Todd

smashes, and it's the rally to end all ral-lies! Todd'sjustoneshot fromdeucing itup, but Derekkeeps returning each smash-

-C'mon, already, youcanreturn all the loop

July/August 1995

Photo by Michael Wetzel ©1995

kills you want, but not these angled-offsmashes ! But return them he does, and

Todd finally misses an "easy" smash tolose the game--but only after making whoknows how many "easy" smashes. TheAugusta home crowd goes positively crazy.

In the second, Todd again takes a biglead, this time 17-11. Is it safe? Up 20-17(uh-oh!), Todd misses a smash, a loop--and it's 20-19. ("Todd makes me ner-vous!" a nervous Brian Masters said.) But

a fast no-spin serve to the elbow ends thegame as Derek chops it into the net.

In the third, Todd relentlessly attacksand takes a big lead--this time 18-9,19-10, finally 20-11. Can Derek?...not thistime, as Todd (whose weightlifting reallyseems to have added to his looping power)wins the game, match and tie, -20, 19, 12.ALLSTAR EVENTS

Altstar Men

In the early rounds, most went asexpected. In the 8ths, Dave Fernandez

pushed Jim Butler to three games. andMichael Hyatt upset Allstar SeniorCham-pion Dan Seemiller. but all other seededplayers won 2-0. (All matches, includingthe final, were best of three.)

Three of the quarterfinal matcheswere also easy 2-0 wins for the higher

seed as Cheng Yinghua defeated DerekMay (15, 14), Brian Masters defeatedMichael Hyatt (15, 15), and Jim Butlerdefeated Todd Sweeris (16,16). The big

upset was Razvan Cretu over SeanO'Neill,at 20 & 11. Razvancan match Sean powerfor power on the forehand, but isn't quite

as quick in stepping around. No problem;Razvan's backhand loop has as muchpower as just about any of the top fore-

hands in the tournament. When a guy'sgot two guns like that, what can you do?

Semifinats:

Cheng Yinghua vs. Brian MastersBrian has a great blocking game, a

great change of pace with his antispinsurfaceon one side (Seemillergrip), goodserves, a consistent forehand loop, and

lots of experience. None of which both-ered Cheng in the least. Cheng won thefirst 21-8. At 5-17 in the second, Brian

seemed to give up and missed his ownserve three times in a row on purpose, 5-

20. Then, as the unsuspecting Chengserved a simple topspin, Brian became atiger, and played two great rallies in win-

ning the next twopoints. Thecrowd lovedit, but Cheng put aquick end to the"come-back." Match to Cheng, 8 & 7.Jim Butler vs. Razvan Cretu

Jim Butler has quite a "forehand" onhis backhand side, with easily the bestbackhand smash in the U.S., and one of

the best in the world. So he' s not afraid to

take Razvan on, backhand to backhand--

just stay away from that ripper backhand

loop! Which is what Jim did in the first,winning 21-9. After watching Chengagainst Brian in the other semifinals (seeabove), and now this game, I wrote in my

notebook, "Semifinals not very pretty,completely lopsided games." I wouldshortly have to cross that out.

In the second, Razvan goes up 6-0,and pretty much runs out this game.Razvan showed a great off-the-table top-

spin touch, and won about as many pointswith consistent, defensive topspins againstJim's attack as by ripping winners.

The third starts out all Jim, who takes

a 10-5 lead at the switch, then 11-5. But

Razvan gradually comes back--wheneverhe makes a good service return. he seems

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to win the point on Jim's serve after agreat topspinrally. Razvan pulls to withinone, down 16-15, before Jim pulls awayto lead 20-17. Razvan pulls off a fero-cious counterloop off the bounce to make

it 20-18, but Jim loops a winner the nextpoint to win the match, 9,-9,18.Final:

Cheng Yinghua vs. Jim ButlerWell rested with about 16 hours sleep,

Cheng was almost overconfident going

into the match. Jim took an early 7-5 and11-9 lead, but Cheng tied it and began to

pull away, going up 16-14. Jim tied it at

17-all, but Cheng served & looped a fore-hand winner. Jim, who mostly serves longto Cheng and tries to follow with hardbackhands, serves from down 17-18--and

Cheng backhand loops both, one for a

winner, the other to set up forehand loop.Down 17-20, Jim serve & loops winner,then wins a backhand exchange, 19-20.The crowd, mostly cheering for home-

town favorite Jim, cheers loudly, but thenhushes complete as Jim gets set to serve--then serves into the net, to the groans ofthe crowd....

The second game is close to 10-all,with Cheng saying "yes!" each time he

scores. Serving from down 10-12, Jimserves off the end twice in a row, and it's

all downhill this game for him. Finals to

the spinning & blocking Cheng Yinghua,19&12.

Allstar Women

Amy Feng had no trouble in winningthe Allstar Women's event, with no one

rated within 800 points ofher2562 rating.Only five entered the event, and one didn'tshow. Andrea Butler had a default from

the no-show, and so reached the final

without playing a match, while Amy had

to play one. In the final, Andrea gave acreditable performance in the final, butAmy was too strong, winning at 11& 13.Alistar Seniors

As expected, Dan Seemiller easily

ran through the competition in winningstill another Allstar Senior event, an event

he's been undefeated in for over a year.

This time he faced Xin Peng in the final,rated 2461 (to Dan's 2579). However,

Dan was quite comfortable against the

Augusta coach and pips-out penholder,and continued his undefeated streak, 15 &

14. George Cooper and Barney D. Reedeach made the semifinals.

Alistar Juniors

The USATT's starting up the JuniorAllstar event several months ago could bea landmark decision--the idea's been pro-

posed for years. This year could be theperfect time to put it in place, as we seem

·ilt: : i f . D.:

The Hometown Augusta Team (Jim Butler, Derek May, Razvan Cretu) made the final

to have one of the best young players inmany years. Led by Maryland's 12-year-old Sunny Li (2235), Miami's 1 1-year-old Keith Alt= (2205), Atlanta's 13-year-old T.J. Beebe (2169), and

California's 13-year-old Philip Lim(2147), and many others, the U.S. men'steam for the 2001 Worlds is well on its

way toward beating the 44-year-old-to-beCheng Yinghua and all other corners.

Of course. well before those 2001

Worlds will be the 1997 and 1999 worlds-

-and hoping to make those teams will beBarney J. Reed & Dave Fernandez, thefinalists inthe AIlstar Under 18 here. Who

knows what the real scores were--I didn't

see the match--but according to Reed &Fernandez, regular practice partners,Reedwon the match, -24. 30, 21. Should we

believe it? The two juniors also teamedup with Senior Allstar Champion DanSeemiller to place third in the U.S. ClubChampionships.

Miami's Anthony Torino. who is ei-

ther a starting linebacker for the Miami

Dolphins or the largest 15-year-old intable tennis history, defeated small-for-his-age and practice partner Keith Albanin the semifinals of Allstar Under 16 in a

David & Goliath match-up, with Goliathpulling it out. Torino went on to defeatT.J. Beebe in the finals. Strangely, both of

Torino's wins mentioned here were by

scores of 19.-19.19, Beebe defeatedchop-per Casey MeLeod in the other semifi-nals, 11 & 14.

Results:

Final: National Table Tennis Center

¢Rockville, MD) d. USA Augusta (GA),4-0: Cheng Yinghua/NTTC d. Jim Butler/AUG, 19.20; Brian Masters/NTTC d.

Razvan Cretu/AUG,21.20; Todd Sweeris/

NTTC d. Derek May/AUG, -20,19,12;

Cheng d. Cretu, 14,8.

SF#l: NTTC d. South Park (Pittsburgh,PA),4-1: Cheng Yinghua/NTTC d. Dave

Fernandez/PITT, 8,14; Dan Seemiller/

PITT d. Todd Sweeris/NTTC, -18,14.9,

Brian Masters/NTTC d. Barney J. Reed/PITT, 17,16; Cheng d. Seemiller, 11,4;Masters d. Fernandez, 16,-16,17.

SF#2: USAAugustad. PCTTC(Potomac,

MD), 4-1: Razvan Cretu/AUG d. Sean

Lonergan/PCTTC , 15,17; Jim Butler/AUG d. Sean O'Neill/PCTTC, -18,10.13;

Amy Feng/PCUC d. Derek May/AUG, -14,14,13; Butlerd.Lonergan, 13,10:Cretu

d. Feng, 11,-19.19;3rd: PCTTC d. South Park, 1-3;

QF: NTTC d. AugustaCollege (GA), 4-0;South Park d. Loop It UP (Atlanta, GA),

4-l; PCTTC i Paine College (Augusta,GA), 4-2; USA Augusta d. Newgy's

Robo's (Miami, FL), 4-0;

8ths: NTTC d. Hippodrome (Augusta), 5-0; Augusta College d. Plantation (Mi-ami), 5-1; Loop It Up d. Young Bunch(Miami), 5-0; South Park d. Crawford

(Augusta), 5-2; PCTTC d. NBHA (Au-gusta), 5-0; Paine College d. Serve &Drive (Miami), 5-0; Newgy's Robos d.

Central Atlanta. 5-l; USA Augusta d.Raleigh, 5-0.Final Standings:

1 st: NTTC (Rockville, MD)

2nd: USA Augusta (Augusta, GA)3rd: PCTTC (Potomac, MD)

4th: South Park (Pittsburgh, PA)

5th: Paine College (Augusta, GA)6th: Augusta College (Augusta, GA)7th: Loop It Up (Atlanta, GA)8th: Newgy's Robo's (Miami, FL)Allstar Men--Final: Cheng Yinghua d.Jim Butler, 19,12; SF: Cheng d. BrianMasters, 8,7; J. Butler d. Razvan Cretu,

9,-9,18; QF: Cheng d. Derek May, 15,14;

Masters d. Michael Hyatt, 15,15; Cretu d.Sean O'Neill, 20,11; J. Butler d. Todd

Sweeris, 16,16: Sths: Cheng d. Randy

Cohen, 20,6; May d. Barney J. Reed,18,15; Masters d. Scott Butler, 19,36 (?D;

Hyatt d. Dan Seemiller, 15,15; O'Neill d.Sohail Khan, 9,11; Cretu d. Sean

Lonergan, 10,19; Sweeris d. Brian Pace,16,22; J. Butler d. Dave Fernandez, -

17,10,17.

Allstar Women--Final: Amy Feng d

Andrea Butler, 11,13; SF: Feng d. JanineGelb, 5,6; Butler d. Cathy Harper, def.Allstar Senior Men--Final: Dan

Seemiller d. Xin Peng, 15,14; SF:

Seemiller d. George Cooper, 18,16; Pengd. Barney D. Reed, 14,15; QF: Seemillerd. Richard McAfee, def.; Cooper d. StanKusia Sr., 11,21: Reed d. Thomas Nunes,

def.; Peng d. Steve Federico, 5,13.

Allstar Under 18--Final: Barney J. Reedd. Dave Fernandez, -24,30,21 (?!); SF:Reed d. T.J. Beebe, 21,15; Fernandez d.

Keith Alban, 17,9; QF: Fernandez d.

Anthony Torine, 10,12; Alban d. RyanMcQuillan, 10,16; Beebe d. CaseyMeLeod, 8,10; Reedd.CaryCohen, 13,13.Allstar Under 16--Final: Anthony Torinod. T.J. Beebe, 19,-19,19; SF: Torino d.

Keith Alban, 19,-19,19; Beebe d. CaseyMcLeod, 11,14; QF: Alban d. GeoffAiken, 10,14; Torino d. Tobb Gorlick,

18,19; McLeodd. Brandon Parker, 10.19;

Beebe d. Stevenson Edouard, 6,8.

Parade of Champions (3-pt. games)--Final: Jim Butler d. Scott Butler, 3-0; SF:J. Butler d. Brian Pace; S. Butler d. Xin

Peng; QF: J. Butler d. Cheng Yinghua;Pace d. Ty Hoff; S. Butler d. RazvanCretu; Pen d. Todd Sweeris.

.Iulv/August 1995 Trihle Tonnir TnA,ni 14

Photo by Michael Wetzel ©1995

INTERVIEW WITH KHOA NGUYEN

U.S. Team Member...#2 UntoA pinipor in TT g

by Larry I

-,=3%

©294

8E

TTToday Over this past year, you reallyseem to have improved a lot, from a con-

sistent 2600 player to over 2700. At theLouisiana Open you beat Jimmy Butlertwice and you beat Cheng Yinghua onceand almost a second time. What are the

things that you have been working on toget this improvement?Khoa: There are actually a lot of things

that I have chosen to do during this lastyear. You realize that I just got marriedabout a year and a half ago, that's really achange. I am really committed to playing

now. Actually I just have a few moreyears left, so I am trying harder. I have abetter coach now, Marcel, as well as Per

G. Johansson, and it's a lot more fun now

too.

I./*/- I -I 'kJ

lodges

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TTToday: Whai type of things do youread?

Khoa: Justcomputermagazines, that's it,but I don't have a lot of time anymore·-just keeping up with technology becauseit helps my career, and it' s pretty interest-ing.

TTToday: What technical thing& haveimproved in your ganie this #sty*}*Khoa: I have been doing lots of physibltraining for the first time.

TTToday: What type of physical train- 41ing?Khoa: Weight training and some run-ning, mostly distance running. I combineit with weight training, seems to work outokay.TTToday: Several people have com-

ever else is needed. It'11 help a lot.TTToday. What does Dr. Nguyen do for aliving?Khoa: He's a certified surgeon at a local

hospital, plus he is president of a profes-sional world organization.TTToday: What is the correct pronuncia-tion of your last name?Khoa: "Nguyen" is pronounced "Win."TTToday: How old are you, and where doyou live?Khoa: I'm 27, from San Jose, California.

TTToday. What's your home club?Khoa: The Palo Alto Table Tennis Club.

TTToday: Who else plays there?Khoa: Chi-Sun Chui and De Tran playthere, and some others whose names I

can't understand. Jimmy Guan also playsthere.

TTToday: How old were you when youcame to the U.S.? Why did you come tothe US?

Khoa: Our family came to.:the U.S. in1975 when I was about 8029*2:ars old.That's when I startedptayf*gaRdmyDadtaught me how to limy.{ Thad::tworoldetjbrothers and theyplay**With me. Ikia*dgoing to tournament*andkeptat it. I justlike the game.

TTToday: You didn't actually start play-ing until you played in the U.S«:right' °4:··:Khoa: Yeah.

77Today: Describe y®ti*jai#gl"'914'how would you best/¢#>*p>:. . iKhoa: I'm mgS***®%54*#*14%41 close to the tabl¢*fi#8**itit*4**A/lTTn®0*?**}*6*6*pe***4*g

.:

table tennlill/mil'/.IM.....*h¢; B ad %i@**nbU ke*#¢F*t*@¢{j2.Fbat*m*ai

f:>*24»52$2%8§522kI:ti' ·*»< ,n»§*tiet#4»*%94-*40*443admire or really *01*B®*I***4****developing?Khoa: Jan-Ove W.**3.***91%9plays the game, he'4###***fii**lf¢%.TTToday: He'sgetti#*01®ti**0*thil*.that he will stay 0**#f*** Ch"=Al.players Kong Lin#I***¢¢444*i**fcatch him permantentl#?' . : ·.·· <<:t <} .i · i .Khoa: I still thinki*N¢*1*21*ANFOE best player in th¢*6##*#%44%31***that he is the fav¢@**0*I¢¢91¥0#4€tin 1996.

TTToday: Tell fulitit#41¥#0*4?%*-Khoa: Well, th«%4044**4***IytTTToday: The 1@*t¥**I¢**1#4*dhow many team mafEii*¢444%49.-/Khoa: We playedlft€ainfmitches, buttwo teams didn't show up£TTToday: So the U,S.t Team actuallyplayed nine. oH;iwmm*did you play?Khoa: I didn't *et toplay in any teammatches 13*93,5

TTToday: Goingl@*the tournament whatwas your ratingand ranking in the U.S.?

Khoa: I 4*ii**42727, and ranked #2.TTToday: S*mEpeople thought it wasunfair that /*ent to the Worlds, youwere rankednuiiiber two in the countryand had beatenlim Butler twice in Loui-

siana and Cheng once and almost beathim twice, and than they didn't play youin any of the team matches. Why didn't

they play you?

Khoa: I was a little disappointed becauseI entered the training camp just before the

worlds and that was one of my goals thisyear, to make the Worlds, so it was just

unfortunate that it happened and I hope itnever happens to another player

TTToday: Darko Rop also didn't play:Khoa: Yes, he was disappointed also.TTToday: In actual trials, you came infifth. The top four players were fully

funded. Were you fully funded?Khoa: No, I wasn't fully funded.TTToday: How much did that come out to?Khoa: It came out to about $1600, but myfriends: Brian Thomas, Tracy Daughteryand Jacob Dieon really helped me outwith the $1600. They raised that amountof money for me and that' s why 1 decidedto go. But then the USATT let me knowthat they would put in a $1000 for me andso than my friends didn't have to put inthat much; combined they put in $500.They were niceenough to raisethe money,so I decided to go.

TTToday: How many actual matches didyou play at the Worlds?

Khoa: I playedatotal of4 singles matchesand I got past the [3-round] qualifiers. Inthe first round (the round of 128) I lost to

Thomas Janci from the Czech Republic.TTToday: Did you play doubles?Khoa: I played doubles with Gonzalez

from the Philippines. He's achopper, andwe didn't play that well. I doubt if we

would have had a chance anyway. Welost in the first round of the qualifiersTTToday: How many times have youbeen on the U.S. National Team?

Khoa: First time was in 1987 and I have

been on the team every year since except*in 1989. In 1991 I made the team, but

couttln'tgo tothe Worlds-butI made the1'993team and the 1995 team.

11-fjluy: How many worlds have you%*ctually played in?INbat China would be my third worlds,

43*41*tirth Worlds that I couldn'tgo towas

3(3hihi Japan, in 1991. 977@Way: How come you couldn't go?

%%*hoa: I couldn't get off work. 4i¢*77;*lay: I think John Onifade had that g4**fem once, too ! What has been your E§*.*sults at the Nationals so far?4*ho"*i Probablyin 1993 when I made the <%*mij'4.

tional team member makinggoi

"When a junior sees a nan

all that money, he's

TTToday: That'skindofatwist. Formost

people, once they're married·-that's whentheir careers come to an end. but you seemto be the reverse.

Khoa: Yeah, but I guess that I am adifferent case and I enjoy marriage now-my wife Pauline is very supportive of

what I do and that seems to carry out to my

table tennis playing.TTToday. What do you do·for a living?Khoa: I am a program analyst for Silicon

Graphics, Inc. They helped do some ofthe technical work on the movie Jurassic

Park, although I wasn' t directly relatedwith that.

TTToday: What type of things do you dooutside of Table Tennis?

Khoa: Well, at the moment I don't have a

lot of time to do many things, butif I havetime, I try golf, basketball or volleyball.But at the moment it's hard to find the

time. I work full time and then I practice

and my time is all used up. At the momentI don't have a lot of free time.

TTToday: You don't have any hobbies or

anything like that right now?Khoa: No.

TTToday: So atthe moment it's just table

tennis, work and family?

Khoa: Basically, that's it, right. I do reada lot of books and try to keep up with mycomputer updates, so that keeps me prettybusy

ng to want to do it."

mented that your calves look larger andare bulging. Is that due to weight training

or running, or both?Khoa: Yeah, thats from the weight train-

ing.TTToday: What type of technical thingsat the table have you worked on?Khoa: A lot of footwork drills, playingthe ball all over the table, things like that.A lot of different drills for backhand and

forehand rallying and counterlooping

TTToday: Several peoplehavementionedthat your backhand has gotten a lot better:Khoa: 1 attribute that to my footwork

TTToday: Backhand footwork practice?

Khoa: No, just footwork in general, and

backhand loop drills because I get in abetter position, so I do lots of practice with

my backhand.

TTToday: What kind of equipment doyou use?

Khoa: Right now I am using a DonicAppelgren All-around Blade and Mark V.

TTToday: Are you sponsored?Khoa: No, I am not sponsored, at least not

by a table tennis company.

TTToday: So your table tennis, you haveto pay for everything on your own, is that

right?

Khoa: Well. right now, I have a sponsorand he's Dr. Nguyen, no relation to me.

He's going to sponsor me and pay for ailmy expenses for tournaments and what-

%1 Are you planning on doing @

t*hytn#tspecific to train for the Olympic EE·.all"M ·ji u,

KtioN¥*h, right after this tournament Ift*i***D* month off. For the trials, I am<4*6*Agio.tmin harder than ever before,f *hard6*than last summer by doing more*different things so that I can prepare for

the Olympic Trials. I plan to do morephysical training.TTToday. What was different when you

played Jim Butler this tournament, withhim winning a close one, as opposed to theLouisianaOpen, where you beathim twice?Khoa: Well, I didn't feel good coming tothis tournament, I was getting burned out

from the training. I played pretty good,but I could have played better.

TTToday: 'What do you think that theUSATT should do to improve in the U.S.?

Khoa: There are so many possibilities.

They could go out and try to find sponsorsfor the national team or for the juniorplayers. I don't think it's that difficult to

find a sponsorbut I don't think anyone'sdoing it at the moment. We should try tostart up a professional league in the U.S.These kinds of things are not that difficult

to do but no one is in charge of doingthem. Setting up a league wouldn't be

difficult, just start small, it'd grow bigger.

It' s done in so many other sports, why nottable tennis? If the U.S ever wants an

Olympic Gold Medalist or World Cham-

pion, they'll have to have the money totrain the national team. That's where it

starts. When ajunior sees a national teammember making all that money, he's go-ing to want to do it.

36 Table Tennis Today July/August 1995

FORTY-FOUR FOREHANDS AT FOUR 1995 Member Survey ResultsTara Hendrickson and the B.T.T.A Girls' Exhibition Team

by Nancy PersaudHow would you rate the following....When Tara Hendrickson

first came to Bartlesville's

Smith-Taylor Table TennisExcellent Good Fair Poor BlankCenter in October, 1994, it

Otherwas simply to accompanyher mom, Julie and her dad,

Ratings 326 (28%) 620 (53%) 175 (15%) 36 (3%) 15 (1%)Steve, (Bartlesville TableTennis Association Presi-

Value Of 166 (14%) 544 (46%) 364 (32%) 71 (6%) 27 (2%)dent), and herbrother, Jacob,MembershipB.T.T.A. Boys U-10Champ.

The girls' coach asked ifTaraUSA11' 87 (8%) 446 (38%) 420 (36%) 180 (15%) 39 (3%)wanted to play. Her parents

indicated that her attention Communicationspan was too short. she wasnot that coordinated, she Magazine format 104 (17%) 674 (58%) 207 (18%) 40 (3%) 47 (4%)didn't take instruction that

well. and she had "a mind of Magazine 183 (16%) 624 (53%) 266 (23%) 47 (4%) 52 (4%)her own." content/focus

Six months later, at the

age of almost five, Tara hit Timeliness 135 (12%) 487 (42%) 330 (28%) 164 (14%) 56 (4%)44 forehands in a row with

Elite programs 95 (8%) 419 (36%) 238 (2%) 72 (6%) 348 (30%)no misses. She has a greatbackhand stroke, can hit

"back and forths," has hit Junior programs 40 (3%) 270 (23%) 331 (28%) 222 (20%) 309 (26%)over 30 serves in a tow,

Grassroots 16 (1%) 162 (14%) 299 (26%) 404 (34%) 291 (25%)serves forehand and back-

hand, is learning to attackCoaching 61 (5%) 269 (23%) 394 (34%) 189 (16%) 259 (22%)and return attack, has per-

formed in two exhibitions,Clubs 47 (49 239 (23%) 361 (31%) 313 (27%) 212 (18%)plays singles and doubles,

drills on the robot, and has Tara HendricksonMerchandising 36 (3%) 262 (23%) 380 (32%) 215 (18%) 279 (24%)attended a camp coached by

Barney D. Reed. Reed says Tara exhibits talents that could make her theUS Open 156 (13%) 476 (41%) 171 (15%) 37 0%) 332 (28%)national U-10 Champ at age six.

Tara's 1000-watt facial expression when she plays proves that she US Nationals 170 (15%) 498 (42%) 148 (13%) 18 (2%) 338 (28%)plays forthe sheer delight ofit. She's never sure she's done well by other'sstandards until they tell her. Once she was praised for hitting 16 in a row.Another time she was complimented for a hitting streak of 11. When shewent home, she asked her mother, "Is 11 more than 16?"

Fortunately, Tara still has that necessary mark of a future champion, On a scale of 1 to 10, how important do you consider the following. .a mind of her own. And she has her priorities straight. The B.T.T.A.coaches are slow to get excited about new promising girls, having lost so

many to othercontemporary American pursuits. So Tara was given a quiz Feo Less Not Blanklone day.

important important important OtherCoach: If you can be a cheerleader when you're 15, but you'd have to quittable tennis, what would you do? (1-3) (4-7) (8-10)Tara: Play table tennis.Questioner: If you could do gymnastics or play table tennis, what wouldyou do?

Approved 137 (12%) 262 (22%) 439 (37%) 334 (29%)

Tara: Play table tennis. Equipment ListTara's Mom: If you could eat candy or play table tennis, which wouldyou choose? Coaching 375 (32%) 429 (37%) 192 (17%) 176 (14%)Tara: Eat candy !

Tara is on the B.T.T.A. Girl's Practice Team. When she can hit 20 Local Clubs 608 (52%) 308 (26%) 137 (12%) 119 (10%)forehands, 20 backhands, and 20 back and forths, she'Il get her pink cardthat shows she's on the Girls' Exhibition Team. She comes to team International 228 (20%) 412 (36%) 324 (28%) 208 (16%)practices with Exhibition Team members Brianne Ballard, Angela Par-sons, Whitney Richards, Andrea Oliver, Natalie Bogan, Erica Bogan Events & News(noticethehopefully-prophetic name!), Lindsey Hollifield, Lacy Saltzman,and Shelly Kaufman, ages 8-13. At practices, the exhibition routine is Magazine 401 (34%) 460 (39%) 180 (16%) 131 (11%)rehearsed and consistency records are routinely broken. Some recordsinclude Brianne Ballard's over 1200 paddle bounces in the air and over Member 155 (13%) 283 (24%) 391 (34%) 343 (29%)700 big-ball forehands and 23 mini-paddle (diameter 11/2") forehands.Other achievements are Angela and Lindsey's 100 forehands together discounts(records are usually made hitting with coaches), Natalie's 112 back and

forths, Shelly's 80 serves in arow, Whitney and Brianne's fourgames each Merchandise 123 (10%) 315 (27%) 442 (38%) 292 (25%)played showing model sportswomanship, Andrea's lob kills (20), andnewest player Lacy's 306 paddle bounces. All the girls have shown Ratings 417 (36%) 414 (35%) 186 (16%) 155 (13%)immense improvement in fundamentals and consistency.The exhibition routine, which has been performed for local TV and as awarm-up routine foran exhibitionby Barney J. Reedand DavidFemandez, Sport 426 (36%) 390 (33%) 195 (17%) 161 (14%)is done to the recorded play of Sweet Georgia Brown. The girls line up Recognitionat one end of the table with one or two coaches at the opposite end. Eachhits a few of a specified shot, then skips steps to the side and goes to the Television 338 (29%) 364 (32%) 288 (25%) 182 (14%)back ofthe line while the nextgirl continues without stopping theball. Thegirls hit forehand, backhand, back and forths, and lobs and kills. In

Tournaments 656 (56%) 297 (25%) 114 (10%) 105 (9%)doubles formation, they hit back and forths with one ball and one coach,then two balls and two coaches. The girls wear identical pink shirts andare a "smashing" success, the B.T.T.A. and Tara Hendrickson, highlyrecommend this type of activity for clubs desiring to increase junior girl'sparticipation, interest, enjoyment and skill-level. *These results were compiled from a total of 1,17 2 surveysJuly/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 37

.-

4XC:.1.:...:*3%%0

rABLE TENNIS FLOURISHES IN MARYLAND!by Julian Waters

Two and a half years ago I saw an article in a localpaper about Cheng Yinghua and the National TableTennis Centerand sincethen my li fe has radically changed.

C..1,?2.-Iff@te.. .

1%

Itt

Teekaveerakit and Chang-Shing Hsu), and soon the areabegan to really explode. Soon, the PCTTC had virtuallyreached its limit-the club only meets twice a week (with12 tables). The PCTTC annual tournament is very popu-lar. While only a three-star event. this year's PotomacOpen attracted an even stronger field than the U.S.Nationals!

About five miles away in Rockville. about 15 milesnorth of Washington D.C., the National Table TennisCenter (NTTC) was begun in [992 as aprivate venture byCheng Yinghua. Jack Huang and Larry Hodges. TheNTTC has survived withoutany funding from the USTTAwhatsoever. (In fact, it sends about $500/month to USATT

in sanctioning, membership. rating and advertising fees.)The original center had ten tables, but late in 1993 wemoved to a new 10,000 square foot center, with threeplaying rooms, 16 tables, an office/pro shop and loungeareas. The NTTC is open seven nights a week (anddaytimes fortopplayers in training), runs popularmonthlytournaments (36 so far) and regular coaching camps. Thetournaments attract an eclectic mix of enthusiasts from

Maryland, D.C., Virginia and Pennsylvania as well as topplayers from further away, such as David Zhuang, AbassEkun and Virginia Sung. Over 100 hours of coaching

U.S. player ever to be rated over 2800;• The top two women in the country: Gao Jun. ranked 3rdin the world, and Amy Feng, 3-time U.S. Women'sChampion (although if the rumors are true, she hasmoved away, alas...);• 9 current or past members of the U.S., China, Taiwanand Nigerian National Teams:

I had moved to Maryland from England as a teenager andnow, more than twenty years later I discovered that I wasliving in the best area for table tennis in the wholecountry ! As kids in England my brothers and 1 had playedping pong with really dead paddles (bats) in our garageand in this country we played sporadically in the base-ment. We thought we were really hot. Nobody in theneighborhood could touch us. But I had never seen"real"table tennis until the first night I walked info the NTTC,in January 1993. Director Larry Hodges emerged fromhis office area and greeted me with a stupefying barrageof table tennis trivia: famous players back to the fifties,equipment, technique, USATT politics etc., etc. Eventu-ally I escaped, found a seat and just watched for a while.It was amazing. Later I found out that on this "average"night there were more highly rated 2200+ players justpracticing there than you might normally find at manytournaments. What impressed me the most was howmany of them were looping and counter looping fromwaaay off the table, something I had previously seen onlyonce or twice on TV.

I joined the club and started playing with people nearmy own level, entered my first tournament. receiving ahumbling initial rating of 600 or so. I joined a groupbeginning class taught by Larry Hodges, Cheng Yinghua(U.S. #1) and Jack Huang (then U.S. # 2) and started onthe long road to try to shed old bad habits and learn bettertechnique. After a few tournaments and a few months ofweekly private lessons with Jack I.progressed to about1600 before leveling offfor a while. I have some goals intable tennis, but at 38 1:am realistic enough to be in itmainly for fun and exercise. On any night I could bepracticing with another "hacker," a talented junior or awily senior, On the next table could be almost anyone -from first timers off the street to visitingpros fromexotic

countries; from the newest phenom, tiny 8 year old HanXiao, to his teacher, Cheng Yinghua. I'm totally hookedand absolutely havetoplay alleast twice a week. My wifeand two children are still adjusting to my healthy addie-tion.

Over the years there havt been several smaller clubs

in the Washington DC area, most notably YvonneKronlage's club in Columbia. But table tennis reallybegan to take off through the Potomae Country TableTennis Club (PCTTC), which began in 1987 through theorganizational efforts of the local Chinese community.From the start, the club emphasized youth and coaching.The PCTTC lured player/coaches Cheng Yinghua & JackHuang to come to the PCTTC as coaches (joining severalother local coaches, including Sean O'Neill. Hank

38 Table Tennis Today

Cheng Yinghua, left, and Jack Huang, right,the Head Coaches at the

National Table Tennis Center.

takes place each week at the NTTC, both in privatecoaching and group classes. Hodges, the director of thecenter since its opening, bought the entire club fromCheng & Jack in 1993, although they continue as headcoaches. Brian Lonergan was hired recently as full-timemanager for the club. Staffcoaches include Cheng, Jack,Hodges, Brian & Sean Lonergan, Todd Sweeris,Masamichi Kubo, Gary Elwell, and Huazhang Xu (whocoaches regularly at PCTTC).

For the first couple of years Larry Hodges thor-oughly frazzledhimself by trying to do most of the choresinvolved with the club: manning the phones. cleaning,organizing tournaments, designing and circulating pub-licity, running classes and camps etc., plus he oftenworked on the magazine through many wee hours at

night, A few months ago, Hodg6 voluntarily gave upmuch of the control of the NTIC to local volunteers, and

the NTTC now has an elected Board of Directors. Theyare: President Bob Slapnik, Operations Director CathyLonergan, Sales & Public Relations Director Brian

Lonergan, Treasurer Matthew Murad, and Program Di-rector Larry Hodges. There are numerous other volun-teers, from League Directors Sean Lonergan, FrankFuhrman & Gary Elwell to Vending Director RandallHenri. 1 should add myself to the list, having designed theall-important logo for the club as well as helping out inother ways. I also designed a distinctive black plus 3-colorsport shirt forNTTC. Cheng Yinghua has worn ittowinseveral majortournaments and Gao Jun woreitas shebeattAmy Feng in last year's U.S. Open in Anaheim.

The cornerstone of the NTTC coaching is ChengYinghua and Jack Huang, both former long-time mem-bers of the Chinese National Team. Cheng has been thetop-rated player in the U.S. since his arrival in 1988

(except fora 1 -yearabsence in ] 990). Jack has often beenranked #2inthe U.S.,and was #1 in 1990. Bothcoach 40

or so hours each week, and their junior players have won19 ofthe 30national juniorsingles titles awarded overthepast three years. It is amazing that both these greatcoaches are in their late thirties and can still win major

tournaments considering that they spend all of their timecoaching and no time at all training!

Never in recent table tennis history has there beensuch an accumulation of top players in one spot in the

U.S. as there is now in Maryland, congregating aroundthe sister clubs NTTC & PCTTC. The area dominates in

nearly every category--top men, women, college stu-dents, junior boys & girls. Currently, the players in thearea include:

• The top man in the country (Cheng Yinghua), the only

6%

*02 1

• 9 players who have been rated over 2500 (ChengYinghua, Jack Huang, Huazhang Xu, Sean O'Neill,Todd

Sweeris, John Onifade, Gao Jun, Sean Lonergan). Thisdoes not include part-time locals Barney J. Reed & DaveFernandez, both of whom have been over 2500;

• 19 players rated over 2200, 31 over 2000;• The University of Maryland National College TeamChampions, and Runner-up Montgomery College;• National Collegiate Men's Singles Champion SeanLonergan;• National Club Champion NTTC and 3rd place finisherPCTTC;

• Six ofthe ten current national junior singles champions,and 19 of the 30 national junior singles champions overthe past three years, all coached by NTTC Coaches ChengYinghua & Jack Huang:• 7 junior players withratings over 2000,13 with ratingsover 1700, and boards of others;• Many-time U.S. Senior Champions Dave & DonnaSakat

• U.S. Wheelchair Champion Andre Scott.All of these players training together has led to a

substantial amount of publicity. For example, they'vebeen on TV 33 times in the past three years, and in overahundred articles in newspapers. There was a 3.5 minutespecial on them on Headline News and CNN,playedover

50 times over a 24 hour period, going to 177 countries.

They've also been on ESPN. in Sports Illustrated, Boys'

Lift, The Washington Post and Baltimore Sun. NBC's

Dateline is doing a special on them airing sometime in the

next few weeks. Andre Scott, U.S. WheelchairChampionand a member of the University of Maryland National

Collegiate Champions, especially seems to attract atten-tion from the press.

Players from all over the U.S. keep moving to thearea to train. Recently, Barney J. Reed and DaveFernandez, the top two junior players in the U.S., startedto train at the NTTC twice a week. with Cheng Yinghuaand the U.S.'s top youth players, Todd Sweeris (22) and

Sean Lonergan (20). They spent last summer training atthe NTTC, living at Hodges' apartment (which he shareswith Todd Sweeris and Huazhang Xu).

The NTTC surely has the most active group of

tournament players in the U.S. The U.S. Open TeamChampionships (10 hours away in Detroit) had about 750players last year and about 10% of the players were fromNTTC/PCTTC. (Wechartered a 55-passengerbus forthetrip, but it wasn't enough, so several vans and cars full ofpeople also went, as well as a number who flew.) Thefinals were played between teams led by "our guys"

July/August 1995

Photo by Mal Anderson ©1995

Cheng Yinghua & Todd Sweeris (withDan Seemiller) and Jack Huang (withDavid Zhuang and Abass Ekun). Alongthe way the finalists beat teams represent-ing England and S]ovakia among others.On the women's side, "ourgals" Gao Junand Amy Feng teamed with Virginia Sungto cruise through the competition. GaoJun's husband Frank Chang was there tocheer on his talented wife, with the occa-

sional interruption of having to play onmyteam! The Sun TV Open in Pittsburghlast year (4 hours away) had about 240entries, with over 25% from NTTO

PCTTC. (Ifyou were thereyou may haveseen a lot of my black NTTC shirts walk-

ing around and iii acrion) The Junior Na-tionals and Junior Olympics get nearly 1/3 of their players trom NTTC/PCTTCeach year. with a typical contingent close

to 30. NTTC player'. who stay home en-thusiastically root for their fellow inem-bers whoareoff atbigtournaments. When

we heard that Cheilg had beaten Jean-Philippe Gatien (the eventual winner ofthe tournament) there were loud cheers

and high-fives all around.

Training camps at the NTTC havebecome more and more active. with 33

players in the December 1994 Christmascamp. and 28 players in the April 1995

Spring Break Camp. These have been runby Hodges with Jack. Cheng and othercoaches. Dan Seemitier sometimes comes

down from Pittsburgh to train and to teachcamps. the last one with help from DaveSakai and others. Currently, there are four

group classes being taught at the NTTC-

-a beginning class. an intermediate class.abeginning juniorelass. and an advancedjunior class. However. private lessonsremain the backbone of the coaching pro-grant.

The NTTC definitely feels like a homeaway from home. Entering the club. yousee no tables at first. but a central enclosed

office. restroom. snack area and a largecasual area with tables. chairs. friendly

den furniture and an antique TV. A dedi-

cated group offans :.top play at 9 pm everyThursday to observe theritualistic Seinfeld

hour c watching it at home justdoesnt feel

right any more! ). There is a safe familyatmosphere at the club where players en-

courage each other and all strive to im-

prove. Youngerkids are routinelydroppedoff by their parents for a safe evening ofcoaching and practicing, maybe with alittle basketball mixed in. At PCTTC the

emphasis is on playing matches and de-funding the table. but NTTC is more re-laxed and even lower level players do a lotof practice drills. During struggles withcounter looping or my more consistentbackhand looping in my lesson with Jack.Amy Feng or Gao Jun will often look in.smile at me and hay to Jack in Chinese,-His strokes are looking better!" (maybe

they are actually saying. "wanna go forsome pizzaT) Junior players often bringtheir homework to the

NTTC to .study between

practicing. with home-

work help from LarryHodge. or other local -

players. When not prac- (/(E'ticing. many members of the NTTC go out togetherfor Chinese food, basketball or movies.

Late in June, 20 NTTC members took in

a Baltimore Orioles baseball game. and a

trip to Kings Dominion for the kids ixplanned.

School is both a strength and weak-ness forthe NTTCjunior players. Itis a

strength in that so many of them are inadvanced classes. with GPA's averagingabout 4.0. Unfortunately, academia

places quite a bit of stress on their train-ing schedules--most of the junior players

have to squeeze table tennis practice inbetween studying. Few have the time totrain as many hours as many of their

peers around thecountry. a tradeoffsincethe training they do receive is of suchhigh quality.

The junior players are about io beginserious training for the 1995 Junior Na-

tionals and Junior Olympics. DefendingNational Champions include Boys' Un-

der 16 champion Richard Lee. Boys

Under 14 Champioii Sunny Li: Girls'Under 16 Champion Vivian Lee: Girls'

Under 14 Champion Jessica Shen, GirlsUnder 12 Champion CarolineOppenheimer: and Girls' Under 10Chani-

pion Katherine Wu. Wu. Oppenheimer.

Shon. and Li are also defending Junior

Olympic Champions. a>, is Margaret Lu(Girls Under 16). lop-ranked junior

Jimmy Yeh made the finals of Under 18Boys, defeating top seed Barney J. Reedin the quarterfinals and fellow NTTCerRichard Lee in the semi's before losing 19in the third in the final to Dave Fernandez.

College students are beginning toflock to the area. University of Maryland(current squad: Huazhang Xu, ToddSweeris, Ernest Hung. Larry Hodges.Andre Scott. & Rungkai bay) has wonthe National Collegiate Championshipsin Princeton three straight years, andMontgomery College of Maryland (Sean& Brian Lonergan. Masamichi Kubo. PalJonsson) made the finals this year for an

all-Maryland final.One of the best

new activities at the

, NTTC has been aleague - ten teains.

teir three players to ateam, playingonce aweekuntileveryone

has played each other. Each eveningx tieconsists of nine singles matches and onedoubles match. Our league includes play-ers of varying skill levels. For example.one team (the eventual winning team)consisted of Todd Sweeris (2565), AndyLi (2017) and Jonathan Wilhelm (1190).

Although I lost many of my matches 1thoroughly enjoyed the league and de-

lighted in at least taking single games offJessica Shen, Andy Li and others. The

league was a great way for many of us toget to know each other better and develop

team spirit. There was a good deal ofcoaching between games and a lot ofcheering for teammates. Crowd supportreached a fever pitch when three of usactually did the ware while watching oneof the last doubles matches! Lower play-ers were able to play against much highei-

rated people than they would normally.Most ofthe timethe higherplayers playedlower ones pretty seriously without toomuch gratuitous lobbing. I often gaped

and shook my head as the leagues topplayers such as Todd Sweeris, Sean

Lonergan, and Maxamichi Kubo casually

and apologetically loop-killed balls pastme at inipoxsible angles. apparently quite

unfazed by my blinding lack of spin andleaden lootwork !

The league and greater volunteersup-

- AN@litji(O)]Ilicall Tall,lce 11'(01]11]lii*

port have been very positive and there is arenewed feeling of excitement at ourclub.DirectorLarry Hodges has been tireless inhis energy and generosity toward the cluband for the good of the sport, particularlyfor the juniors. He continues to be a driv-ing force, but now with aquieter voice. Asalways, Hodges is full of ideas for thefuture. 'Tmcurrently lookingintoanum-berof things," hesays. "Imtryingtoturnthe N'ITC into a real country club type oftable tennis club. I'm also trying to set upa resident training program at the NTTC.I d also like to set up National Junior CupChampionships. or perhaps NationalYouth Championships. I'm in contactwith several top players who are planningto move here. and we're making the ar-rangements forthem now, Butit'll take alot of time and money to get any of thisaccomplished."

For the last twenty years as a graphicdesigner and calligrapher I have put anawful lot of effort into my work andcareer. It now feels very good to be pas-sionately involved with something totallydifferent. something physically and men-tally challenging and rewarding. I have

only two complaints. We don't haveenough women players and we don't haveenough players who use anything otherthan the standard inverted rubber on both

sides. With the beautiful shakehand block-

ingand loopingstyle exemplified by Jack,Cheng and their protdgds. we all want to

emulate that. At the club many of us playbasically the same way, so we are oftenweak when faced with "junk rubber" op-

ponents. There are only a handful of mem-

bers who play differently: a pips-out penholder here, achopper there etc. There are

only two pretty good 1900+ level longpips regulars at the club. and one of them,

Terry Lonergan, is more or less a purechopper. It's all very well playing oppo-nents who hit a nice clean ball! But how

about the guy with the multiple sweat-

bands and knee braces who tlips betweenlong pips on one side and anti on the other,who uses annoying head fakes. blocks

back unpredictable knuckle balls. and hasthat wild homemade paddle and those

funky illegal serves. If you fit this descrip-tion - please move to Maryland. Weneed you !

RATINGS POINTS AND THEIR PROBLEMS

by Larry Hodges, USATT Certified National Coach

Because few other countries use a • avoids playing in rating events where

rating system such as the U.S. system, he'd be highly seeded and have to face

there are many problems faced by U.S. lower-rated players to win:players not faced in other countries. The ...has just as much a problem in

best players in the world--from Asia and their game as a player with a hitch in

Europe--never Played in a rating system, their forehand stroke. In this case, theyand so never faced its unique problems. have a '®mental" hitch in their game.Worse. many of the best coaches in the Whether they know it or not, they willU.S. came from systems without>a rating never reach their full potential untilsystem, and either do not recognize or do they fix up this hitch.notunderstandhow toaddressthese prob- A common saying is that table ten-lems. nis is more mental than physical. This

The ratings system is an excellent happens to be true. Yet few try toway of gauging one's level and improve- develop the mental side of the game.ment, and itcan be great fun competing in Imagine foramoment thebestplay-the rating events. However, to the up- ers in the world considering playing inand-coming player, the rating system can arating event, back when they were up-also be a trap. and-coming players. Can you imagine

An up-and-coming player who... them avoiding an event because they•avoids playing in tournaments to protect were afraid of losing? It's hard to

his rating, espe€ially after a good tourna- imagine because the best players in thement when rating is high; world (or the U.S.) are all very strong

mentally. They are not worried about

losing. If they are rated 1999, they

don't avoid the 2000 event: they look

forthatevent, because they want to win

it. They have a champion's mind.

Now imagine the player with a

1999 rating who avoidsthat 2000event.

Why is he avoiding that event? Is heavoiding it because he has the mind ofa champion? Or is he avoiding it be-cause he is afraid of defeat? Does he

have a hitch in his mental game--fear,or lack of confidence in himself?

Is he gaining the necessary experi-

ence to develop into a top player? Or ishe avoiding that experience, while hispeers compete, learn and improve?

Is he unable to perform at his bestbecause he is afraid of failure?

Is he so afraid of losing that hecan't make changes in his game to im-prove? Does he fall back into the samebad habits that worked at the lower

levels?

Is he not working as hard at the

game because of the pressures put uponhim?

Is he trying to succeed? Or tryingto avoid failure?

The frustration in watching other-

wise successful junior programs (in-cluding the ones I'm involved with)that are handicapped by rating hysteriais unbelievable. The most amazing

thing is the often strained defenses givenmonth after month by players, coachesandparents, all in defense of protectinga rating--while in reality, teaching theplayer a loser's mentality.

I, and other U.S. coaches, all know

of up-and-coming players who eventu-ally flopped because they were moreworried about their rating than in long-term improvement. Usually, it was the

result of pressure (intentional or not)

from parentsorcoaches, whose worries

about short-term ratings cost their playerlong-term improvement-and led ulti-

mately to a lower level of play and alower rating. Let's put a stop to it.

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 39

Part II

by Larry HodgesUSATT Certified National Coach

Reprinted from

Table Tennis: Steps to SuccessHuman Kinetics Publishers

COUNTERDRIVERS

A counterdriver likes to stand in the

middle of the table and just stroke backwhatever you hit at him. He usually takeseverything at the top of the bounce. andsmashes given the first opportunity, espe-cially on the forehand side. He can seem-ingly counter your best shots and go on allday doing so. It is a simple game. withplacement, consistency and speed of drivesthe most important elements. Acounterdriver wants his opponent to use

his weakest side as often as possible. Acounterdriver's basic strategy is to driveballs mostly to the weaker side. If theweaker side is the backhand, than the goalis to keep opponent from stepping aroundand using a forehand. If the weaker sideis the forehand, than the goal is to hit theball hard enough to the forehand so thatopponent cannot smash the return. If an

opponent tees off on his shots, thecounterdriver has to pick up the speed ofhis shots. If he starts missing, he shouldslow down. He should also always be onthe lookout for balls to smash.

The weakness of a counterdriver is

that his shots are neither quick, fast orspinny. Just as he can drive back what-

ever you throw at him you should be able

to do the same to him. It usually comesdown to whether your attack is more con-sistent than his counterdrive.

You should concentrate your attackat his weaker side and to his middle. Most

counterdrivers are very strong from thecorners although they are often weaker or

softer on one side. Take your time attack-

ing. Pick your shots, and make sure that

the winners thatyou go forarejust that. It

takes sharpjudgement, but you mustavoid

going for the wrong winners, a temptation

when playing counterdrivers. Remem-

ben-if he can't put the ball past you, you

are under no pressure to force the attack.On the other hand, don't take too

long. A counterdriver is going to be more

consistent than you at his own game, and

if you rally with him too long, you're

going to make too many careless mis-

takes. However, you might counter just

long enough until you see a chance tosmash, either forehand or backhand.

Another way to play the counterdriver isto end the

point before he gets a chance to

counterdrive. The key here is good serves

and a good forehand. Against a more

aggressive player. it is dangerous to

overanticipate a third ball kill too often--

a good receive catches you off guard and

the receiver ends the point instead. But

since a counterdriver is usually less of a

threat on the attack you can play a flex-

ible all-out attack. Look to put the first

ball away, but if the shot isn't there, fall

back on rallying and looking for a bettershot.

General Tactics For Counterdrivers

• Be consistent

• Attack opponent's weaker side

• Build up a countering rhythm

40 Table Tennis Today

• Force countering rallies earlyGeneral Tactics Against Counterdrivers• Be patient and pick shots• Attack middle

• Don't try to beat counterdriver at hisown game

• Use topspin and backspin to break uprhythmBLOCKERS

Blockers are similar to counterdrivers

except that they contact the ball right afterit hits the table. They tend to be almost asconsistent as a counterdriver but are con-

stantly putting pressure on you by rushingyou. This means that they can go even toyour strongerside knowing that you won'thave time to go for a strong shot.

A blocker can either block every ballquickly to the opponent's weaker side,exploiting it to the fullest, or block side toside, making the opponent move aboutand hit on the run. A blocker has to be

ready to smash when a weakball comes orall an opponent has to do is keep the ballin play. He has to anticipate weak returnsso as to have time to smash, or even

designate one side (usually the forehand)as the side to smash whenever possible.Many players combine a backhand block-ing/forehand smashing game. A quickbackhand block will often set up the fore-hand smash.

The weakness of a blocker is his own

quickness. To take the ball so quickly hemust stand right at the table. He has littletime to decide what shot to use, and so

even if you make a weak shot, he willoften just block it. This is why a blockerneeds to anticipate weak balls so as to beready to kill them. A blocker will alsomake a lot of mistakes by his own attemptto be quick.

Some blockers are very strong in themiddle but weakto the corners where theyhave to move their racket farther. Others

are the reverse, being weak in the middle

since they have to decide which side to

block with. Find out early in a matchwhich type you are playing. There are

basically two types of blockers: aggres-

sive ones and consistent ones. Aggres-sive ones want to block the ball hard and

quick, forcing you away from the tableand into mistakes. If he succeeds in fore-

ing you away from the table, he has extra

time to watch your incoming shot and so

he becomes quicker. Worse, it gives himtime to go for more smashes.

What you want to do against an ag-

gressive blocker is to either attack so

aggressively that he makes mistakes try-

ing to block aggressively, or to force himto slow down his blocks so he can keep hisown shots on the table. Once he has

slowed down his blocks you have time to

really go on the attack.

A consistent blocker tries to keep the

ball in play until you make a mistake. He

can be like a brick wall, getting every-thing back until you almost drop fromexhaustion. His shots are usually pretty

passive but they are quick enough so as to

prevent you from teeing offon them. And

when you do, they often keep comingback!

His weakness is his ownpassiveness.

He is putting so much effort into gettingeverything back that he can't do much

dse. You can slowdown yourown shots,giving yourself more time to set up for thenext shot. Take your time, look for the

right shot and then end the point fast at hisweakest point.

Don't make the mistake of letting aconsistentblockergetinto arhythm. Don'talways attack at the same pace. Surpris-ingly, a blocker usually has more trouble

blocking slow, spinny loops than fasterones. The spin on a slow loop grabs theracket more, and jumps out more. Theblocker will often pop them up or missthem outright. The slowness ofyour ownshot makes his shot slower, and the slow-

ness of both shots gives you more time toget into position for your own more ag-gressive strokes. A fast loop just comesback faster, and should be used with dis-

cretion until you can put it past him.Many blockers like to push to your

wide backhand over and over, waiting foryou to step around with your forehand.Then they give you a quick block to thewide forehand. (It is almost a style byitself, sort of apusher/blocker style.) Youhave five ways of combatting this. First,you can attack with your backhand, andnever go out of position at all. A back-hand loop is ideal for this. Second, youcan loop the push itsel f for a winner. Youhave to judge whether you can do thisconsistently enough. Third, you can bequick enough to get to that block to yourwide forehand. Fourth, i f the blocker has

a passive forehand, you can push to hisforehand to take away the angle into yourbackhand, and attack his return. Or fifth,

you can use your forehand but loop slowand deep. The very slowness of your shot

gives you time to get back into position,

and the depth keeps the blocker fromcontacting it too soon.General Tactics For Blockers

• Hit shots quick off the bounce• Attack weaker side

• Always be ready to smash

• Vary pace and placement

General Tactics Against Blockers

• Attack all parts of the table

• Be patient and pick shots--not too ag-gressive

• Use slow, spinny loops

• Keep ball deepCHOPPERS

Choppers are defensive players whowin mostly on your mistakes. They go

fifteen feet or so away from the table and

return each of your aggressive topspin

shots with backspin, making it difficult to

attack effectively.

A chopper does not simply get the

ball back. Chopping is probably the most

tactical of games simply because to win a

point, a chopper must foolhis opponent

into making a mistake in some way. This

can be done by outlasting him, by heavy

spin. by spin variation, by pick hitting, or

by keeping every ball low until he

gets frustrated and goes for r-May

jon

i.

-0D

1

..0

' ts.

'ou are a chopper, you have towhich of the above tactics will

st against whoever you are play-he player is mistake prone or notwerful, concentrate on keepingin play until he misses. Changeis only when you see an easyO.

ie has trouble with heavy chop,

o him. If he has trouble readinginge the spin over and over, evenns popping up a few balls. (I f hetrouble hitting them. then he isthe spin and you should change5.)

hopper should put pressure on hisitby attackingwheneverpossible.ou pick which shots you will at-tead of attacking over and overttacker(called "pick hitting")younake mostofthem. Usually go forate winners when you do attack--were as effective attacking forshots in arow you'dbe an attacker,

hopper. It is the surprise of a's attack that makes it effective,

:r one or two shots. the surpriseff.

ne players are emotionally inca-F playing a steady chopper. Evens the shots to win, a chopper can

n by playing on his impatience.:ep the ball as low as possible andim swat shots all over the court!

ihopper should be aware of the

: rule. Some players will push

chopper for fifteen minutes and

i in the end. To end a game before

:en minute time limit you mighttake the attack. It is unavoidable.

the expedite rule. of course, you

attack whenever you serve. Keep

1 that you don't have to rush the

wen in expedite. Very few rallies

' go thirteen shots, and so pick

ots carefully. It is better to hit aon the tenth shot then miss the

: natural weakness of a chopper is

must rely on your mistakes. Hec hit when he sees the chance, but

y he must score most of his points

misreading his spin or just mak-

areless mistake. In theory, you

rabletodominateagainstachop-

er all, if you can't attack a given

u can push it and attack the next

ead. Any time you are not sure of

I you can do this. So how does ar win?

)m an attacker's point of view, heitrol of the rallies when he attacks.

m the chopper's point of view, the

r is in control. Against a low chop

1, an attacker can only attack so

d still be consistent. If the chopper

p that shot back effectively, he isn control.

Of course. the attacker

could just push. But achop-

per is usually better at push- ing andcandosoforever. He

-'' can also catch the attacker off

guard by attacking when he seesthe chance while the attacker can't

do the same since the chopper is expect-

ing it.

In general, if a chopper can return

your best drives back without giving you a

high ball, he is going to win. But there are

July/August 1995

PLAYING STYLES AND RALLYING TACTICS . less snoi

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ways to make your drives more effective.A common misconception about

playing choppers is that you have to over-power them. Nothing could be furtherfrom the truth. If you can beat a chopperon pure power, than you would beat himeven worse by choosing your shots morecarefully.

After a chopper has made one returnof a strong drive, he will probably returnthe same drive over and over again. Achopper can adjust to just about anythingif he sees it enough. What does give achopper trouble is change. Changing thespin, speed, direction, depth or even thearc of the ball can create havoc to his

timing and lead to misses and high re-turns.

A chopper is strongest at the cornersunless you can force him out of positionand ace him to a wide angle. He isweakest in the middle where he must not

only decide whether to chop with theforehand or the backhand but also must

get his body out of the way so he can makea proper stroke.

Tactically, when playing a chopper,constantly change depth and direction.Loop (or hit) one deep, then short andspinny. Draw him in close to the table andthen attack hard before he can react to it.

Force him away from the table and then

drop shot the ball, followed by another

hard attack. Have patience, but when theshot is there, take it. If you have trouble

reading the spin. push one or attack it soft.Don't attack to the corners too much--

concentrate on his weaker middle. Put as

much pressure on him as you can and hewill make mistakes. Often the mistakes he

makes are not obvious. An outright missor a high ball are obvious mistakes, but hemight also chop too short. A chop thatlands midway between the net and the

endline is usually easy to loop kill orsmash (for a hitter) even if it is relatively

low. Take advantage of all his mistakes,limit yours, and you will probably win.

Another way to play a chopper whohas a dead surface on one side (such as

long pips or antispin) is to roll or soft spinover and over (without too much topspin)to the dead side. The chopper will only beable to return your spin. and if you don't

put too much topspin on your shot, youwon't get too much backspin on the re-

turn, and so you can keep on attackingsoftly, until the chopper either misses or

pops one up. Mix in an occasional spinnyloop as a variation

Another way to play a chopper is to

push with him very patiently, looking fora good ball to attack. Push ten balls, then

wham ! He won't know when you aregoing to attack anci might get stuck too

close to the table to return your shot. You

can even push until the expedite rule takes

effect and then you will have an advan-tage, since an aggressive player can winthe point quickly under expedite betterthan most choppers can.

One common mistake against chop-pen is to go for too many drop shots (as

opposed to regular pushes). A drop shot

is an excellent way to win a point if youcan catch your opponent too far from thetable, but it is risky. There are threereasons forthis. First, adropshotis avery

delicate shot and it is easy to miss. Sec-ond, it is very easy to pop a drop shot up,giving the chopper an easy ball to pick hit.Third, it is very difficult to do a good dropshot against a very deep chop, and if theballlands any shorter it should be easy to

attack and so you shouldn't want to dropshot. (Unless, of course, it lands so shortthat it would bounce twice.) Anothermistake is to drop shot when you aren'tsure of the spin. The worse thing you cando when you don't read the spin is to dropshot since you will invariable either putthe ball in the net or pop it up. Choppersare notoriously good at swatting in highdrop shots, even on the run. If you aren'tsure of the spin, just use a normal push orattack softly. If you are sure of the spin,and the chopper is far from the table, thenby all means drop shot.General Tactics For Choppers• Be patient and confident

• Vary degree of backspin• Always be ready to attack, especially onserve

• End points quickly when attacking• Take every shot seriously, even pushesGeneral Tactics Against Choppers• Attack middle

• Move in and out

• Be patient

• Vary all shots• Don't overdo drop shots

• Consider going for expedite ruleLOBBERS

Most players use the lob only as avariation or desperation shot. But someplayers use it over and over, and if theyfind you have trouble with it, they will useit even more.

A lobber has to be strong on bothsides orhis opponent will simply smash tothe weak side. Most lobbers are stongeron the forehand side, plus theycancounter-attack easier on that side, and so it is a

good idea when lobbing to lob to thehitter's forehand side, tempting your op-ponent into smashing the easy way,crosscourt to your forehand. But if youropponent is smart, he won't fall for it andyou will mostly lob with your backhand

(which might be what you want, i f that isyour stronger lobbing side). The most

important thing to remember when lob-

bing is depth. As long as your lob goesdeep, you are still in the point. A short lobcan be smashed at such a wide angle that

there is nothing you can do to get it back.Lobbers shouldn't just throw the ball

in the air. A lobber should try to put

topspin and sidespin on the ball to forcemistakes. He should also vary the height

ofthe lob--sometimes lob very high, other

times lower. Against short players. lobvery high.

A lobber should always be on the

lookout for a chance to get back into thepoint. Counter-smash every chance you

can. If the smash is weak, you might even

chop it back.There are two ways to hit a lob, as

described in the advanced strokes. section.

A smother kill is most effective if it hits,

least effective if it misses. You have to

judge for yourself. Some players smotherkill all lobs, others never do it. A goodbalance is to smother kill only againstlobs that land short, near the net, close to

your target.

Regardless of how you hitthe lob youshould follow one fundamental rule when

playing lobbers, and that is to smash to thebackhand. (Of course, somewhere out

there is an exception to this rule and youwill nodoubtplay him in yournextmatch,right afterreading this.) The forehand lobis usually spinnier, and it is far easier tocounter-attack with the forehand than the

backhand. So just smash to the backhandover and over until you force either a miss

or a weak return. When the weak ball

comes (one that is short or less spinny) goto the forehand only if you can smash anace or at least force a leaping return. Whytake chances? When in doubt, keep goingto the backhand.

If the opponent isn't a great threat tocountersmash, go for his middle. Manylobbers have trouble lobbing from that spot.

When the ball lands short, end the

point. You can angle the ball to either sideand unless your opponent can anticipate(or guess) which side you are going to,you should be able to put it past him,Don't decide which side to go to until youropponent has committed himself to oneside. If he doesn't commit himself, he

should be open on both wings. (And withboth sides being equal, you should go tothe backhand, Just in case )

Often you will be faced with aralatively easy lob to smash Make sure touse good form as shots like this are oftenfar trickier than they look.

You should rarely drop shot againstthe lob If the ball iS deep, an effectivedrop shot is nearly impossible, and if theball is short you should be able to put itaway. Only drop shot if you are com-pletely caught off guard by the shot Alla drop shot usually does against a lobberis let him back into the point. One excep-tion to this rule is if your opponent hasgotten into such a rhythm that you cannotsmash past him in the rally. A drop shotmight be effective Just to throw off histiming But don't do it too oftenGeneral Tactics For Lobbers

• Keep ball deep and spinny• Lob to spot diagonally opposite strongerlot)bing side• Look for balls to counter attack

• Avoid lobbing except when forcedGeneral Tactics Against Lobbers• Smash to backhand side unless ready toend on one shot

• Against agood lobber, smotherkill shortlobs

• Use good form no matter how easy shotlooks

• Rarely drop shot

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THEMENTALADVANTAGE:

Is Frustration Hurting Your Play?Redirect Your Focus to Succeed

by Jim Annesi, Ph.D.

Dr. Jim Annesi is a sport psychologyconsultant in private practice. Sport psy-chology-related questions for future is-sues may be addressed to him at: The

Club at Woodbridge, 585 Main Street,Woodbridge, NJ 07095.Q: When I get frustrated and "lose it" mytable tennis game suffers greatly. Myeffectiveness is not just reduced, it takes anose-dive. Can I get some emergencyhelp?Dr. Annesi: Given the human element

inherent in table tennis some frustration is

inevitable. However, it is rarely produc-tive. Telling yourself to "just learn to lovethe battle" sounds great when relaxed andwell away from the scene, but some spe-cific strategies are infinitely more usefulwhile you are in the heat of battle. Theones I suggest below are best developedand practiced systematically and progres-sively. They can. and have been, veryproductiveincontrollingtemperoutbreaksand redirecting attention to where it needsto be during matches and practice.Cognitive Restructuring:

This technique first notes your inap-propriate self-statements and changesthem to reflect a more positive and pro-ductive viewpoint. For example, state-ments such as, "I always miss easysmashes" should be revised to, "to hit

winners I need to make contact at the topof the bounce." I never can close out a

match, I always choke" should be changedto, "I need to stay with my routines andjust play as I have been playing through-out the match."

Self Instruction:

This technique uses a cue phrase toinitiate instruction and positive imagerywhen you make, what you see, as anunforgivable mistake. When yourthoughts move to disappointment and/or

frustration, acue phrase such as "stay withthe game plan" or "focus on your task"brings your attention back to productivelevels. After this phrase, positive instruc-tional imagery, which rehearses a suc-cessful stroke or strategy in your mind, isinstituted.

Relaxation Response:

This technique substitutes a relax-ation response for the tension associatedwith your "losing it." A cue phrase such

as "deep breath" is substituted for the

judgmental self-talk associated with dis-appointment and frustration. Atthat pointa deep breath is taken and typical tensionspots (e.g., back of the neck) are relaxed.

The technique of turning off tension oncommand requires some practice, but is

an invaluable tool forregroupingyourselfbetween points.

Take the time to develop the means to

respond effectively to frustration, as it be-gins to get the best of you. lt is veryrewarding to face a major challenge andhave thetoolstokeepyourgameavailable.Dr. Jim Annesi is a sport psychologyconsultant in private practice at variouslocations in NJ. Sport psychology ques-tions to be answered in future issues maybe addressed to him at: The Club at

Woodbridge, 585 Main Street,Woodbridge, NJ 07095.

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 41

RHODE ISLAND OPEN

Providence, Rhode Island

April 22-23, 1995

Life in Another Loftby Rhoda Samkoff

"Next stop, Providence!"The night train had finally reached

Rhode Island; home of the grinder, placeslike Breakneck Hill, Mystery Farm Drive,and of course, the Rhode Island Open.

I'm a native of New England, andeven though Thomas Wolfe said, "Youcan't go home again" there was some-thing about being back there that broughtout that warm. familiar feeling of Ameri-cana.

Maybe it's aregional thing that stemsfrom the rich colonial history of the area.

Or maybe it's simply because the Rhodeisland Table Tennis Association occupiesthe second floor of the United States Post

Office in tiny Manville.As we climbed the wooden staircase

to the club, the unmistakable New En-

gland atmosphere became even clearer.There were green walls with dark woodmouldings, slanted beams, and an archedentrance...for me it was like going up toplay in Granny's attic 1

An example of typical Rhode Islandhospitality and trust was a "make it andtake it" food counter, a serve-yourselfaffair where you put together your ownlunch and leave the money in a cup on thefridge:Sandwiches $1.50

Juice .50

Candy .25 a handful

As you know, a look at the tourna-mentresults does not always tell the wholestory. The real human interest lies in the

small occurences that round out the expe-rience, and these situations are universal,

and are not confined to a particular tour-nament or area of the country. Take thereunion of two players greeting each otherafter a long time and asking,"Is so-and-sostill playing?" (And the smile when hefinds out that so-and-so is!)

A young boy clutched his first tro-phy. "He's only been playing for threemonths-in our basement," beamed his

mom. A player combed his hair in the

hallway mirror. Another studied heropponent's style from the sidelines. Thiscould be Anywhere, USA.

Even the spectators looked familiar.They included an elderly couple fromtown who said that they stop by often just

because "we love to watch everything

about table tennis." The woman pointedto a table.

"Look at that," she said." There was

Art, the tournament director, dusting it off

with big sweeping motions as two playerswarmed up. Oblivious, they continued

theirrapidcounter, going overand around

the cloth and not once hitting it. "Isn't that

great?" she saidAnd you never know who is going to

turn up. Five hours out of state, and in

walktwoplayerswhofrequentthemonthlytournaments at the New Jersey Table Ten-nis Club; Jaime Sierra and Tony Gegelys !

There was Eduard Hamamjian, Rhode

Island StateChampion, KurtDouty, HagueRaky, LimMing Chui, and George (Chief)Braithwaite.

And there was also a player whobrought a friend who turned out to be amember of the Japanese University team.

While Saturday's competition was

interesting, Sunday' s was hot. Kurt Doutyfaced George Braithwaite in the semi-

42 Table Tennis Today

k.

Open Singles Runner-up GeorgeBrathwaite (L) and Champion HisashiKubo.

finals, and this match boiled down to theexcitingfinalminutesofthesecondgame,which George won after a series of deuces.It seemed that the more Douty pumpedhimself up verbally, the more introspec-tive and mentally tough George became.Excerpts from Game 2:

Kurt: Focus ! Focus !

George: SilentKurt: Okay, he's scared.George: SilentKurt: Play better. Play better.George: SilentKurt: Sh-t!

George: SilentKurt: (Stamps foot) Of course he's goingto get that!George: a lunge and a missKurt: C'mon, baby, play now.George: SilentKurt: Deal with it. It's flat.

George: SilentKurt: (Edge ball after long point played)Yo ! Sorry !George: (Under his breath) Finish him.

Later, reflecting on tournaments ingeneral, Braithwaite said, "Never under-estimate the players. They have differentstyles, but they are all good."

As it narrowed down to the finals, it

literally became agame of musical chairs.After each match, a table was folded upand rolled away until only one table re-mained. George Braithwaite (8-time na-tional seniormen's champion) vs. HisashiKubo (Japanese University team mem-ber)."Hejustcameherefrom Japan," said

the lady who lilkes to sit and watch. Herfriend whispered back innocently, withamazement, "Just for this tournament?"

The wooden floor creaked. Nobodyspoke. And after awhile even therefridgerator stopped humming and thebreeze died down outside. At 1 -1 every-thing in this little corner of Rhode Island,on a quiet Sunday over the post office,seemed to revolve around these two com-

petitors playing their hearts out for thelove ofthegame. In theend, Kubo was the

champion.The tournament committee should

be commended for running such an excel-lent show. The RITTA team included

George Schuellein, Chuck Cavicchio, ref-eree; Paul Belhumeur, treasurer, Len

Wetmore, secretary, and Art Theroux, thedirector. All ofthem went out oftheir wayto make the participants feel welcome.The result was thatthe Rhode Island Open

was unique and fun, and had all of thehigh-caliber excitement of a major tour-

nament, only in a smaller package.Open Singles-Final: Hisashi Kubo d.George Brathwaite,7,-24,14; SF: Kubo d.Lim Ming Chui, 9,18; Brathwaite d. KurtDouty, 13,20.U2100: Chris Okasia d. Ed Hamamjian,16,17; SF: Okasia d. Bing Li,9,16;

Hamamjian d. Brian Conti,9,18.U1900: Bing Li d. Kim Brastow, 16,-

3 TEXAS OPEN

S Texas Wesleyan UniversityT Fort Worth, Texas May 6-7, 1995 by Ric Weldon Bush

In an event that might have been more aptly titled the Texas Hail Stormg Open, duetobaseball-sized hail that swept

through the area on the eve of the tourna-ment, Torsten Pawlowski upset Roberto"Dino" Byles in the Open Singles divi-sion championship. What some specta-tors thought would be arepeat of Saturdaymorning' s hard-fought Over 30 Champi-onship, won with difficulty by Byles, theOpen championship match turned out tobe something different altogether.

Pawlowski, a one hundred point un-

derdog based on the ratings, took the firstgame 22-20 despite spectacular play fromByles down the stretch. With Pawlowskipoised to win the game at 20-18, Bylesdove fully-extended far to his right andstruck a wicked loop down the line to atarget area the size of quarter, past theunbelieving eyes of his opponent.

In the second game, Byles immedi-ately went up 9-1, and the disgruntledPawlowski was unable to recover. Byles,a former member of the Jamaican Na-

tional Olympic team and usually icy-veined in his coolness, provided somecomedy in the second game. From far outof position to defend against a Pawlowskiblock, Byles tossed his racket across thetable, miraculously striking the ball for a"winner."

Byles took the second game handily21-12.

From there, the animated and vocal

Pawlowski immediately went up 19-9 in thedecisive game. Obviously fired up, he wasnot to be denied the final points, at timeschastising himself for mental mistakes.

"You're praying, you're playing!he yelled at himself at one point.

He planted his considerable size near

the table and blocked back loop after loopwith pin-point accuracy, sending Bylesflying all over his end of the table.

Pawlowski won the final game 21-14.When asked the difference between

his earlier match with Byles and the Open

championship, Pawlowski responded withagrin. "There'sjustsomethingaboutplay-

ing for money," he said. "I plan on stop-ping for a keg of beer on the way home."

Cheers to you Torsten.Other Notables:

Despite the storms that wreaked havoc

on the event, causing millions of dollars

worth of damage (including the Texas

Wesleyan Gym and tournament volun-teers' vehicles), the tournament was

clearly a success. Over seventy people

participated, including approximately

twenty non-rated players. This was a

highlight for the sport of table tennis, and

much of the credit should be given toTournament Director James Rautis,

Pawlowski, Bobby Cornett, and the rest

19,16.

U1700: Kim Brastow d. Anthony Geglys,9,17.

U1500: MikeBayliesd. DakeChen,12,15.U1300: Bob Woodward d. Steve Cote,

19,13.

U1100: Len Wetmore d. GeorgeSchuellein, -15,17,17.

U900: Ahsan Haque d. John Shunney,

of the Texas Wesleyan TTC for the pro-motion of the event.

Many of the matches were excitingupset victories, just like the Open singleschampionship. Underdog players such asRautis, Richard James, Don Geeze, Ime

Nsekpong, and Frances Chen all tookhome fi rst place trophies from playersrated over 200 points higher. FrancesChen in particular (a top-rated juniorplayer), was the darling of the tournament, taking several matches from higher-rated players despite barely being able to

see over the edge of the table. (By the wayFrances. if you ever look across the netand see a round-spectacled player, dressedall in black and shivering in his Nikes, beespecially gentle.) Also, despite being agoonandbasically aball andchain aroundthe feet of his 2000-rated partner KyleDrake, the author himself graciously ac-cepted the underdog victory in the Under3200 Doubles championship. As they sayin Texas, even a blind hog finds an acornnow and again.Results.

Open Singles: 1 st: Torsten Pawlowski2nd: Roberto "Dino" BylesA Round Robin: 1 st: Martin Vela; 2nd:Tom Fun.

B Round Robin: ist: Randall Medcalf;2nd: Cesar Serna.

C Round Robin: [st: Rob Garrett; 2nd:

Terry Bell,D Round Robin: 1 st: David Stucker;

2nd: Au-young, Shun.Under2000: 1 st: CesarSerna; 2nd: DavidHarville.

Under 1850: 1 st: Steve Dodgen; 2nd:Arthur Chase.

Under 1700: 1 st: Meredith Elston; 2nd:

Rob Garrett.

Under 1550: 1 st: John Stovall; 2nd: Jeff

Wise.

Under 1400: I st: Cesar T. Serna; 2nd:David Stucker.

Under 1250: 1 st: Cesar T. Serna; 2nd:

Shun Ati-Young.Under 1100: 1 st: Radame Montalvo; 2nd:

Steven Hunnicutt.

Over30: 1 st: Roberto"Dino" Byles; 2nd:Torsten Pawlowski.

Over 40: 1 st: Bobby Cornett; 2nd: SteveLai.

Under 14: 1 st: Frances Chen; 2nd: Mat-

thew Whitten.

Women: 1 st: Mahin Roufeh; 2nd: Le

Hang Thi Nguyen.

College: 1 st: Don Geeze; 2nd: Le Hang

Thi Nguyen.

Under 4200 Doubles: 1 st: Kyle Drake,

James Rautis; 2nd: Roberto"Dino"Byles,Richard James.

Under 3200 Doubles: lst: Kyle Drake,Ric Bush; 2nd: Meridith Elston, Chris

Chang.Two Man Team Under 4000.

Division A: 1 st: Sam Smith, Tom Fun;

2nd: James Rautis, Robert Bryant.

Division B: 1 st: Bobby Cornett, Richard

James; 2nd: Scott Ryan, Ime Nsekpong.

10,16.

Over 40: George Brathwaite d. ChuckCavicchio, 11,11.

Women: Ruth Crowley d. RhodaSamkoff, 11,19.

Juniors: Matt Lussier d. Nathaniel

Monzak, 9,7.

Unrated: Ahsan Haque d. John Cote,15,16.

July/August 1995

MINNESOTA OPENApril 22, 1995

Apple Valley, Minnesotaby Rex Harris, PresidentMinnesota Table Tennis Federation

The 1995 Minnesota Spring Open washeld April 22nd at the Apple Valley Com-munity Center, Apple Valley, Mn. AppleValley is a bustling suburb 20 minutes southof Minneapolis and St Paul. This was one ofthe first combined ventures between the

MTI12, Disney's Table Tennis Center and alocal community. The cooperation betweenthe 3 groups was tremendous and the resultwas one of the largest tournaments in thepast 10 years, with over 100 participants.Players came from Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois.South Dakota, Wisconsin and even some

countries were represented by players whohappened to be in the Midwest such as Hun-gary, Belgium, Germany and New Zealand.The playing facility received many acco-lades with plenty of room for all twelvetables and good lighting. There was akitchenand sitting area provided and even showersand locker rooms available. Our sincere

thanks to the Community Center. They areeven interested in doing this again next year.

Minnesota will be having more eventsin the future with the addition of the Duluth

tournaments coming up in May, July andOctober. Duluth is in the process of puttingtogether a 4-star tournament for next yearwith justacouple of items left totakecareof.Also, the Des Moines, IA group has beentalking about holding some tournaments inthe near future. With the Illinois events and

Wisner, Neb in March, the Midwest mayagain become an exciting place to be in thenear future. Now. on to the results.

Look out, Brandon Olson is back ! ! He

has been playing more and more lately andhas won the last 2 Minnesota open events.Todd Petersen has been edged out both timesby the best player in Minnesota history.Throw in Dan Wiig and Thor Truelson andit makes for an exciting open in any Midwestevent. In the finals, it was Brandon downingPetersen. 16,15. Olson defeated Truelson

14, I 9 in the semis. with Petersen advancingwith a default by Bob Fox as all top 4 seedsmade it to the semis. Olson took home a

good paycheck with the $150 1 st place andthen teamed up with Reggie Samuels todefeated Petersen and 12 yr old AaronPeterson of Duluth in the finals of Under

3800 doubles to split a first place check worth$100 in a close 3 game match, -19,19,13.USATT Open Singles1. Brandon Olson, Hopkins2. Todd Petersen, Lakeville

3. Robert Fox, St. Paul, Thor Truelson, MplsDakota County Open Doubles1. William McAdams & Michael Dirnburger,Apple Valley

2. Anuradha & Siva Shreedaran. SavageDakota County Adults1.Siva Shreedaran, Savage2. Jason Gusso. Apple ValleyDakota County Juniors1. Jerome Thiry, Eagan2. Jonathan Drankwalter, Apple ValleyUSATT U-2000 Singles

1. Elie Dadbad, Chicago, Ill2. Louis Houed, Chicago, Ili

USATT Singles U-18001. Terry Drassal. Shoreview2. Reggie Samuels, MplsUSATT U-1600 Singles1.John Wiita. Duluth

2. Ed Mui, MplsUSATT Singles U-14001. Matt Boemer, Bloomington2. Steve Platt, St Paul

USATT U-1200 Singles1. Steve Platt, St. Paul

2. Matt Boerner, BloomingtonNovice Singles1, Siva Shreedaran, Savage

July/August 1995

2. Siva Damodaran, New ZealandUSATT Adults U-1000

1. Lars Hatlen, Apple Valley2. Adam Wahl, Duluth

USATT Junior Singles U-12001. Andy Brommerich, Winona2. Lia Myhre, WinonaUSATT Junior Singles U-6001. Matt Potter, Duluth

2. Michael Liu, Ames, IAUSATT Senior Over 40

1. Robert Fox, St. Paul

2. Ali Behmanesh, MplsUSATT U-3800 Doubles

1. Brandon Olson, Hopkins & ReggieSamuels, Mpls

WICHITA

INTERNATIONAL TEAMSWichita, KansasJune 10, 1995

by John Potochnik

The years of playing in basements andsmall gyms paid off handsomely for theteams from Hutchinson and Wichita. With

too many players and too few tables, both ofthese clubs play lots of doubles in order toinvolve as many players as possible. Ulti-mately their strength in doubles propelledthese teams to the top of the second annualWichita Invitational Team Table Tennis

Tournament.

This year's tournament started outmuch the same as last year's-the Okla-homa City team showed up with both thehighest rated player (Amaad Uppal) andthe best lookingclub shirts-black, trimmedin red, with a distinct, Oklahoma-shapedemblem neatly embroidered on the front.Unlike last year, however, Oklahoma Citydid not parlay these advantages into thetournament championship. Amaad won allof his singles matches, as expected, butotherwise the team did not play to theirpotential, especially in the doubles compe-tition. The defending champions finished adisappointing fifth

Carla Medeiros, a former women's

player on the Brazilian Pan American Team(and now a student at Wichita State Univer-

sity) and Joshua Bat-tel, a current member ofthe U.S. Paralympic Team (and a student atKansas State University), played the mostexciting match of the day. Carla and Joshuahave played several times during the last

1

I NAME

ADDR

1

1 BIE H (requil1 -1 -1

1

1

1Make checks out to LS AT'

41•-

USATT MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONPrintone letterin each box

4.

LAST FIRST

ESS:

STREET

-

err, STATE ZIP (DDE

DATE:33 03 03 TELEPHO NE:

red) - -MO. MY YR. Area Code Numb er

I Ad ult COne Year) ...........................$25.00

I Ad ult (Three Years) $6000 Are you a US. citizen? m Yes m b*Junior (One Year) $ &00

*Junior (One Year w /To day) .........

$1200 Nw**Family (One Year) $46.00Rene,•al Female -1./.4//0.-El Male . le

1//711/11

A junior must be under 18 as cf the last Ji ly 1st*All members of one fanily living at the same address.rl ease include nanrs/birthdtes of all family members.Hease mail to: iS ATT, One Olympic Haza, Colorado Springs, 00 80909-5769 (719) 578-4!83

2. Todd Petersen, Lakeville & AaronPeterson, Duluth

USATT Doubles U-2400

1. Cory Eider & Sam Scott, Duluth2. Andy Wahl, Duluth &Gerry Miller, AnokaRegion 9 Championships (5 state area)Junior Boys U-121. Cory Eider, Duluth2. Peirce Conboy, DuluthJunior Boys U-141. Aaron Peteron, Duluth

2. Raza Najmuddin, RosevilleJunior Boys U-161. John Wiita, Duluth

2. Andy Brommerich. WinonaJunior Boys U-18

year, most notably during a weekly leaguelast Fall that Joshua drove from Manhattan

to Wichita to participate in, a round trip of250 miles. While Joshua had occasionallytaken a game from Carla, he had never wona match

And he still hasn't. Carla won the first

game at 18. Undaunted, Joshua respondedby winning the second at 17. The third gameseesawed as neither player was able to builda substantial lead. As the match progressedslowly but inexorably to deuce, the gymbecame schizophrenic. Firstthe muted whis-pers as Carla would serve, followed quicklyby the raucous cheers ofJoshua's teammatesas he would backhand smash one of Carla's

loops. In the end though, Carla's consis-tency proved too much, and she won 22 to 20in the third. much to the delight of herWichita team.

While there were many exciting indi-vidual matches like the one between Carla

and Joshua, this tournament emphasizedoverall team play. During most of the mom-ing and early afternoon, fourof the six teamswere in the running. By early afternoon,however, the strength of the doubles teamsfrom Hutchinson and Wichitabegan to makeadifference. As the final three roundsbegan,it was obvious that one of these two teams

would prevail. Wichita won the AB Doublesand Hutchinson came in second. On the tlipside, Hutchinson won the CD Doubles and

Wichita came in second, Ultimately,Hutchinson ended the suspense. clinchingthe overall team title on the nextto lastmatch

of the day.

Like last year, the tournament was anunqualified success. Because the tourna-

1. Jon Kaminsky, Mpls2. Philipp Sturm, St PaulJunior Girls U-12

1.Lydia Brekke, Richfield2. Ashley Little, St PaulJunior Girls U-14

1. Ashley Miller, Champlin2. Sarah Brekke, Richfield

Junior Girls U-16

Rochelle Miller, ChamplinJunior Girls U-18

Lia Myhre, WinonaAdulUJunior Doubles

1. Cory Eider & Gary Hendrickson, Duluth2. Philipp Sturm, Eagan & Kurt Fechter, St.Paul

ment was time scheduled, it began and moreimportantly ENDED on time for the secondyear in a row. With two successful yearsunderourbelt. we havedecidedto make itanannual event.

Final Team Standings:1st: Hutchinson (KS) TTC-21 points2nd: Wichita TEA - Alpha Team-20 points3rd: Lawrence (KS) TTC-16 points4th: Kansas State ITC-12 points5th: Oklahoma City TTC-11 points6th: Wichita TTA - Beta Team-9 pointsHutchinson Team ($200 Winners):A: Paul Olivier

B: Guy HendricksonC: Carl Miller

D: Bill Socha

Wichita Alpha Team ($100 Winners):A: Carla Medeiros

B: Richard Catlin

C: Jeff Mai

D: Stanley StoodleyA Singles (1900 - 2199): 1st: Amaad Uppal(Oklahoma City): 2nd: Carla Medeiros(Wichita Alpha)B Singles (1600 - 1899): 1 st: Chun-Yen Liu(Lawrence); 2nd: Richard Catlin (WichitaAlpha)

C Singles (1300 - 1599): 1 st: Carl Miller(Hutchinson): 2nd: Joel Moots (Kansas State)D Singles (1000 -1299): ist: SteveMcGIothlin (Lawrence); 2nd: Hardy Dunn(Wichita Beta)

AB Doubles: Ist: Carla Medeiros and Rich-

ard Catlin (Wichita Alpha); 2nd: Paul Olivierand Guy Hendrickson (Hutchinson)CD Doubles: 1 st: Carl Millerand Bill Socha

(Hutchinson); 2nd: JeffMai and StanleyStoodley (Wichita Alpha)

-------- ------71

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Table Tennis Today 43

1995 PENNSYLVANIA

TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS

Penn State UniversityMarch 25-26, 1995

by Sam SteinerThis reincarnation of a 70's classic

was a terrific tournament in spite of arelatively light turnout. 59 entrants on 17teams played a grueling series of, for themost part, closely-matched opponentsunder excellent playing conditions.Tables, nets, and barriers were labori-

ously trucked in from faraway Erie for theweekend, while the Penn State club sup-

plied manpower and facilities.The Pittsburgh I machine of Randy

Seemiller, Rich Burnside, and ChipCoulter bulldozed their way through all

competition withoutbeing seriously chal-lenged. The second-seeded Penn State Iteam of "Kar" Ramanathan, Hank

McCoullum, free agent Dan Walk, andBill Davidson was unable to pose anyserious threat and fell to Pitt 5-1. Rich s

19,17 win over Kar, and Chip's 19,-12,

19 upset of Hank, shut the door on the hostteam. Hank sandwiched this tournament

in between a wedding in Philly on Satur-day, and a 6:00 P.M. Aight to Chicago onSunday, which didn't help his game any.Penn State still ended up in the money in3rd place. Second place went to a strong

Lehigh Valley I team of Sam Balamoun.Joe Scheno, John Richards, and FredKistler. Sam has slowed down some and

rarely plays in tournaments anymore. buthis long range defense/retrieve game is

still a crowd-pleaser. LV 1 lost to Pitt 5-0and defeated Penn State 5-3. 4th in class

"A" went to the Lehigh Valley Spinnersteam of Mike Lewis, Mark Vrabel, and

Dave Fulcomer. Mike Lewis looked par-

ticularly impressive with his explosive

fast loops and kills, and seems poised to

become a big-league player. Mike andMark broke the 2100 and 2000 barriers

respectively at this tournament.CLASS "A"

1. Pittsburgh I- Randy Seemiller, Rich

Burnside, Chip Coulter 3-0

2. Lehigh Valley I- Sam Balamoun, JoeScheno, John Richards, Fred Kistler 2-1

3. Penn State I- Srinivasan Ramanathan,

Hank McCoullum, Dan Walk, Bill

Davidson 1-2

4. Lehigh Valley Spinners- Mike Lewis,Mark Vrabel, Dave Fulcomer 0-3

CLASS "B"

1. Chesmont Triple "L"'s- Steve Lowry,

Sheng Luo, Ken Laughlin 4-0

2. Lancaster- Scott Shughart. Don Yabiku,

Bob Cogley 2-2 (13-9)

3. WaterfrontPiranhas-MarvinPlevinsky,

Gerald Reid, Dennis Spellman 2-2 (12-9)4. Erie- Sam Steiner, Jim Burik, Tom

Burik, Bob Glecos 2-2 (12-10)

5. Pittsburgh Esquires- Sandy Chu, Bill

Walk, Barry Rodgers 0-4CLASS "D"

1. Pittsburgh Moon Dawgs- Gary

Livingston, Jim Sealy, Ken Linck, MarkJeffcoat 3-0

2. Lehigh Valley II- Frank Roth, Dave

Dickson II, Ron Albright 1-2 (7-6)3. Middletown Area TTC- Dan Peterson,

Don Vastine, Quoc-wong But Joe Vastine

1-2 (8-7)

4. Penn State Il- Pat O'Neill, Hongqiu

Chen, Jing Ke, Sanjay Ramachandran 1 -

2 (6-8)

44 Table Tennis Today

CLASS "E"

1. Butler 1- Rich Logan. Dan Barnes, KarlOsterman, Chris Malis 3-0

2. Pittsburgh Team Drink- Dan Russo,Joel Kennet, Rich Moss 2-1

3. Lehigh Valley III- Dave Rheinauer,Joe Clark, John Vrabel 1-2

4. Butler II- Tim Malis, Bob Young, KenDaub 0-3

MATTC JUNE OPEN

Middletown, PennsylvaniaJune 10-11, 1995

Middletown Area Table Tennis Club

held its fifth and final tournament of the

season on June 10 and June 11. Thanks to

all the participants for making it a verysuccessful one.

If you like heat, humidity and GREATcompetition, the Main Street Gym wasthe place to be. Extra clothing and towelswere a necessity, along with a strong will.

There were quite a few club recordsset throughout the tournament:• 4 players over 2400 participated (ChengYinghua/2797, Abass Ekun/2562,SeanLonergan/2486, Barney J. Reed/2409) aswell as 8 others over 2000.

• 8 women participants-almost twice asmany as usually play. Thanks, Ladies.• 16 was the number of clothing changesneeded to remain comfortable in 90 de-

gree heat and 90% humidity.

Overall, thetournamentransmoothlywith very few holdups. 80 plus peopleplayed with both days ending before 8:30PM. Congratulations go to TournamentDirector Don Vastine, Referee Erich

Haring, and all tournament helpers formaking it so successful.

Fifteen events were played over twodayson eighttables. $1000 in prize moneywas given out. Maybe with turnouts con-

tinuing like they have been, MATTC couldput more money into prize(s)-HINT.Watch for MATTC's next tournament in

September. Hopefully it will not be so hotand humid.

Open Singles-Finals: Cheng Yinghuad. Abass Ekun, 15,15,18; SF: Cheng

Yinghuad. Masamichi Kubo, 9,7; A. Ekun

d. S. Lonergan, 21,-15,15; QF: ChengYinghua d. R. Burnside, 8,5; MasamichiKubo d. D. Martis, 18,11; S. Lonergan d.

B. Lonergan, -16,15,11; A. Ekun d. B. J.

Reed,injury default.U2350-Final: B. Lonergand. D. Martis,

split prize; SF: D. Martis d. R. Burnside,-8,15,14; B.Lonergan d. E. Eisley, 14,18.

U2200-Final: B. Lonergan d. B. Reed,14,-19,14; SF: B. Lonergan d. T.Lonergan, 15,15; B. Reed d. M. Allen,15,19.

U2000: E. Eisley d. T. Lonergan, 11,18.

U1800: F. Kistler d. R. Cogley, 14,19.U1600: D. Corbett d. N. Newcomer, 14,-

20,11.

U1400: S. Sheckard d. J. Chou, 20,10.

U1200: J. Valentino d. J. Vos, 19,24.

U1000: E. Riverad. R. McComsey, 16,14.

U850: S. Gibson d. J. Agate, 18,-21,18.

Novice: M. Espino d. J. Althoff, 15,11.

Over 40: M. Allen d. F. Halbig, 16,5.040/U1600: R. Sharma d. J. Clark, -

15,19,13.

Under 18: 1 st: Pallav Bhonde; 2nd: Nick

Filippelli; 3rd: Elizabeth Vastine.U3200 Doubles: 1 st: Leitzel/Castillo; 2nd:

J.Vastine/Wetzler.

PENNSYLVANIA STATE

CLOSED

MATTC

Middletown, PA

April 23, 1995Open Singles-Final: Dan Seemiller d.Barney J. Reed,12.13,19: SF: Seemillerd. Rich Burnside. 11,13; Reed d. RandySeemiller,-20,10,16.

Women's Open-Final: TuongoanhNguyen d. Nancy Newcomer, 12,12; SF:Nguyen d. Carol Hall-Baker,4.10; New-comer d. Carol Hall-Baker, 15,8.U2350-Final: Srinivasan Ramanathan

d. Mike Walk, 18,14; SF: Ramanathan d.

J. Ramirez,8,14; Walk d. Rich

Burnside, 18.14.

U2100-Final: John Ramirez d. Eric

Eisley, 13,17; SF: Ramirez d. DanWalk, 18,14; Eisley d. Barney D.

Reed, 13,17.

U1900: Fred Kistler d. L. Hong,17,14.U1700: Quoc-Wong T. Bui d. W. Metz,-

14,16,19.

U1500: John Party d. A. Kaushal, 19,19.

U1300: Quoc-Wong T. Bui d. J.

Olejnick,15,8.Ulloo: Marvin Hall d. R.

McComsey, 14,16.U900: Thomas Pritchard d. R.

McComsey,21,9.

Novice: David Delp d. P. Chheang, 17,-20,19.

Under 18: Joe Vastine d. C. Warshaw,7,9.

Over 40: Dan Seemiller d. R.

Fatakia, 14.13.

Over 50: Samuel Balamoun d. Dave

Dickson,10,16.

Over 60: Robert Cogley d. WarrenWetzler.11,14.

Open Dbls: Randy Seemiller/ChipCoulter d. B. J. Reed/B. D. Reed, 18,-

17,13.

U3200 Dbls: Don Castillo/Mike Leitzel

d. Dan Peterson/Bill Metz,19,20.

WATERFRONT OPEN

Philadelphia,Pennsylvania

June 3-4, 1995Open: 1st: AbassEkun, 2nd: EnochGreen,

3rd: Zoltan Boldy

U2350: Enoch Green/David Sakai, split

prize.

U2150: Arkadiy Lazbin d. SanjeevKhurana, default

U2000: Gerald Reed/John Dang, split

prize.

Over 40: David Sakai/Oleg Zallesskiy,

split prize.U4200Doubles: EnochGreen/MarkWil-

liams d. Oleg Zalleskiy/Arkadiy Lazbin, -11,15,18.

U1800: Lennox Bartley d. Phuoc Huynh,

8,20.

U1700: Jose Santos d. Michea-El Bey,

17,11.

U1500: Herman Lotsteind. UmaDuvvuri,

19,-19,17.

U1250: RobertHugheyd. Jim Ryan,12,15.U1000: Horace Clouden d. Jason Haft,

22,-15,5.

Under 18: Dimitry Lanis d. Jason Haft,

17,5.

U3400 Doubles: Gerald Reid/Herman

Lotstein d. Mark William/RalphBremerman, 15,15.

GOLDEN STATE OPEN

Walnut Creek, California

May 27-28, 1995by Sefton Boyars

Youth came to the fore at the Golden

State Open this year. Of the 127 entrants, 27(over 21 percent) werejuniors under the ageof 18. The young players also did well inmany of the events.

Chi-Sun Chui, age 21, and ShashinShodhan, age 17, came in first and second inthe Open Singles. Shashin won the Under2400s and Jimmy Guan. aged 15, came insecond. Jimmy also won the Under 2200s.Choi, Shodhan and Guan are all from thePalo Alto Table Tennis Club.

In the Under 2000s, Freddie Gabriel,

aged 12, came in second. Freddie also camein second in the Junior Under 18 event.

upsetting the top seed on his way. PiotrZajac and Freddie Gabriel came in first andsecond in the Junior Under 15 event.

Another youngster, Terrence Lee (age11), made his mark in this tournament.

Terrence, who has been playing for onlynine months, came in second in the Under

1400s and, with amore experienced partner.came in second in the Under 2800 Doubles.

Zajac, Gabriel and Lee are fast developingyoungsters from the Concord Table TennisClub who are being trained by Bill Lui, theClub Coach.

On a more mature note, Waqidi Falicoff,from Ashland, Oregon, did not travel to theSan Francisco Bay Area in vain. Falicoff,who is the President of ASTI, won the

Esquires event, beating competitors ratedup to 200 points above him.Open Singles - Final RR Ist: Chi-Sun Chui.3-0 (d. Tran, 15, 13; d. Valencia, 20, 12; d.

Shodham, 20, 19); 2nd: Shashin Shodhan, 2-1(d. Valencia, 10, 10; d. Tran, 19, 14); 3rd:

Fernando Valencia. 1-2 (d. Tran, 11,15): 4th:

De Cong Tran. 0-3.

Under 2400: Shashin Shodhan d. Jimmy Guan,-14, 13, 15. SF: Shodhan d. Ramin Samari, 8.

15; Guan d. Rudy Miranda, 17,13.Under 2200: Guan d. Voltaire Trillo, 11,-13.

20. SF: Guand. Tuan Le, 15,19; Trillod. PhilipLim,-17,13,17.

Under 2000: Quan Huynh d. Freddie Gabriel,19,19. SF: Gabriel d. George Sanguinetti, 12,

18; Huynh d. Milce Perez.

Under 1850: Paul Corpuzd. Hawk Lee, 1 1,14.

SF: Corpuzd. JamesRitz, 16,17; Leed. MassoudDehdashti, -13, 25, 16.

Under 1700: Steve Pollaine d. David Smith, -

19,18,11.

Under 1550: Anthony Cari)entieri d. DavidSmith, 14,18.Under 1400: Charles Aebersold d. Terrence

Lee, 14,15.

Under 1250: Charles Aebersold d. Jim Cembura,

18,12.

Under 1100: James Hsu d. Rick Reynolds, 14,9.

Open Doubles: De Cong Tran/Chi-Sun Chui d.Fernando Valencia/Ramin Samari, 15,-17,15.

3400 Doubles: Steve Pollaine/Bob Schanilec d.

Stacy Lee/Hawk Lee, -16,11,21.2800 Doubles: Rod Dorse/David Smith d. Bemi

Frickefrerrence Lee, 14.16.

Women's Singles RR: lst: Stacy Lee.2-1 (5-2);2nd: Michelle Do.2-1 (5-4);3rd; PatriciaHocke,

2-1 (4-4); 4th: Leslie Chen-Hamilton, 0-3.

Seniors: Roberto Arteche d. Mike Perez, 18,

12.

Esquires: Waqidi Falicoff d. Thomas Miller,18,18.

Senior Esquires: Enver Mehmedbasich d.

Azmy Ibrahim, 19,9.Veterans: Wil Fountain d. Leo Egel, 18, -19,17.

Juniors Under 18: Andrew Do d. Freddie

Gabriel, 20, - 1 7,1 5.

Juniors Under 15: Piotr Zajac d. FreddieGabriel, 19,-18,17.

July/August 1995

$900 NTTC MAY OPENNational Table Tennis Center

Rockville, MarylandMay 13-14, 1995

Open Singles-Final: Jack Huang dBarney J. Reed. 14,18.15; SF: Huang d.Dave Fernandez, 10,13,- 19,- 11.16: Reed d.

Sean Lonergan.-20,19,18,17.U2450: Hishashi Kubo v. Barney J. Reed,split: SF: H. Kubo d. Larry Bavly, 17,11;Reed d. M. Kubo, 16.-19,16,0.

U2250: Larry Bavly d. Larry Hodges, 13,-20,12; SF: Bavly d. Barney D. Reed, 13.14;Hodges d. Nazi*udin Asgarali,11.19.U2050: Frank Fuhnnann d. TerryLonergan, 13,15.U1850: Paul Kovac d. Kevin Giles, 18,20.U1750: John C. Anderson d. Michael

Master,9,19.

U1550: Xeng Ly d. Thomas Golab, 15,16.U1350: Xeng Ly d. Sean Chen, 11,12.U1150: Tony Murnahan d. V. R.Aker,11,17.

U950/Unrated: Rolf Hendriks d. Caroline

Oppenheimer, 11,-15,10.

$900 NTTC JUNE OPENNational Table Tennis Center

Rockville, MarylandJune 17-18, 1995

Open Singles-Final: Jack Huang d. GaoJun. 10,17,19; SF: Gao d. Sean O'Neill,-

7,10,18,16; Huang d. Barney J. Reed,12,13,6.

U2450-Final: Barney J. Reed d.Masamichi Kubo, - 1 5,14,18; SF: Reed d.

Richard Lee, 18,11; Kubod. Larry Hodges,11,17.

U2250-Final: Dape Sakaid. Gary E]well,15.7; SF: Sakai d. Brian Lonergan, 12,-15,12; Elwell d. Vivian Lee, -10,21,14.

U2050-Final: Terry Lonergan d. FredHalbig, 15,14: SF: Lonergan d. VivianLee, -20,7,8; Halbig d. Jeff Hsin, 13,13.

U1850: Rolando Guidoted. Roger Martin,16,23.

U1750: Randall Henrid. Glenn Jenkinson,

-24,19,17.

U1550: Allen Kaplan d. Xeng Ly, 15,-15,18.

U1350: Han Xiaod. Jeff Shank,-17.23,23.

U1150: John Valentino d. Kyle Suggs, -17,14,16.

U900: Kyle Suggs d. Michael Fan, -18,19,10.

1995 MARYLAND STATE

CHAMPIONSHIPS

National Table Tennis Center

Rockville, MarylandApril 29, 1995Open Singles-Final: Gao Jun d. Sean

Lonergan,-20,14.10,8; SF: Gao d. Richard

Lee,10,12,12; Lonergan d. ToddSweeris,12,-13,17.15.

Over 40: David Sakai d. Morris Jackson

(default)

Over 50: Terry Lonergan d. HerbHorton,14,20.

Over 60: Herb Horton d. Mort

Greenberg,11,17.Under 22 Finals: Todd Sweeris d. Sean

Lonergan, 15,13.

Under 18 Boys: Richard Lee d. ChrisKo,12,14.

Under 14 Boys: Sean Chen d. HanXiao,20,8.

Under 12 Boys: Han Xiao d. CharlesFan,5,7.

Under 18 Girls: Vivian Lee d. LauraLin,-18,5,16.

Under 16 Girls: Vivian Lee d. Caroline

Oppenheimer,5,7.

Under 12 Girls: Caroline Oppenheiinerd.Katherine Wu,10.18.

NEWJERSEYFEBRUARYOPENWestfield, New JerseyFebruary 11, 1995Open Singles-Final: David Zhuang d.Dan Seemiller,9.9,9; SF: David Zhuangd. Lily Yip,15,-17,16,21; Dan Seemillerd. Barry Darrel. 13,13,17.

U2350: David Sakai v. George Brathwaite,split

U2150: Patrick Mualem d. Ashu Jain,-22,14.16.

U1950: Andreas Luethi d. Karen

Chang(default)U1750: David Yee d. Jeff Williams,10,-

20,7.

U1550: Pallau Desaid. Jeff Williams,19,-15,14.

U1400: Gene Tom d. Tom MeNally, 15,-14.13.

U1200: Rodolfo Salazar d. LennyYeung, 14,6.U1000: Lenny Yeung d. LawrenceShieh, 19,-10,18.

Seniors: Dan Seemiller d. GeorgeBrathwaite, 17,15.

Over 40/Ul[750: Dennis Cometz d. Wali

Muhammad,10,19.

Women: Lily Yip d. Virginia Sung, n.s.Under 18: Rodolfo Salazar d. Vladimir

Gorvits, 16,19.

Under 14: Lawrence Shieh d. Rob C.

Howe,5,7.

U3400Dbls: W. Chin/J. Willid. D. Rockir/

J. Yeh,-20,14,12.

CHRIS MANGLITZ

MEMORIAL DOUBLES

TOURNAMENT

National Table Tennis Center

Rockville, Maryland

April 30, 1995Under 4600 Doubles: Masamichi

Kubo/David Yao d. Todd Sweeris/

Jessica Shen, 21,-21,13.

Under 4200 Doubles: Gary Elwell/

David Yao d. Richard Lee/Jessica Shen,

18,-18,18.

Under 3800 Doubles: Jack Wah/Andy

Li d. Brian Lonergan/Michael Squires,

18,16.

Under 3300 Doubles: Todd Sweeris/

Caroline Oppenheimer d. Jack Wah/Iris

Lee, n.s.

Under 2800 Doubles: Michael Master/

Sean Chen d. Vivian Lee/Caroline

Oppenheimer, 18,-18,18.Under 2300 Doubles: Vivian Lee/Iris

Lee d. Patrick Lee/Teh-Lin Lee. n.s.

Handicap Doubles: John Richards/

Frank Roth d. Richard Lee/Iris Lee, 51-

40.

GENESEE VALLEY TABLE

Classic League-Final Standings1994-95

IN Team Name

2 Miniature Railways 264

1 West & Co. Jewelers 248

7 Brickell's TT Supplies 256

3 Rainbow Clays 229

5 Woody s 216

4 Primacare 212

8 Susan Hue Realty 205

6 Response Rentals 204

NEWJERSEYMARCHOPENWestfield, New JerseyiMarch 12, 1995

Open Singles-Final: David Zhuang d.Abass Ekun, 14,-18,13,15 SF: David

Zhuangd. Dave Fernandez. 14,13,13 AbassEkun d. Sean Lonergan, i 8.-18.18.-16,11.U2350-Final: Hui Yuan Liu d. Anani

Lawson, 14,-15,19; SF: Hui Yuan Liu d.

Virginia Sung, 18.14; Anani Lawson d.Maria Golubovic,20.13.

U2150: Ashu Jain d. Barney D.Reed, 14,18.

U1950: Freeman Bayard d. HenryGosebruch, 18,-16,14.

U1750: Robert Spitzerd. Sung Yim, 11,20.U1550: Craig Sental d. Jaime Sierra,-18,15.18.

U1400: Brian Roughan d. RodolfoSalazar,-17,20,16.

U1200: Michael Huey d. AngelChang, 16,21.U1000: John MeGee d. Lawrence

Shieh, 18,17.

Women-Final: Virginia Sung d. MariaGolubovic, 19,23.

Seniors-Final: David Sakai d. BarneyD. Reed,9,12.

Over 40/U1750: Robert Spitzer d.Abraham Chen, 16,17.

Under 18-Final: Rodolfo Salazar d.

Devin Brown,8,6.

Under 14-Final: Lawrence Shieh d. Ja-

son Garrett, 15,18.

U3400 Dbls: S. Vasquez/L. Shieh d. T.Ojebode/Sat-nkoff,-18,17,17.

EAST COAST

SUPERDIVISION

NTTC Spring League ResultsNational Table Tennis Center

Rockville, MD

1st: Three'saCrowd (Todd Sweeris, Andy

Li, John Wilhelm), 53-37.

2nd: Over40's(Mark Allen, Fred Halbig,Steve Thoren), 51-39.

3rd: Young at Heart (Brian Lonergan,

Terry Lonergan, Barbara Kaminski), 50-40.

4th: Incredibly Powerful Loopers (Larry

Hodges, Vivian Lee, Mark Master), 49-41.

5th: Capital Gain (Gary Elwell, Bob

Slapnik, Mike Shen), 46-42.

6th: Ouick Feets (Masamichi Kubo, Jes-

sica Shen, Karl Smart), 44-46.

7th: No Names (Richard Lee, David

Cheung, Julian Waters), 43-47.

8th: Global Spirit (Daniel Le, Frank

Fuhrmann, Matthew Murad), 42-48.

9th: Better than Last (Sean Lonergan,

Margaret Lu, Andy Seto), 37-53.

10th: Team Jack (Sunny Li, Jack Wah,

Charles Karr), 35-55.

ENNIS LEAGUE

Games Lost %

195 .5752

192 .5636

204 .5565

235 .4935

245 .4685

244 .4649

250 .4505

268 .4322

Games Won

NEW JERSEY MAY OPENWestfield, New JerseyMay 20, 1995

Open Singles-Final: David Zhuang d.AbassEkun,8,8,-17,14; SF: DavidZhuangd. Dave Fernandez,6.18,17: Abass Ekund.Barney J. Reed,-I 1,19,17,16.U2300-Final: Amani Lawson d. LarryBavly,-15,16,13; SF: Anani Lawson d.David Rosenzweig,-17.19.10: Larry Bavlyd. Hui Yuan

Liu,19,13.U2100: John Andrade d. Owen Irv-

ing, 19,15.U1900: Per Berglund d. Wayne Chin.-20,17,13.

U1700: Ronald Joseph d. WaliMuhammed, 19,11.

U1500: Edwin Flores d. Denzil

Kendall,7,14.

U1350: Vince Wisniewski d. Satar

Abdool, 18,18.

U1150: Nataliya Kaler d. JackMarkell,20,20.

U950: Lawrence Shieh d. Malcolm Amos

Jr.,18,19.

Women: Milagros Llosa d. AliceKimble,0,19.

Seniors: Parviz Mojaverian d. GeorgeBrathwaite, 13,11.

Over 40/U1750: Ron Heilmann d. SidneyCohen,17,14.

Under 14: Nataliya Kaler d. LawrenceShieh, 12,11.

U3400Dbls: O. Zalesskiy/Gorvitsd. LarryBavly/Lawrence Shieh,5.-16,10.

10th PAUL CRACRAFT

MEMORIAL OPEN

Boulder, Colorado

Saturday, May 20, 1995

by Sai Kwok

Paul was diagnosed with a brain tu-mor at the age of 19. He continued to play

table tennis as long as he was able, until hefinally died 5 years later. The memory of

his courageous fight, will to live, andsportsmanship continue to provide an in-spiration for all. There is a Paul Cracraftsportmanship award in the Colorado

Springs Open each year.

This year's tournament was held inthe Shepherd of the Hills Church gym, anew location welcomed by most players.Besides players from Colorado, we alsoattracted enthusiastic players from Wyo-ming and Montana.

Open Singles-Final: Sai Kwokd. DavidVollmar, 18,16,-13,23; SF: Kwok d. JimRoecker, 12,16; Vollmard. Bob Leather-

wood, 15,-12,12.AA Singles-Final: David Vollmar d.Richard Haines, 19,16; SF: Haines d.Roecker, 13,-11,11: Vollmar d. Tim St.

Germain, 19,19.

A Singles: Kevin Young d. Bob Leather-wood, 16,17.

B Singles: Alan Sutz d. Dennis Heath,17,16.

C Singles: Jaros d. Dave Zimmerman,21,14.

D Singles: Frail d. Mracek, 16,12.U1550-Final: Gray d. Jaros, 17,14; SF:Gray d. G. Joel, 14,7; Jaros d. J. Wong, -16,16,18.

Senior Singles-Final: Roger Kuseskid. Dennis Driggs, 13,-22,17; SF: Kuseskid. Reddekopp, 5,21; Driggs d. C. Wong,15,14.

Open Doubles: Mui/St. Germain d.Kuseski/Roecker, 17,-19,17.

U3600 Doubles: Leatherwood/Weissburgd. Wong/Wong, 16,16.

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 45

1995 ALABAMA CLOSED

April 22.1995

Huntsville, Alabama

by Michael Wetzel

There were no surprises in this yearsAlabama Closed as Keith LaFrance of

Montgomery breezed to another singles

championship. It was his seventh in hiseight years in the state.

LaFrance. 32. won $80 for his first

place finish and another $20 for taking%econd place in championship doubles

with his partner Ronald Spencer of

Prichard. LaFrance easily defeated 16-

time state champion Don Gaitherof HazelGreen in the singles final 21-15.21-11.

Each earned their way to the finals ofthe round-robin tournament by defeating

two Huntsville players in the xemis.

LaFrance whipped 3-time state chanip

Ralph Kissel 21-13.21-16 as Gaither wasousting Bill Mobley 21-18.21-7 (retired).

Gaither then teamed with Brazilian

exchange student Ernesto Kawamoto ofHuntsville to take the state doubles crown.

They won $30 defeating LaFrance/Spen-cer 22-20.21-18.

The tournament offered S250in prize

money and 13 plaques. Sponsored by theHuntsville Table Tennis Club, the tourna-

n-tent was directed by Michael Wetzelwith help from DavidWilder.ChipPatton,

Marvalene Crawford. Jack Carney Jr..

and LaWanda Douglas.

Championship Singles: 1st: KeithLaFrance: 2nd: Don Gaither: 3rd: Bill

Mobley.

Championship Doubles: Ist: Don

Gaither/Ernesto Kawamoto: 2nd: Keith

LaFrance/Ronald Spencer: 3rd: ChipPatton/Edward Watts.

U1800: 1 st: Lamar Scott: 2nd: Ernesto

Kawamoto.

U1500: 1 st: Mauricio David, 2nd: Rich-

ard Casby.

U1200: 1 st: Colen Ellis ; 2nd: Max Barker.

Juniors: [st: Julian Vermund; 2nd:

Tommie Dailey Jr.

Seniors: 1st: Ralph Kissel: 2nd: Bill

Mobley.Intermediate Doubles: 1 st: Tommie

Dailey/Yuan Xu: 2nd: Eddie West/Mauricio David.

1995 TRI-STATE OPEN

New Hampshire CollegeHooksett, New Hampshire

May 7, 1995

Open Singles-Final: Qiumars

Hedayatian d. Shuia Jafur. 1().5.

Open Doubles: Quimars Hedayatian/

Bill Murray d. Homer Brown/Tim Kelly.U3000 Doubles: Ben Hamilton/Alex

Landsmand. Joe St. George/Joe Gauthier.Handicap: Adam Brown d. Jim Hayford.U2100: Alex Landsman d. DanyaBudiman.-19.2().18.

U1900: Danya Budiman d. Jim Hayford.U 1700: Steve Adams d. Adam

Brown. 15,13.

U1500: Joe Hertz d. John Wade.

U1300: Tom Labonte d. Ben Hamilton.

Ul 100: Joe Gauthier d. Doug Pryce.

Under 18: Lifan Yang d. Adam Brown.Over 40: Homer Brown d. Steve Adams.

Closed B Division-Final: Mike

McCarty d. Mark Hamilton. 15.-16.19.Closed A Division-Final: Donald

Hayes d. Tim Kelly,16.15.

46 Table Tennis Today

1995 MILLCREEK GIANT

ROUND-ROBIN

Erie, Pennsylvania

May 7, 1995CLASS "A"

1. Dan Kim 6-0: 2. Craig Bensch 5-1: 3.Elvis Gomez 4-2: 4. Rich Burnside 3-3:

5. Sam Steiner 2-4: 6. Cody Jones 1-5.7.Dave Berenson 0-6.

CLASS "B"

1. ValeriEInatanov 6- 1,2. Al Villarica 5-

2.3. Jerry Dennoll 5-2:4. Evan Tandlet-4-3: 5.

Neil Myers 4-3. 6. Les Filipowicz 2-5.7.Bob Brickell 2-5.8. Bob Glecos ()-7.

CLASS "C"

1. Ilya Bushkanets 6-1.2. Milos Rataj 5-2.3. Louis Radzeli 5-2.4. Rich Logan 4-3: 5. Victor

Ihama 3-4: 6. Paul Miller 3-4: 7. Joe

Grandalski 1-6.8. Gary Podis 1-6.CLASS "D"

1. Ron Arcaro 6-1 2. Ken Roskos 6-2; 3.Karl Ostermann 5-3: 4. Don Varian 4-4:

5. Ray

Gutowski 4-4: 6. Joel Kennet 4-4: 7. Pat

Carlisle 3-5: 8. Jack Huang 2-6: 9. ChrisBailey 2-6.CLASS "E"

1. Greg Soltys 7-0: 2. Ed Lewis 5-2: 3.Chick Bello 5-2: 4. Bryan Lewis 3-4: 5.Everett Hall 3-4:

6. Jerry Denno III 3-4, 7. Rick Orbin 2-5:8. Ken Daub 0-7.

SCHAUMBURG TT NO

WAITING RR OPEN

Schaumburg, illinois

June 10, 1995Class A: 1 st: Norman Yeh: 2nd: Wojciech

Wolski: 3rd: Larry Bavly; 4th Andy

Ibanigor.

Class B: 1st: Marlon McCartney; 2nd:Joe Liang.

Class C: 1st: Luis Houed: 2nd: Attila

Viragh.

Class D: 1st: Chi-Ching Yu: 2nd: Waclan

Piekosz.

Class E: 1 st: Raffy Favis: 2nd: MarekKania.

Class F: Ist: Victor Brown: 2nd: Bill

Schwarz.

Class G: 1 st: Octavia Washington: 2nd:

Dan Koscielski.

Class H: 1 st: Robert Gates, Jr. : 2nd: Rob-

ert Hagerstrand.

WALTHAM MAY OPEN

May 13-14,1995

Group AA: 1 st: Qiumars Hedayatian;

2nd: Kwing Yiu Lau: 3rd: Kean Seng

Tan.

Group A: Ist: Neal Fox: 2nd: Carl

Lachance; 3rd: Lo Martinello.

Group B & C: 1 st: Donald Hayes; 2nd:Jim Brown: 3rd: Neal Fox.

Group D: 1 st: Bob Woodward: 2nd: Chris

Doyle: 3rd: Greg Maklae.WALTHAM JUNE OPEN

June 10-11, 1995

Group A: 1 st: Qiumars Hedayatian: 2nd:

Kwing Yiu Lau: 3rd: Faddi Baladi

Group B & C: 1 st: Donald Hayes. 2nd:

Manual Garcia: 3rd: Frank Dwelly

Group D: Ist: Adam Brown: 2nd: Ed-ward Cone: 3rd: Andrew Smith

SALINA OPEN

Salina, Kansas

by Cliff Metzger

Open Singles-Final: 1 st: Joshua Barrel .2nd: Paul Olivier: 3rd: Ben Fuller: 4th:

Peter Chamberlain.

Recreational Championships-Final:1 st Jeremy Carlin; 2nd: Dick Hughe.Class A: Ist: Gordon Beehler: 2nd: Peter

Chamberlain.

Class B: Ist: Terry Brecheisen: 2nd: GuyHendrickson.

Class C: Ist: Dr. Todd Cochrane: 2nd:

Jim Williams.

Class D: 1 st: Brandon Feng: 2nd: ScottMiller.

Recreation Class A: Ist: Dick Hughes:

2nd: Jeremy Catlin.

Recreation Class B: I st: Greg Nicholson:

2nd: Jenny Ransom.

Old Style Hard Bat: 1 st: Gordon Beehler.2nd: Car] Miller Il.

Championship Dbls: Ist: Jonathan

Paretsky/Ben Fuller: 2nd: Joshua Barte!/Peter Chamberlain.

Class A Dbls: I st: Guy Hendrickson/JohnPotochnik: 2nd: Carl Miller 11/Jeff Mai.

ClassB/C Dbls: [st: Tom Will/Gary Wing;2nd: Dave Whitted/Sheldon Muniger.

Singapore, April 21-28, 1995

Men's Singles Finalby Chandra MadosinghITTF Classification and Technical

Committee Member

The winners of the 12th Common-

wealth Championships, held inSingapore, Apr. 21-28, just before theWorld Championships, are listed be.

low. But first I'dliketosay a few wordsabout the Men's Singles final.

The top two Men's seeds were

ousted in the semifinals. The #4 seed,

Chan Kong Wah of Hong Kong, playedconsistently to get bytop seed Carl Preanof England, -6, 12,14, 18. Then the #3seed.AlanCookeofEngland,camefrom

behind in the 5th game, overcoming asore arm muscle, to outscore the #2 seed.

Lo Chuen Tsung of Hong Kong.The Stadium was filled with elec-

tricity, with' an air of mystery as bothChan andCookeenteredthe court. They

had played twice before...10 years ago!In the Commonwealth Championshipson the Isle of Man, Cooke won:, but two

weeks later, at the World's in

Gothenburg, Chan took revenge. So,

forthe last 10 years, upuntil this match,

they'd stood 1-1.

The rallies were short with quick,hard smashes by both players. Theysplit the first two games. In the 3rd

game. Chan had a 21-19 scare. But hewon the 4th game comfortably at 16 towin the match.

The 29-year-old Cooke hadwontheCommonwealthMen'stitlesixyears

ago in Cardiff and hoped to duplicatethat feat here. But Chan. shattering

Alan's hopes, went for a hard loop or

kill at every opportunity. This was the

first time in 10 years of trying that the33-year-oldHongKongstarhadreachedthefinal, and hetneantto make the most

of his opportunity.

GCTTC CLOSED

INVITATIONAL

Columbia. South Carolina

April 22. 1995

by Francis Kovach

You may have thought it would neverhappen again. but the Greater Columbia

Table Tennis Club finally had their first

tournament since May 29.1993 andonlythe second since June 17,1989.

John Palmer. age 58. who lives in

England and is very active there in leagues

and tournaments, played his first sane-tioned tournament in the U.S. John visits

the Columbia area twice a year and wentundefeated in the tournament.

The biggest upset was pulled off by

Randy Finn. rated 1685. defeating a 1928

player in the Giant Round Robin.

Here are the top 3 finishers in each

event:

Class A: 1 st: John Palmer: 2nd: Steve

Palmer: 3rd: Maxie Burgexx.

Class B: 1 st: Don Hair. 2nd: Dave Worley:

3rd: Church Hudgins.

Over50: Ist: Jen-y Golubow: 2nd: Chuck

Hudgins: 3rd: Joe Finn.

Chan, a penholder from

GuangdongProvince. said, "I leftChinaforHon:Kong in 1981and pia)red in.myfirst Commonwealth Championshipsin 1985, but up until now I'd never

gotten further than the semi 's."In the Team's Chan had lost to

YongJiang LiuofVancouver, Canada,and so he hadn't expected to do well in

the Singles. But he sure found his format the right time.

Drenched in perspiration after the

50-minute match. the disappointedCooke offered no excuses: "What can I

say? Chan saved his best table tennisfor this match. 1 saw him in action

earlier and thought I had a good chance

to beat him. But he played fantastictable tennis and was the better player

tonight. 'Results.

Men's Singles-Final: Chan KongWah d. Alan Cooke, -16. 11,19,16. SF

Chan d. Carl Prean. -6,12,14,18: Cooke

d. Lo Chuen Tsung, -18.19, -16,17,11.

Women'stingles-Final: Chai PoWa

(H.K.) d. Jing Jun Hong Sing.), 14,12,21. SF: Chaid. LisaLomas(Eng.),9,19,17; Jingd. Chan Tan Lui (H.K.), -11, -13,18,18,19.

Men's Doubles-Final: Carl Prean/

Andrew Eden (Eng.)d. Fatai Adeyemo/Segun Toriola (Nig.), 11,48,11

Women's Doubles-Final: Chai Po

Wa/Chan Tan Lui (H. K.) d. Jing JunHong/Tan Paey Fern (Sing.), 18,-9, 11.Mixed Doubles-Final: Lo Chuen

Tsung/Chai Po Wa (H.K.) d. Andrew

Eden/Andrea Holt (Eng. ), 14.13.

Men's Team: 1. Hong Kong. 2. En-

gland 3. Canada. 4. India. 5. Scotland.6. Malaysia. 7. New Zealand. 8. Aus-tralia.

Women's Team: 1. Hong Kong. 2.England. 3. Singapore. 4. Australia. 5.

Canada. 6.Malaysia. 7. India. 8. Wales.

July/August 1995

12th COMMONWEALTH CHAMPIONSHIPS

A DAY TO REMEMBERby Bernie Bukiet

"My name is Bernie Bukiet."...'MI name is Bernie Bukiet."...'Ms name is Bernie Bukiet."...It's as if I have to

keep reminding myself of that now-things are sodifferent.

To tell the truth, it sounds like I'm back again, inanother world, on that old TV program. I rememberTim Boggan was with me on that show. It was verypopular, maybe some of you saw it?-it was in the early'70's. But Tim didn't fool anybody: everyone knewwho I was.

...Hey. how I speak like this?English is so easy here, I don't often talk the way

1 used to, don't sound like myself. It's so strange-likeI'm sort of both in and out of myself.

Some up here say I talk like a professor....Of course in different times and places I did speak

different languages-5 by my last count. And youmight say I was a professor. (I'm retired now, it justhappened.) A professorof Ping-Pong. And my studentsliked me. I had a lot of them-Tim, I'm sure, remem-

bea Scotty! Aireek!...How young they were. Well,time passes, they've grown up, become men. My long-time friend Dave Sakai, whom I can remember as a

teenager-he' s into middle-agenow. He always said hewanted to live his life like I did mine. But, Dave, whocould do this?

Still, people, ping-pong players everywhere, arereally a lot alike. And when Tim writes my mini-biogra-phy in the next issue of 777'-he's promised to do that,and I know he will-I want him to be sure and tell

everyone where I've been and whom I've met. You know1 play before the Shah of Iran with Bobby Fields? Beforean Indian maharajah? I play in Pakistan, in Bombay, inJapan, Hong Kong, Saigon, all over Europe....

Most of the people I met in my travels were niceCall the people in the Club up here are). But some, toomany, were not. I remember when times were hard Ionce said, and people laughed, "I should have themoney how dishonesty is."

But now as to my little account of what I want toremember and tell you about here. You'll excuse me ifI get on with what happened that May day? A goodcustomer's just walked in and I've got to hurry toaccomodate him.

May 10th, I think it was, I woke up feeling good-very good I should say for a 76-year-old. But of courseI couldn'thelp but feel young-young atheart anyway.It'd been three months since my heart by-pass surgery,and, since the doctor said it was o.k. for me to play tabletennis, I called my friend Ray Fields and we decidedwe'd go to the Hawthorne Club in the late afternoon orearly evening. In the meantime, we agreed to find waysto spend the few hours that remained.

Ray picked me up at my apartment in Glendale-that' s in California of course-and we went to Venice,

or rather Venice Beach, where for two hours or more a

Madonna commercial was beingtaped. You don'tthink1 see girls like her now? Just last night -sex of them!All very nice.

Then Ray and I drove over to Marina Del Rey tolook at some boats. Ray, who'd recently worked in theBilly Crystal/Debra Winger hit movie "Forget Paris,"was thinking ofbuying maybe a sail boat, I wishedI wasgoing away somewhere. Ray had taken me to Hawaii in'91 and ' 93 and I loved itthere. But who knew if I'd ever

get the chance to go back again.Afterwards, we went to Norm's Restaurant in

Inglewood for a N.Y.-cut steak. I always liked thesound of that. It brought back the days when I lived atthe Commander Hotel across the street from my, orrather Bobby Gusikeffs, Club. Bobby allowed me therun of the place, lots of liberty. I made my living therefor quite a while, but sometimes it wasn't easy. Espe-cially when I had to play Bobby for, say, $1,000. Not mymoney of course-I bet $5...only, to tell the truth,sometimes I didn't know whether I should win or lose.

But nobody talks about that up here, so I guess whetherI won or lost-I forget because it doesn't seem soimportant now-I did the right thing. You remember,me, huh, Bobby, with the red and yellow gladiolas-Isee this.

After we left Norm's we reached the Hawthorne

Club-my planned-fordestination since I'd awakened.Of course I couldn't wait to get out to the table. But I'd

July/August 1995

.le

C

0

404**4444.-X

only played about 10 minutes when, strange, I'd neverexperienced anything like it before, 1...Ijust collapsed-fell over backwards and hit my head falling.

Raykepthiswits abouthim, ranoutof theClubanddown the block to call 911. Within five minutes the

paramedicscameandworkedonmewiththeirpaddles-their electric shock paddles. Then they took me to theRobert F. Kennedy Hospital in Hawthorne.

Later that evening Ray talked to Dr. Stanaloffwhosaid that I'd had a massive heart attack, and that thoughthey'd had me on a respirator and had worked on me forhalf an hour or more, it looked bad for any life thatremained to me here in this Kennedy world. After myconcen,ration camp experience, I'd always thought ofmyself as a survivor-and how many matches had Icome back to win ! But what was the sense of comingback into this world in the shape that I was in, particu-larly when it was so easy to go to another? Those whoknew me know I was often very practical. So, nosurprise to Ray, when the next day, Carol, the headnurse, told him I'd passed away.

About my funeral: I really have to go court mycustomernow,butI'veaskedmyfriendMaryMellwainto tell you a little about what happened on May 22-asusual she'll be very conscientious. I do want to saybefore I go though how grateful I am to my friend Ray,especially on such short notice. for giving up a portionof his own cemetery plot to my bodily remains-notsomething now for me to dwell on or in. To RabbiBernard Savitz, who'11 be singing our National Anthemat Dodger Stadium next month, I have to say thanks fordoing such a great job. You couldn't tell, Bernie, but Ienjoyed every minute of it. I wish now I'd given you afew more points in our matches. I'd also like to thank somany for sending flowers. As some of you know, myname-not the name I was born with but that I later

adopted, Bukiet-suggests a bouquet of flowers. sohow appropriate they all were. Also. I'd especially liketo thank so many of my friends for showing up to wishme well-Bobby Gusikoff, Bobby Fields, and RubenGomez among them. And Ruben Guillen, I must tellyou: that was the nicest kiss anyone ever gave me andthe most human tear ever shed for me. Bless you.

Such a fuss everyone made over me. Though ofcourse, ifthetruth be told. I restedquite peacefully there.In fact. visible in my half-open casket as I was to one andall, dressed naturally, not in a suit but in an AcademyAward "Oscar" shirt, it was as if over the years i' dbecome...not the "table tennis bum some official had

once called me...but a show business celebrity.How I do this?

mplete Obitdaryfile of Bernie Buk

tie US.'s All-time

by Tim Boggan,inithe Next Iskue m ::. ,4224*422>'

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CO

Pro]

One of t]

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Greats,

MONDAY, MAY 22, 1995:The Day We Said A Final Farewell To Bernie Bukietby Mary McIlwain

It was overcast in Inglewood, CA, which is not unusual for theLos Angeles area on the 22nd of May. It seemed to add to the dignityof the moment. The more so, perhaps, because there was sun in thesmiles of Bernie Bukiet' s many friends as they greeted each other onthis solemn occasion.

My husband, Larry, and I, who had picked up Harold Kopper,arrived early (when you travel four freeways in LA you have to leaveearly !). But we could already see a beautiful large wreath of flowersfrom Murzie Kay and the Hawthorne Table Tennis Club. The smallorange chrysanthemums resembled orange table tennis balls set inlarger white ones ! Close to this was an equally beautiful arrangementofcarnations from President Terry Timmins representing the USATT.

Jet airplanes flew overhead periodically-as ifthey were salutinga great Champion, which they were.

As the small crowd gathered, I noticed a very attractive younglady who kept smiling at me until I finally asked her where I knew herfrom. Her name was Sonia. Yes, now I remember-Sonia Solomon,a very fine player, formerly of Yugoslavia now back in LA fromTucson with her friend Jim. Later I noticed that she carried a lovelyspray of Spring flowers by her side which I urged her to place by thecasketjust before services began. How sweet of her to remember!

Sonia and I were the only women players to attend and both of usare semi-retired.

No one, but no one, could ask foramore dignified and impressiveservice and eulogy than was given by professional Cantor BernardSavitz who would pause brietly as the planes flew overhead. It wasperfect. The speakers who paid impressive brief tributes were RayFields, Bobby Gusikoff, Richard Friedland, Murzi Kay, and LeonRuderman. Other dear friends, who were at a loss for words, wereBobby Fields and Ruben Gomez who'd been of such help to Bernieover the years. One friend who looked out for Bernie and could notattend was Ruth Guillen-but she was well represented by sons Rickand Ruben who. with his wife, contributed a nice spray of flowers.Ruben, having practically grown up with Bernie, was overcome withgrief. Milla Boczar could not be reached in time, as was the case withmany others who would have attended had they known beforehand.

Ray Fields, who had also been of great assistance to Bernie, dida fantastic job with all the funeral arrangements, even to the point ofgiving up part of his own burial plot forhis friend Bernie, not knowingif he would ever be reimbursed. Ray will be well remembered by histable tennis friends. Ifyou don'tyetknow whoRay is, you can identifyhim at many tournaments by his N.Y. accent, his camera, and his "tengallon hat." Thank him when you see him. Ray also was responsiblefor the great lunch the 36 who attended the services had at the ForumClub where Ray worked for many years. Thank you, Ray, and thankyour friend Irv for helping. It was great!

I was deeply impressed by the variety ofplayers of many cultureswho attended-many in suits and ties. Among them I remember: MasHashimoto, George Kelemen, Rudy Miranda and friend Anna, MikePerez and family, Gilbert Simons, Gordon Buck, Al Timtim, HiroshiKoshimoto, Mark Wedret, John Emertian, Doug Sheppart, RichardWright, and Norman Bass.

Personally, I can remember vividly two big occasions in Bernie'stable tennis life-one sad and one very happy indeed! The sad onehappened at the 1956 U.S. Open in White Plains, N.Y. In the final ofthe Men's Singles with Bernie leading two games to one and ahead inthe fourth game 20-15 match point, Erwin Klein-amidst the cheers ofa very partisan group of Californians, including Mike Ralston and hisfather, Bob Ashley and the McIlwains-came back to take sevenpoints in a row ! Klein then went on to win the fifth game easily at 13.The following year Bernie wouldbeat Klein in the Men's Singles finalat South Bend. Ironically, they would both win three U.S. OpenSingles before leaving this world.

Bernie's face was as white as the snow outside that day in WhitePlains as he put his arm around me and said, "Maree, Maree, what didI do wrong?" I didn't have the answer 'cause at that time I was forKlein, the 17-year-old redhead who had trudged through the snow fromthe train and barely made it to the tournament.

The happiest I have ever seen Bernie was in 1981 when he wasinducted into the USATT Hall of Fame. "This is the happiest momentof my life," he said, and somehow you knew he meant it. He was likeayoung boy who hadjustreceivedhis first bike. Perhaps this occasiontook the place of the childhood he never had.

Mostly I will remember Bernie for his twinkling, mischievousgrin. He always seemed happy to greet everyone who spoke to him.What a way to go, Bernie-at the very moment playing the sport thatwas your very life. Perhaps you will again play Klein in another world.Go In Peace.

*****

DONATIONS (for portion of cemetery plot, funeral services, andmemorial luncheon) should be sent to:

Harold Kopper2052 Linden, Apt. SRiverside, CA 92507

(Checks should be made out to SCTTA)

Table Tennis Today 47

-sual Mis ©

lil Cn n i S (W

Presented by ..CE.TABLE TENNIS

tff:rs:Ffy September 9.10Convention & Visitors Bureau

TOI JRNAMENT INFORMATION

EXCEIANGE UNIONMATIONAL B€ls ELECTRIC COMMITTEE: Steve Downing

6 Tom Maddux Chance Key Dr. David ScottGeorge Conlee Daryl Heim Tom Clendenin27' Sprint /TIGA DIRECTORS: Scott RyanFInit,d lilenhone-Missouri

Susanne Schilhab

REE: Larry KeslerEventPeter Chamberlain

Open Singles Jefferson City YMCA (Firley Center)Womans Singles BILITY: This tournament is open to allOpen Doubles

T Members and members of otherAlIStar Men

AliStar Women ,tional table tennis associations. Non-

AlIStar Senior ers may enter by purchasing a USATTAlIStar U-18 Boys :rship with their entry . AllStar events areAlIStar U-18 Girls

to I.T.T.F. eligible athletes. For moreAlIStar U-16 Open

Over 40 Singles ation contact U.S.A.T.T. headquarters.Over 50 Singles Play will be governed by USATT rulesOver 60 Singles ration: Players must register withU-2500 RR

U-2350 RR nent official s at least 30 minutes prior toU-2200 RR st sche duled mat#tld be ready to playU-2050 RR [ 10 milvven>kefor@E starting time.U-1900 RR

U-1750 RR ment: *%*jtdtaB3-STAR STIGALI-1600 RR Nlow Wiflk 3%%*n if#*Turf flooringU-1400 RR ;Aightw#and * naiqfping. LockerV · -t·C····4••

U-1200 RR $8 3:30PM Sat T T T - r8*, si***r whi4491/@®a facilitiesU-1000 RR $8 12:30PM Sun T T T 6 / : N.' .-r/1:4....

·:::i:I:*t:*% 41¥e av*!444he to*Am**tes.Novice RR $5 9:00AM Sat T T TU-3600 Doubles $8ea 6:30PM Sat 120 60 40 (per t*g **%.Even***rs n¥U-14 Boys $5 11:30AM Sun T ,ssis.1 T %%**er 10]**11 seniU-14 Girls $5 11:30AM Sun T 'E.i:*:E}*%.ET. Ui:::e:. *A.*i*Pecerri®:4$4995..\U-12 Boys $5 11:OOAMSau T

U-12 Girls $5 11:00AM Sat ?2 T Ii{¥ T N ·V tit. R##:(t¥.vents*:14q€*lponCu and return wi#i*ent p.*.*.----f*:r----- *. Uf.A.$,F*ublis01: R#.b-: \Zili M'9 cod:ay *Ifye or cancel

**** MISSOURI CIRJ **** \::ss:t ever¥ilift¢A,0*10. and assign ratings to\:4:32..

M.* REFEEntry Time First Second 3-4 W{41§%::

$25 11:30AMSat 1.QQQ. 68@%490 20*i::'9%:.* 4}% SITE:$15

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Capital City Table Tenri* *910111214 West High Street Er · W#*. 12 19{15 16 10*8 19 20Jefferson City, Missouri ti 21 ** 24 2 288:i:

Name

CityBirth date / / USATT expDoubles Partner(open)Club Name VIE."2Tournament T-Shirt ($14.00) size (circl* EN¥L XXL **:AT TOURNAMENTPlease enter me in the circled events.r *omply with all USATT rules and

.......

regulations. 1 accept full responsibility for my 1***#0'i and relieve the sponsors and theUSATT of any liability resulting from injury to 78™iS*r damage to property.Event Fee: $ 1%:.Registration fee: $ 2.00Rating Fee: $ 3.00USATT Membership $(One-Time pass $6 Adult lyr $25Junior 1 yr $12)Tournament T-Shirt $

Total Enclosed (check/money order $payable to Capital City Table Tennis Club)signature DEADLINE: August 28, '95

(parents sign for minor) (Confirmation will follow)

i® n rat¢4, T lay .;*4,,,.„li:,tillhED4¥M Rated events will be round robin; all

11 be single elimination. Only ratedplayers may advance from their round robin tothe single elimination portion of these events.jA11Star events will be single elimination.Natches in events 1,4 and 5 will be best of five

games. All others will be best of three games.Deadline: Entry blanks and fees must bereceived by Monday August 28, 1995. Alllate entries, unpaid entries and telephoneentries are subject to $10.00 handling chargePhotography: Flash photography is prohibitedon the playing floor. NOTE: Any playerswishing to have a video tape recording of theirtournament matches contact Scott Smith at

(816) 563-3577.

Tournament Hotel: Capital Plaza Hotel800 338-8088 Special rate: $60.00 4 per roomFor further tournament information contact

Tom Maddux at (314) 474-5376

MNIUMNNN N N

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00-Jecl-1*coN=ocDOO-40(37*WI\)"O*

TOURNAMENTS PROCESSED

This list was compiled on June 30 and includes

all tournaments played thru June 18. Due to space

limitations. only members who haved played in atournament since 3/1/1995 are included.

National Collegiate Team Champ. Texas Open

Albuquerque Teams 1995 Seattle Open

New England Team RR 1995 Tri-State Open

1995 Greater Atlanta (Cloaed) Rockford May Open

SFFL Players Series-April Brevard Florida Qpen

New Jersey State Championships Duluth Superior Open

Schaumburg 9th Aniversary Open NTTC May Open

Southern Tour #8 Waltham May RR

Potomac Spring Open. tOth Annual Paul Cracraft Memorial

1995 Alabama Closed [ISATT Jr. Regionals-Eas. Region

Greater Columbia SC Invitational Westfield May Open1995 McAlester Invitational Teams Strike One May Open

Pennsylvania Closed 1995 Golden State Open

Arizona Closed T'rT St. Joseph Valley Open

Minnesota Spring Open. North American Championships

1995 Rhode Ialand Open. Waterfront M Spring Open

1995 ACUI Nationals St. Louis Gateway Open

1995 Indiana State Closed Hall of Fame

1995 Maryland State Closed 1995 Wichita Invitational Teams

Strike One April Open Atlanta Spring Open

Michigan April ®en Sacramento June Open

St. Louis RR Spring Open Schaumburg 'No Waiting" RR Open

Westfield April Open SFFL Players Series June Open

Maryland Circuit MAMC June Open

Cinco de Mayo TTIP San Diego Open

Arkansas Ikague Singles Waltham June RR

Fong's Connecticut Championships NTTC June Open

SFFL Players Series Rose City Open

1995 Millcreek Giant RR Colorado Springs Open Teams

Calvery Chapel May Open

1

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The USATT

National Ratings List

1 1

n/717111

TZ EI

OVER 40 WOMEN

TX 2197 Rosen, Peggy

NY 2008 Kimble, Alice L.

NI 1992 Alvarez, Ann

PA 1962 Nguyen, Tuong-Oach

NJ 1784 Cheung, Wan Yee

NM 1724 Gresham, Elisabeth M.

MD 1702 Kronlage, Yvonne M.

IN 1679 Wilson, Sharlene Krizman

VA 1605 Kamins)3, Barbara

TX 1593 Roufeh, Mahin

FL 1585 Andrzejewska, Damtta

IN 1561 Weber, Mari

MI 1495 Gorzelewski, Jan

PA 1188 Newcomer, Nancy

OH 1445 Hale, Barbara

IN 1419 Marcum, Cindy

IL 1391 Popiel, Barbara

AZ 1390 Splistiser, Jo A.

OK 1374 Hogue, Diana

NJ 1351 Castro, Betcy

FL 1347 Sanders, Suzanna

OVER 50 WOMEN

NT 1992 Alvarez, Ann

PA 1962 Nguyen, Tuong-Oanh

MD 1702 Kronlage, Yvonne M.

IN 1679 Wilson, Sharlene Krizman

VA 1605 Kaminsky. Barbara

FL 1585 Andrzejewska, Danuta

IN 1419 Marcum, Cindy

AZ 1390 Splistiser, Jo A.

*3 1351 Castro, Be.zy

FL 1347 Sanders, Suzanna

NY 1337 Amoury, Gloria

AZ 1324 Irving, Dorothy

CA 1249 Desko, Ariene

OVER 40 MEN

PA 2593 Seemiller, Daniel Robert

GA 2472 Peng, Iin

MA 2348 Lau, Kwing Yiu

NJ 2301 Mojaverian, Parviz

TX 2293 Chan, Henry

MA 2286 Chui, Lim Ming

NY 2268 Brathwaite, George

MD 2252 Sakai, David

CA 2221 Hejazi, Alireza

IN 2207 Hicks, H. Richard

GA 2203 Cooper, George T.

TX 2193 Cumings, Joseph Michael

GA 2179 Nunes, Thomas

PA 2178 Sharpe, William J.

PA 2176 Me Coullum, Hemy

CA 2170 Lim, Johnny S.

Ne 2153 Hill, Danny

NY 2138 Araki, Suguru M.

MI 2137 Sexton, Frank

IL 2127 Pashu][u, Paul Victor

NJ 2123 Shtofmakher, Simon

OVER 50 MEN

MA 2348 Lau. Kwing Yiu

NY 2268 Brathwaite, George

IN 2207 Hicks, H. Richard

PA 21?8 Sharpe, William J.

CA 2114 Mintsiveris, Nick

MO 2110 Hendry, George J.

IA 2102 Bozorgzadeh, Houshang

MI 2089 Lamse, Paul

CA 2077 Ukapatayasakul, Bill

CA 2076 Grossman, Howard

MN 2073 Fox, Robert

CA 2071 Liang, Samuel S.

NJ 2067 Kuklakis, Mike

TOP MEN

MD 2802 Cheng, Yinghua

CA 2701 Nguyen, Khoa Dinh

NJ 2694 Zhuang, David

GA 2663 Butler, James Jon

MD 2659 Huang, Tong Sheng

TX 2594 Rop, Darko

PA 2593 Seemiller, Daniel Robert

MD 2586 Xu, Huazhang

VA 2570 O'Neill, Sean Patrick

NY 2565 Ekun, Abaes

MD 2563 Sweeris, Todd

FL 2551 Hylton, Stephen

MD 2549 Masters, Brian

MI 2537 Ogundimu, Gbena

GA 2534 Hyatt, Michael

GA 2524 Cretu, Razvan

GA 2514 May, Derek J.

GA 2472 Peng, lin

CA 2469 Chui, Chi-Sun

• 2459 Florin, Petroi

PA 2456 Reed, Barney J.

GA 2454 Pace, Brian

CA 2448 90, Da-Zhi

NJ 2440 Dattel, Barry

GA 2435 Butler, Scott

NY 2428 Kubo, Hi8ashi

WA 2427 Bui, Quang Dam

111 2423 Olson, Brandon G.

MA 2418 Hedayatian, Qiumars

PA 2403 Fernandez, David

MD 2399 Lonergan, Sean Michael

SC 2398 Eriksson, Henrik Carl

CA 2386 Tran, De

MD 2383 Yeh, Stephen

FL 2381 Cohen, Randy H.

IN 2380 Yeh, Norman

SC 2371 Christopher, Andy Nigel

CA 2361 Shodhan, Shanhin

MD 2359 Kubo, Masamichi

PA 2355 Seemiller, Randy Lee

MA 2348 Lau, Iwing Yiu

VT 2340 St. George, Jason

MI 2333 Pietrak, Bernie

OLYMPIC

ELIGIBLE MEN

CA 2701 Nguyen, Ihoa Dinh

NJ 2694 Zhuang, David

GA 2663 Butler, James Jon

TX 2594 Rop, Darko

PA 2593 Seemiller, Daniel Robert

VA 2570 O'Neill, Sean Patrick

ID 2563 Sweeris, Todd

ID 2549 Masters, Brian

GA 2514 May, Derek J.

CA 2469 Chui, Chi-Sun

PA 2456 Reed, Barney J.

GA 2454 Pace, Brian

NJ 2440 Dattel, Barry

GA 2435 Butler, Scott

IA 2427 Bui, Quang Dang

PA 2403 Fernandez, David

MD 2399 Bnergan, Sean Micbael

CA 2386 Tran, De

MD 2383 Yeh, Stephen

IIi 2381 Cohen, Randy H.

CA 2361 Shodhan, Shashin

PA 2355 Seetiller, Randy Ike

VT 2340 St. George, Jason

m 2333 Pietrak, Bernie

• 2324 veillette, Michael

IN 2319 Witg, Dan Jams

NI 2301 Iojaverian, Parvi:

GA 2297 Dubin, Mark

TOP WOMEN

MD 2636 Gao, Jun

GA 2534 Feng, AnyNJ 2383 Yip, Lily

CA 2324 Gee, Diana

NE 2235 Bhoo, Hyeon Young

NJ 2233 Sung, Virginia

NY 2224 Golubovic, Maria

OR 2224 Yang, Iiaomin "Simone"

MA 2214 Chi, Jane Hone

TX 2197 Rosen, Peggy

OK 2178 Payton, Yumiko

MI 2128 Bosika, Mimi

NE 2122 Elkin, Irina

NY 2042 Llosa, Milagrcs

Ne 2041 Jeskova, Irina

TX 2021 Schilhab, Susanne

KS 2011 Medeiros, Carla A,

NY 2008 Kimble, Alice L.

MD 2007 Lee, Vivian

NJ 1992 Alvarez, Ann

CA 1980 Cheng, Wan-Ling

NJ 1978 Fu, Joan

MD 1964 Shen, Jessica

PA 1962 Nguyen, Tuong-Oanh

NX 1949 Gresham, Toni M.

ND 1937 Lu, Julie

NY 1858 Chang, Karen

KM 1843 Ho, Anh Thu

MD 1812 Lin, Laura

Tx 1832 Oak, Rasbna

MD 1830 Lu, Margaret

CIA 1822 Nguyen, Quynh K.

GA 1786 Butler, Andrea H.

NJ 1784 Cheung, Wan Yee

VA 1764 Wei, Tsui-Ping

AZ 1752 Groenig, Nadine L.

CA 1748 Do, Michelle

NY 1735 Panich, Svetlana

NM 1724 Gresham, Elisabeth 1.

GA 1711 Ginzburg, Alla

MD 1702 Kronlage, Yvonne M.

PA 1686 Chen, Hongqiu

IN 1683 Nguyen, Hong

OLYMPIC

ELIGIBLE

WOMEN

GA 2534 Feng, Amy

NJ 2383 Yip, Lily

CA 2324 Gee, Diana

NJ 2233 Sung, VirginiaMA 2214 ami, Jane Hone

TX 2197 Rosen, Peggy

OK 2178 Payton, Ylmiko

TX 2021 Schilhab, Susanne

NY 2008 Kimble, Alice L.

MD 2007 Lee, Vivian

N. 1992 Alvarez, Ann

CA 1980 Cheng, Wan-Ling

NJ 1978 Fu, Joan

MD 1964 Shen, Jessica

NM 1949 Gresham, Toni M.

MD 1937 La, Julie

NY 1858 Chang, Karen

• 1843 Ho, Anh Thu

MD 1842 Lin, Laura

MD 1830 Lu, Margaret

GA 1786 Butler, Andrea H.

NJ 1784 Cheung, Wan Yee

AZ 1752 Groenig, Nadine L.

m 1724 Gresham, Elisabeth I.

CA 1656 Lee, Stacey L.

Ill 1561 Weber, Mari

U 1559 Crowley, Ruth

Pa£Idle Palace Table Tennis Co.

For all your table tennis needs !

8125 SE Glencoe Road, Portland, OR 97222

Phone: (503) 777-2266 Fax: (503) 777-4062ORDERS TOLL-FREE: 1 -800-547-5891

All ratings related questions should be directed to Tim Paiement, USATT Head-

quarters, One Olympic Plaza, Colorado Springs, CO 80909.

rating, send a self-addressed, stamped post card, with name and

tournament; or call HQ at 719-578-4583. Please allow one mont

the tournament for the tournament to be sent in and processed.

UNDER 22 MEN

GA 2524 Cretu, Razvan

CA 2469 Chut, Chi-Stm

PA 2456 Reed, Barney J.

CA 2448 Guo, Da-Zhi

NY 2428 Kubo, Hisasti

PA 2403 Fernandez, David

ID 2399 knergan, Sean Michael

FL 2381 Cohen, Randy H.

IN 2380 Yeh, Norman

CA 2361 Shodhan, Shashin

VT 2340 St. George, Jason

MI 2333 Pietrak, Bernie

01 2303 Kim, DanNJ 2301 Rosenzweig, David

PA 2270 Ramanathan, Srinivasan

FL 2269 Torino, Anthony

GA 2249 Beebe, T. J.

CA 2238 Guan, Ji=ny

CA 2218 Choptaeng, Chaiyaphoon

MD 2214 Iee, Richard

SC 2199 Thompson, Armeal B,

MD 2198 Yeh, Jimmy C.

UNDER 22 WOMEN

NJ 2233 Sung, VirginiaMA 2214 Chi, Jane Hone

E 2128 Bosika, Mimi

NE 2122 Elkin, Irina

NY 2042 Llosa, Milagros

• 2007 Lee, Vivian

CA 1980 Cheng, Wan-Ling

MD 1964 Shen, Jessica

MD 1937 Lu, Julie

NY 1858 ehang, Karen

mi 1843 to, Anh Thu

MD 1842 Lin, Laura

MD 1830 Lu, Margaret

CA 1822 Nguyen, Quinh K.GA 1786 Butler, Amirea H.

CA 1748 Do, Nichelle

NY 1735 Panich, Sntlana

CA 1656 locke, Patricia

CA 1656 Ike, Stacey L.

CA 1648 Schwab, Simone

UNDER 18 BOYS

PA 2456 Reed, Barney J.

CA 2448 Guo, Da-Zhi

IN 2380 Yeh, Norman

CA 2361 Shodhan, Shashin

FL 2269 Torino, Anthony

GA 2249 Beebe, T. J.

CA 2238 Guan, Ji-y

MD 2214 ke, Richard

MD 2198 Yeh, Ji=y C.

FL 2197 Alban, Keith

NY 2194 Kucherenko, Bogdan

NJ 2183 Jain, Deepak

Im 2170 Li, SunnyNJ 2144 Martis, Dylan

CA 2128 Lim, Philip

NJ 2097 Jain, Ashu

CA 2085 Zajac, Piotr

NY 2047 Imy, JeffreyCA 2027 Do, Andrew

• 2017 Li, Andy

OK 2003 Struth, Aaron

CA 2002 Gabriel, Freddie

UNDER 18 GIRLS

MI 2128 Bosika, Mimi

NE 2122 Elkin, Irina

MD 2007 ke, Vivian

MD 1964 Shen, Jessica

NY 1858 Chang, Karan

MD 1842 Lin, Laura

MD 1830 Lu, Margaret

GA 1786 Butler, Andrea H.

CA 1748 Do, Michelle

NY 1735 Panich, betlana

CA 1656 Lee, Stacey L.

CA 1529 Cheng, Jeanie

IL 1457 Gates, Dawn M.

CA 1293 Lee, Jennifer

CA 1124 hah, Robirta

NY 1123 Kaler, Nataeeya

CA 1102 viel, Priscilla

CA 1090 Livehits, Katherine

CA 1047 Ighkhanian, Lily

08 1008 Eurkovikan, Diana

UNDER 16 BOYS

FL 2269 Torino, Anthony

GA 2249 Beebe, T. J.

FL 2197 Alban, Keith

ID 2170 Ii, Sunny

CA 2128 Lim, Philip

NJ 2097 Jain, Ashu

CA 2085 Zajac, Piotr

NY 2047 Levy, JeffreyCA 2027 Do, Andrew

*D 2017 Ii, Andy

OK 2003 Struth, Aaron

CA 2002 Gabriel, Freddie

ID 1990 Hein, Jeffrey

IN 1990 Troyer, Nate

CA 1980 Agarwal, Vineet K.

OH 1936 Kaganovich, Greg

OK 1932 Agi=lie, Nicholas

NY 1901 Simon, Matt

LA 1889 Beaumont, John

TN 1870 Sourinthone, Lock

OK 1833 Chamberlain, Peter

MD 1828 Wah, Jack

UNDER 16 GIRLS

III 2128 Bosika, Mimi

MD 2007 ke, Vivian

MD 1964 Shen, Jessica

MD 1842 Lin, Laura

MI) 1830 Lu, Margaret

CA 1748 Do, Michelle

CA 1656 Lee, Stacey L.

CA 1529 Cheng, Jeanie

CA 1293 Lee, Jennifer

NY 1123 Kaler, Nataeeya

CA 1102 mel, Priscilla

CA 1090 Livshits, Katherine

CA 1047 Ish)[hanian, Lily

OH 1008 Kurkovskaya, Diana

NY 1004 Schoenberg, Stacy

CA 998 ke, Jackie

IN 821 Dittus, Hayley

FL 806 Hofflum, KilberlyFL 793 Gonzalez, Laura

GA 773 Rehlann, Sher

To find out your

[ date of your last

h after the date of

UNDER 14 BOYS

GA 2249 Beebe, T. J.

FL 2197 Alban, Keith

MD 2170 Li, Sunny

CA 2002 Gabriel, Freddie

OK 1932 Agimudie, Nicholas

TN 1870 Sourinthone, Imk

10 1756 Eider, Cory

VA 1716 Bowew, Keenan

FL 1695 Mc teod, Casey

NC 1694 Parker, Brandon

MD 1682 Hsin, David

FL 1669 Aiken, Geoffrey B.

OK 1655 Grismore, Michael

FL 1652 Edouard, Stevenson

CA 1626 [mel Jr., David

MD 1617 Squires, Michael

TN 1590 Sourinthone, Noi

ID 1561 Wah, Michael

CA 1490 Zelenkovsky, Alec

IL 1485 Gates Jr., Robert E.

MN 1444 Green, Eric

CA 1434 Iee, Terrence

UNDER 14 GIRLS

MD 1964 Shen, Jessica

CA 1748 Do, Michelle

CA 1529 Cheng, Jeanie

CA 1293 Iee, Jennifer

NY 1123 Kaler, Nazaeeya

CA 1090 Livshits, Katherine

CA 1047 Ishkhanian, Lily

OH 1008 Kurkovskaya, Diana

NY 1004 Schoenberg, Stacy

CA 998 Lee, Jackie

IN 821 Dittus, Hayley

FL 806 Hoffmann, Kimberly

PL 793 Gonzalez, Laura

GA 773 Rellant, Ster

CA 763 Eng, Tiffany

CA 727 I,e, Mary

IN 712 Thayer, Carrie

IN 701 Brekke, Lydia Role

IS 634 Olivier, Alym K.

OR 608 Hernandez, Maribel

MO 1248 Yoshikawa, Yasuyo'Sue'

OK 1224 Cheng, Virginia C.

BC 1211 Fynn, Sonia

CA 1166 Semenza, Judy

PA 1151 Hall-Baker, Carol

OVER 60 WOMEN

AZ 1390 Splistiser, Jo A.

NY 1337 Amoury, Gloria

AZ 1324 Irving, Dorothy

CA 1249 Desko, Arlene

BC 1211 FyIn, Sonia

OR 784 Onchi, Fumi

WA 742 Wolfe, C. Virginia

AZ 689 Coonan, Mary

MA 65? Hennig, Barbara L.

CA 629 ke, Ellen

OK 590 Copley, Lois M.

99 546 Crockett, Carolyn

MO 529 Davis, Rosemary

1[I 501 Garagiola, Delores

NJ 319 Simon, Barbara

OVER 70

MO 2110 Hendry, George J.

KA 1842 Dwelly, Frank

NJ 1808 Kilpatrick, John

PA 1765 Rocker, George W.

OH 1759 Radzeli, Louis

IL 1724 Ackerman, Bruce

CA 1721 Slade, Ivan

TI 1714 Chase, Arthur B.

UNDER 12 BOYS

FL 2197 Alban, Keith

10 1756 Eider, Cory

VA 1716 Bowens, Keenan

n 1695 Mc Ied, Casey

OK 1655 Grismore, Michael

FL 1652 Edouard, Stevenson

TN 1590 Sourinthone, Noi

CA 1431 Ike, Terrence

CA 1402 Zhai, Ling

IN 1391 Hazinski, Mark

Ne 1371 Heu, Michael

MD 1220 Iiao, Han

PA 1210 Miller, Ryan

CA 1209 Ishkhanian, Ari-Hovig

PA 1144 Hemarzadeh, Masood

IN 1135 Shaikh, Kashif

IN 1083 Lynch, Jared

IN 1057 Clemmong, Joseph C.

CA 1056 Ishkhanian, Palig

EC 1020 Bradley, Richard

NY 1002 Shieh, Lawrence

10 980 Grindeland, John

UNDER 12 GIRLS

NY 1123 Ialer, Nataeeya

CA 1090 Livshits, Katherine

CA 1047 Ish][hanian, Lily

CA 998 lee, Jackie

IN 821 Dittus, Hayley

PL 806 Hoffmann, Kimberly

GA 773 Rehmann, Sher

CA 763 Eng, TiffanyMN 701 Brekke, Lydia Rose

OR 608 Hernandez, Maribel

MI 607 Subonj, Simona

CA 585 ke, Shelley C.

MD 582 Oppenheimer, Caroline

IN 503 Little, Ashley

10 491 Todd, Amy L.

OR 463 Rosenberg, Arielle

Al 442 Ca,pbell, Aay R.

OR 438 Saucedo, Nikki

CA 437 Vulfovich, Valerija

Il 422 Baller, Nicole Jade

CO 2054 Jeffries, Dana Dean

SC 2041 Palmer, John

CA 2041 Von Schimmelmann, Ron

wA 2040 Chen, Joseph

PA 2022 Balamoun, Samuel B.

OVER 60 MEN

NY 2268 Brathwaite, George

PA 2178 Sharpe, William J.

CA 2114 Mintsiveris, Nick

MO 2110 Hendry, George J.

WA 2040 Chen, Joseph

MD 1971 Horton, Herbert R.

MA 1970 Smith, Lynwood J.

NY 1952 Boggan, Tim

CA 1951 Ibrahim, Dr. Azmy

• 1905 Shieh, Szu-Huang

IN 1873 Kerner, Ercel

MO 1871 Harris, Mike B.

OH 1868 Myers, Neil

CA 1853 Kerekes, Louis

MA 1842 Dwelly, Frank

(Over 70 Con't)

PA 1707 Wetzler, Warren

WA 1562 Fredrickson, Ton Elving

NY 1548 Cohen, Sidney

FL 1542 Rubin, Henry

MD 1536 Podolak, Edward

IL 1527 Gallas, George

WA 1498 Larson, Don

• 1478 Moskowitz, Manny

UNDER 10 Boys

MD 1220 Xiao, Han

CA 1056 Ishkhanian, Palig

CA 913 Malek, Auria

IN 799 Lynch, Jordan

MN ?68 Masood, Azer

OR 732 Rosenberg, David

AR 721 Bacon, Andres

RI 704 Monzack, Nathaniel

NC 627 Bradley, Jonathan

MD 622 Shank, Jes

Im 618 Fan, Charles C.

FL 585 Ike, Ryan Andrew

AR 581 Mc Connell, Matthew

*5559 Scott, Sam

IA 557 Liu, Michael

CA 543 Rudesill, Alan

m 522 Conito, Joey

MA 484 Izen, Seth

MI 476 Filipowicz, Peter

HO 469 Todd, William H.

Ne 451 Presley, Dusty

OR 440 Smith, John

UNDER 10 GIRLS

CA 1047 Ishkhanian, Lily

CA 998 ke, Jackie

FL 806 Hoffmann, Kimberly

IN 701 Brekke, Lydia Rose

OR 608 Hernandez, Maribel

IN 503 Little, Ashley

IN 422 Balmer, Nicole Jade

FL 404 Gonzalez, Karina

MI) 403 Wu, Katherine

!01 398 Brekke, Sarah

143 396 Brekke, Meranda

1[I 374 atbonj, Dorela

FL 336 Karjohn, Sophia

OR 303 Garcia, Erika

OR 295 Webb, Jennie

ICI 282 Mezin, Angela

ni 282 Wilson, Holly Ann

III 195 Carin, Amanda

11 189 Shaikh. lautheen

IN 123 aith, Nicole It.

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 49

ID 1101 Bautista, Yuko IL 902 Briggs, Thad CA 1754 Cary, Matt MA 2286 Chui, Lim ling PA 1305 Dang, An CA 629 Duah, Josephine

NJ 2249 Bavly, Larry MO 1199 Brightup, Earl IA 1806 Casago, Jean-Pierre NA 1637 Chung, Tommy PA 1916 Dang, John CA 1732 Duah, Robert

Adle pa/, FL 1082 Bavuso, Matt OH 1239 Brim, Roy AL 1513 Casby, Richard FL 1056 Cincotta, J. M. CA 1933 Dang, Linn CA 1124 Duah, Roberta

NY 1934 Bayard, Freeman M01578 Briner, Bill AR 1244 Casciano, Dan PA 1741 Claraval, Rick AL 1644 Danilkina, Natalia GA 2297 tobin, Mark

MA 1521 Baylies, Michael NJ 806 Broadway, Mar MI 1093 Casey, William M. PA 278 Clark Jr., Joey IA 1052 Dankert, Ronnie FL 545 Dubrawa, Romania

Al 1573 Ben# Richrd NJ 1567 Broadway, Wali OH 957 Casi, Trent IN 1343 Clark, Jerrell IN 1807 Dannenfelser, Tom IN 1349 Dugger, Steve

TI 1646 Beauchamp, Kenneth D. AZ 1062 Brocker, David CT 1428 Castellon, Henry PA 1503 Clark, Joseph P. MN 949 Danzl, John KS 1231 Dunn, Hardy

LA 1889 Beaumont, John OR 792 Braun, Anna PA 1219 Castillo, Donald L. CA 1242 Clark, Thomas AZ 1688 Darroudi, Khosro NY 1309 Dunn, Walter

KY 1331 Beaven, Darrell AZ 1462 Brongo, Ray PA 628 Castle, Tony TX 1862 Clarke, Lawrence NY 1903 Dassonval, Philippe OK 1214 Duran, Simeon

MA 1389 Becker, Gerald CA 1054 Bronson, Jennifer CA 1343 Castro, Arnoldo PA 871 Claroni, Rocco NJ 2440 Dattel, Barry NY 1301 Duvvuri, Umamaheswar

10: 699 Becker, Vince AR 1251 Broob, Charles NJ 1351 Castro, Betty NY 1846 Clegg, Chris PA 753 Daub, Ken MA 1842 Dwelly, Frank

18 467 Bedenbaugh, William IN 1374 Brothers, Kristine AZ 1885 Castro, Christopher R. MO 1244 Clements, Marty AL 1509 David Jr., Mauricio N. PA 990 Dyarman, Ricky

GA 302 Beebe, Jacqui NH 1707 Brown, Adam KS 1698 Catlin, Richard J. IN 1057 Clemmons, Joseph C. PA 1809 Davidson, Bill MI 701 Dykes, Robert Christian

GA 698 Beebe, Matt CA 1799 Brown, Chuck RI 1457 Cavicchio, Charles M. GA 1578 Cleveland, W. C. m 679 Davidson, Eric MI 1898 Eaton, Ron

1-800-547-5891 GA 2249 Beebe, T. J. NJ 810 Brown, Devin CA 1397 Cembura, Jim NY 1704 Climan, David A. AR 1257 Davidson, Gary FL 849 Ebert, John W.

KS 1767 Beehler, Gordon MI 1088 Brown, Fred DC 370 Cerami, Charles A. FL 822 Cline, Jan NY 1765 Davidson, James Wilson AR 1922 Ebina, Minont

KS 1580 Beehler, Grady NY 2061 Brown, Glenn = 1554 Cericola, Fred PA 982 Clouden III, Horace MN 972 Davidson, Ken MD 1780 Ebron, Carlos Donnell

A: 1490 Abdelmalak, Magdi CT 1256 Arciero, Matthew al 1849 Bebmanesh, Ali PA 1102 Brown, Gregory NJ 1490 Cerillo, John OR 799 Co, Oanh AZ 1820 Davis, Ben E. CT 1362 Edgar, Gregory

NY 1364 Abdool, Satar lei 1232 tel, Daniel CA 1687 Bebmanesh, Behzad NH 1979 Brown, Homer George CA 1739 Chai, Jim MI 1812 Cobb, Dennis S. FL 1649 Davis, Cadet In 1574 Edgerton, Myron

IL 18?8 Abdulrasool, Mansoor Ali NJ 1045 Arena, Joe RI 1449 Belhumeur, Paul MA 1906 Brown, James L. NJ 1653 Chamberlain, Charles C. MD 1165 Cobb, T. C. CA 2185 Davis, Dennis FL 1869 Edouard, Georges

CA 996 Aberin, Celso MD 1102 Areng, Vel OK 1636 Bell, Terry CA 999 Brown, Janice OK 1833 Chamberlain, Peter KS 1612 Cochrane, Todd AZ 689 Davis, Harley FL 1652 Edouard, Stevenson

MA 1649 Abinader, George PA 599 Ariana, Richard CA 1249 Beller, Jeff CA 1193 Brown, Kernell CA 1839 Chan, David NY 1294 Coffman, Leonard OR 907 Davis, John MI 1217 Edwards, Alonzo D.

GA 1462 Abrams, Mark 1161 Armelin, Celia A. NY 2168 Bensch, Craig AR 913 Brown, Robert CA 1674 Chan, Dominic PA 1813 Cogley Jr., Robert W. MD 1798 Davis, Mark E. TX 1732 Edwards, David S.

IN 1805 Ach, Aaron Albert CA 2028 Arteche, Roberto A. OR 1843 Berebeym, Aleksandr IL 1424 Brown, Robert A. TX 2293 Chan, Henry FL 1807 Cohen, Cary IA 1408 Davis, Randall OK 869 Edwards, Todd

MD 618 Acha, Carlos FL 494 Artis, Shemin 01 1980 Berenson, David GA 1715 Brown, Robert E. OK 1812 Chan, Tony FL 1914 Cohen, Jack !40 529 Davis, Rosemary CA 1169 Egel, Leo

IL 1724 Ackeman, Bruce IN 2201 Artman, Mark CA 2032 Berezvai, Gabor NJ 1326 Brown, Roger L. NJ 1626 Chandraseltaran, Vikram MD 1495 Cohen, Michael Lee CA 1516 Davis, William T. OR 1528 Ehelebe, Bob

NJ 1959 Ackerman, Dr. Neil B. CA 1303 Ascoli, Edward M01908 Berg, Robert IA 1647 Brown, Victor IN 976 Chandrasekhar, V. FL 2381 Cohen, Randy H. TX 1807 Davong, David OR 1457 Ehlers, Kay-Michael

PA 359 Acosta, Chris MD 2207 Ugarali, Nazruddin NJ 1872 Berglund, Per CO 1318 Brown-Joel, Jonah K. GA 1905 Chaney, Stanley NY 1548 Cohen, Sidney CA 1699 De Hoyos, Luis Enrique OR 922 Ehmantraut, Harry

CA 341 Adams, Albert ND 684 Asmus, Nathan M0 1434 Bernard, William CA 907 Brownell, Dick MD 1040 Chang, Andrew FL 1295 Coleman, Phillip CA 1909 De 98 Reyes, Enest 211756 Eider, Cory

IN 658 Adamo, Carl W. IL 1355 Aer, Ed NC 2093 Bertram, Gary M01548 Browning, John NY 947 Chang, Angel E. CA 1268 Colio, Alex A. TN 2012 De Munshi, Monojit 21 1351 Eider, Jake

VT 1219 Adams, Dana CA 1451 Asser, Sydney George Ne 1953 Bertram, Paul CA 1148 Brownson, Wallace TX 1683 Chang, Chris A: 1199 Collins, Ken VA 1661 Deal Jr., Robert OK 1835 Eisenhour, Roger

IN 218 Adams, Jeremie AR 1683 Atha Jr., Eugene A. • 1474 Bey, Michael H. NJ 709 Bmzzi, John L. MD 1424 Chang, David IL 1198 Collins, Steve MA 1445 Decaro, Robert P. PA 1979 Eisley, Eric

KY .563 Adams, Rick TX 1244 Au-Young, Shum PA 599 Bhasin, Rohit AZ 1716 Bryan, Dan CA 1992 Chang, Edward NJ 1343 Colon, John MO 1154 Deck,an, David CA 1559 Eitner, Bill

CA 1751 Adams, Stephen CA 1419 Aubert, Lou PA 1251 Bhonde, Pallav TX 1957 Bryant Jr., Robert MD 1522 Chang, Frank Y. NY 1803 Colt, David J. CA 1886 Dehdashti, Massoud GA 1663 Ejeh, David

VT 1794 Adams, Steven A. CA 793 Aubry, Patrick NE 2235 Bhoo, Hye Young CA 1816 Buck, Gordon MD 2064 Chang, Heng-Chi NY 1681 Colt, Lucae CT 977 Dehler, Larry CA 1802 Ejercito, Robert

MA 1056 Adams, Tanise R. CO 599 Augerot, Jade NC 2166 Billups, Joe I. WI 1406 Buckley, Joseph NY 1858 Chang, Karen 11 1655 Cometz, Dennis M) 564 Dekriek, Ife CA 343 E]cnekjian, Nazareth

IN 1494 Adrian, George A. IN 1249 Austin, Darrel CA 1731 Bince, Edmundo NY 1417 Bud, Alex GA 2179 Charles, Allan TX 1769 Compton, Robert Charles CA 1023 Delizo, Fred S.F. CA 1355 Eknekjian, Vahe

IN 1491 Adrian, George John GA 1665 Austin, Tim CA 1730 Bjorneson, Jim E. VT 18B1 Budiman, Danya FL 1696 Charles, Grantley !01890 Conboy, Pierce PA 1063 Delp, David NY 2565 Ekun, Aba8B

CA 1487 Aebersold, Charles CA 1781 Avergozado, Valentina MI 1087 Black, Andy PA 1031 Buglio, Tom TX 1714 Chase, Arthur B. AI 1215 Cone, Derrick CA 980 Demeis, Jordan U 1526 El-Wailly, Ray

CA 1980 Agarwal, Vineet K. WI 1793 Avery, Aaron MI 586 Black, Daniel CA 1753 Bui, Brian IN 1869 Chatterjee, Priyabroto MA 1405 Cone, Edward CA 976 Dempsey, Elton NE 2122 Elkin, Irina

PA 844 Agate, JameE PA 1196 Amacher, Andrew VA 1180 Blackburn, Joseph NM 1743 Bui, Dung Huy IN 537 Cheek, John MN 522 Conito, Joey NJ 2020 Dendrinos, George A. NY 1271 Ellenberg, Adam

OK 1932 Agimudie, Nicholas NJ 130 Babcock, Eric CT 948 Blake, James WA 2427 Boi, Quang Dang NY 1613 Chen, Abraham S. C. MI 534 Conito, Paul OH 1109 Denlis, David C01855 Ellerton, David

AR 1545 Ahrabli, Rea AR ?21 Bacon, Andres NC 2121 Blanket, Hans Den PA 1544 Bui, Quoc-Cuong RI 1428 Chen, Dake M01616 Conlee, George D. 08 1151 Denno III, Gerald AL 1139 Ellis, Colen L.

NY 1912 Ai, Kou-Suein MI 1962 Bahlman, tee GA 190 Blount, John CA 1589 Bui, Tri Minh MD 747 Chen, Fredrick NC 1649 Connelly, Tim OH 1919 Denno Jr., Gerald OK 1421 Ellis, Edwin French

FL 1669 Aiken, Geoffrey B. PA 1541 Bailey, Christopher T. AR 1942 Bloxom, Andy IL 1666 Bu jalski, Joseph PA 1686 Chen, Hongqiu NC 401 Conner, Dustin AL 1515 Denton, Jason OH 1944 Elnatanov, Valeri

NJ 1566 Aitken, George S. MD 1596 Bailey, Craig I. IA 742 Blue, Allen NE 1123 Buller, Steven IL 1034 Chen, Jack RI 1869 Conti, Brian CA 1249 Deako, Arlene PA 1140 Elson, Harold

NJ 1928 Aiyegbo, Join CA 1049 Baker Sr., Mark OR 393 Blue, Michelle SC 1821 Burgess, Maxie J. KS 2206 Chen, Jiqiang CA 1721 Cooksey, Laron MA 1141 Di Santo, John TX 1668 Elston, Meredith

1736 Akamatsu, Naoki OH 418 Baker, Brett R. FL 2161 Bodden, Cary PA 1874 Burik, James WA 2040 Chen, Joseph AZ 689 Coonan, Mary 00 1722 Dichiaro, John KY 1258 Elswick, Brian

CA 1336 Akazawa, Clayton OH 1B9 Baker, Corey D. Mil 1123 Boerner, Matt PA 1816 Burik, Tom OR 1043 Chen, Michael NC 1574 Cooper Jr., Otis NJ 926 Dickerson Jr., John S. MD 2060 Elwell, Gary

DE 968 Aker, V.R. OK 440 Baker, Jerry C01672 Boerwinkle, Jerry NY 967 Burkard, Michael MD 1735 Chen, Raymond F. GA 2203 Cooper, George T. PA 1649 Dickson Jr., David C. WV 1568 I=:]8, Theron R.

03 1624 Akers, Richard W. OK 1739 Baker, Randall K. PA 805 Bogert, Andrew AR 1673 Burkhart, Stan MD 1227 Chen, Sean CA 1558 Cooper, William R. NJ 1871 Dickson, Dam 0. CA 763 Eng, Tiffany

13 779 Akhter, Saeed NY 1147 Baker, Richard NY 1952 Boggan, Tim MO 1170 Burks, Rexford A. CA 1531 Chen, Victor KS 1219 Copley Jr., Clifford Irl PA 1499 Dickson, Roger GA 201? Engel, David

CA 1786 Aki, Shonie LA 1862 Baker, Scott PA 2183 Boldy, Zoltan VA 1884 Burner, Chris IA 1697 Chen, Yunfei KS 2003 Copley, Clifford Irl CA 1549 Didio, Mike MI 1297 Ensign, Kelly

AR 1274 Al-Gargosh, Ahmed OR 380 Baker, Travis MO 1108 Bollwerk, Kenneth CA 983 Burnham, Bert CA 1478 Chen-Hamilton, leslie OK 590 Copley, Lois M. CA 1552 Diello, Doug PA 1420 Eppley, John A.

FL 2197 Alban, Keith AZ 1673 Baker, William H. PA 1124 Bomberger, Fred GA 2171 Burns, David AL 1587 Chenault, Walt PA 1610 Corbett, David W. Oil 1834 Dietz, Roy Michael IL 1316 Erickson, Paul Alan

PA 1621 Albright, Ronald J. MA 2137 Baladi, Fadi MI 967 Boocker, Lawence IN 1220 Burns, John Marshall ME 131? Cheney, Ralph H, IL 376 Cormier, Darrin V. AZ 1156 Dillard, Marques ' K 2398 Erikeson, Henrik Carl

MA 913 Aldrich Jr., Amory A. PA 2022 Balamoun, Samuel B. IA 637 Bordon, Adam OR 1088 Bums, Marty CA 274 Cheng, Howard NJ 1539 Connier, Roger J. MO 2140 Dinh, Tri H. NY 1516 Erokwu, Anthony

MA 833 Aldrich, Robb AZ 1522 Baldner, Roger E. ME 1830 Born, Greg PA 2183 Burnside, Rich CA 1149 Cheng, Jack IL 669 Comier, Rome J. IN 821 Dittus, Hayley 10; 504 Erpestad, Marti

VA 1635 Alexander, Trey CA 1361 Ball, Timothy NJ 1565 Borrillo, Marco J. CA 1229 Burris, Cornelius CA 1529 Cheng, Jeanie MO 1926 Corner, Gary MI 2092 Dixon, JameB CA 1671 Escobar, Wilfredo C.

PA 1393 Aliojani, Tony AZ 1458 Ballard, John L. AZ 110? BorsM, Allen CA 1232 Burson, Scott OK 1815 Cheng, Michael M. TX 2021 Cornett, Bobby CA 1408 Dixon, Ron PA 805 Espino, Michael

SC 1724 Allen, James H. MI 1797 Ballerini, Mario CA 1042 Bosco, Nikkei GA 1757 Burton, Michael J. CA 1476 Cheng, Tony CA 1776 Corpuz, Paul CA 2027 Do, Andrew FL 1481 Espinosa, Eduardo

KY 2189 Allen, John 11 648 Ball, Eric MI 2128 Bosika, Mimi TX 972 Bush, Ric W. OK 1224 Cheng, Virginia C. FL 1916 Cortes, J. Frank CA 1714 Do, James TX 1802 Estell, Robert

MD 2094 Allen, Mark S. IN 1749 Baker, Brad MI 1483 Bostelaar, Robert NY 1810 Bushkanets, Ilya CA 1980 Cheng, Wan-Ling TN 1660 Corzine, Doug CA 1748 Do, Michelle FL 1989 Estrada, Carlos I.

MD 1339 Allette, Milton IN 422 Balmer, Nicole Jade CA 1715 Both Jr., George M. CA 1351 Bughman, Burl MD 2802 Cheng, Yinghua NJ 1270 Cosatto, Eric NJ 1956 Do, Ted Quang IN 1719 Etheridge, Michael

GA 1295 Alley, Todd PA 692 Baltes, Laura CA 1005 Both Sr., George CA 949 Butko, Vadim CA 1491 Chernega, Norman NJ 1151 Costanzo, Ron MI 919 Dobbs, Chas ¥1 1717 Etter, Greg

FL 770 Alston, Corey IN 2088 Banet Sr., Steve KY 1369 Bowe, Steven GA 1786 altler, Andrea H. GA 1193 Chester, Hawley PA 2140 Coulter, Chip WA 1349 Dobson, Bill VA 1790 Etter, Ray

PA 823 Althoff, Joseph Ne 1784 Banjoko, Polly 0. VA 1716 Bowens, Keenan GA 2663 Butler, James Jon NJ 1784 Cheung, Wan Yee KS 1379 Coulter, Craig A. TX 1442 Dodgen, Paul C. NJ 518 Eugene, Lyonnel

N. 1992 Alvarez, Ann PA 1416 Banks, Alden B. CA 962 Bowers, Wayne N. 1976 Butler, Joseph MI 661 Ching, Brian WE 1754 Cowles, Rod TX 1915 Dodgen, Steve NJ 374 Eugene, Pierre

CA 1881 Amador, Daniel CA 1538 Baranyi, 28 PA 1527 Bowlander, Bob O. GA 2435 Butler, Scott CA 1887 Chiang, Peter TX 1696 Cox, Mike CA 1413 Doehne, Ned GA 1859 Eustache, Ernst

IN 2034 Amick, David NY 1566 Bark, Charles CA 1357 Boyce, Vern CA 1436 Buxton, Ron MI 1149 Chiang, Wei-Te MD 1598 Cravens, Dan Franklin CA 1884 Dok-Panno, Maria Teresa LA 1897 E'vans, Melvin

KS 1389 Ammelung, Gunther IL 712 Barber, Wally CA 1613 Boyd, larry TX 2216 Byles, Roberto A. NY 769 Chiazza, David NE 1167 Crawford, Rex C. C01527 Doney, Debbie Sue OH 1129 Evans, Morrie

N. 872 Amos Jr., Malcolm D. MD 1441 Barboza, Steven IN 2124 Boyle, Michael J. A: 948 Cabatana, Keith M01813 Childress, Daminik GA 2524 Cretu, Razvan FL 1356 Donohoe, Dallas CA 1420 Evans, Tom

NY 1337 Amoury, Gloria MA 1736 Barg, Murray IA 2102 Bozorgzadeh, Houshang FL 2139 Cadet, Gerard Nivard AR 1131 Childress, Doug TN 546 Crockett, Carolyn FL 2065 Donovan, James CA 1258 Emirlian, John

IN 1414 Amrhein, Tin AL 1173 Barker, Max Alan IN 2153 grader, Mark NY 1465 Caesar, Peter FL 2047 Chin, Chris TN 708 Crockett, Charlie G. NJ 1718 Dorcely, Pierre CA 777 Faccini, Matthew

KS 2302 An, Andrew CA 1394 Barlow, H. B. NC 627 Bradley, Jonathan NJ 558 Caldwell, Willie NJ 1815 Chin, Wayne Ming PA 1278 Cross, George WI 1116 Dorsey, Dick H. CA 1899 Fahletrom, Ragnar

MO 1685 And, Dr. Vinod PA 1594 Barnes, Dan NC 1020 Bradley, Richard OH 1066 Camden Jr., Bill WA 1501 Chinn, Larry CA 1131 Cross, Larry PR 1347 Dona, Humberto OR 914 Falicoff, lesley

MI 1292 Anderson, Donald K. PA 514 Barnes, Dorian NC 1821 Bradley, Sonny !01 683 Cameron, Reggie NJ 972 Chironna, Robert J. IL 914 Crosskey, ThomaB IL 1765 Douglass, Bob OR 1739 Falicoff, Waqidi

VA 1089 Anderson, George S. GA 249 Barnes, Nick VA 1828 Bragg, Lewi8 Andrew AZ 442 Campbell, Amy R. MO 1887 Chisholm, Larry CT 838 Crowe, Chris MA 2234 Douty, Kurt NC 1624 Faminiba, Sam

FL 2012 Anderson, Patrick MN 195 Barnett, Andy NC 1656 Brain, Simon A: 1086 Campbell, Deborah LA 1674 Chiu, Ben MA 1559 Crowley, Ruth TN 1610 Downey, Rick MD 618 Fan, Charles C.

CA 205] Anderson, Tait 21430 Barnett, Michael ![D 792 Branch, Michael W. VT 890 Campbell, J. Duncan CA 1485 Chiu, Gene MI 1799 Crum, Mark E. MO 1815 Downing, Steve PA 1535 Fan, Chi-Kang

PA 2031 Andrade, John CO 804 Barnett, Peter FL 1678 Brantley, Barry Alan AZ 497 Campbell, John C. CA 418 Choi, Jiyoung WA 1019 Cubias, Estaban MA 1253 Doyle, Chris CO 1431 Fan, Godfrey W.

FL 1854 Andrian, Jean CO 804 Bamett, Sam LA 1526 Brassett Jr., Leo AZ 444 Campbell, Melissa NY 1361 Choi, Loong-Sang TX 2193 Cumings, Joseph Michael PA 1113 Doyle, Daniel !8 856 Fan, Michael C.

FL 1585 Andrzejewaka, Danuta PA 801 Barneycastle, Lisa MA 1833 Brastow, Kim S. Al 1618 Campbell, Paul CA 2218 Choptaeng, Chaiyaphocn PA 918 C=ingham, Steve CA 1594 Doyle, Mark CA 1374 Farah, Kamal G.

NJ 738 Anemone, Ernie AR 1191 Barns, Leslie OK 1120 Braswell, Ryan T. CA 1455 Cao, Tuan A. NY 1340 Chon, Jimmy ME 1023 Curran, Michael !(01805 Doza, Richard AZ 1435 Fari88, Robert E.

NY 897 Angelichio, Michael OR 649 Barrett, Laverne A. NY 2268 Brathwaite, George MI 195 Caran, Amanda PA 831 Choudhry, Vasundhra TN 1798 Curry, Mon TX 2073 Drake, Kyle Blaine • 1624 Farley, Sean

WA 1631 Ansdell, Peter A. MO 741 Barrett, William E. KS 2241 Braun, Bernie • 1064 Carbone, James J. MI 266 Christo, Lee CT 928 Curtis, Jon GA 1292 Drakes, Lennox MI 1749 Farrell, Tim

IA 1374 Anspach, Glenn CO 1709 Barrientos, Carlos ME 1649 Braun, Rene NY 1956 Cardona, Erick B. MI 1074 Christo, Matthew M01889 Cartisa, Bill !01 1634 Drassal, Terence PA 1945 Fatakia, Roy

IA 621 Anspath, Justin KS 1846 Bartel, Joshua KS 1643 Brecheisen, Terry K. LA 1818 Carlisle, Billy MI 808 Christo, Michael NE 1653 Cushing, Matthew IL 770 Drawer, Andrew IL 1731 Favis, Rafael

FL 1215 Aponte, Frank IN 2059 Bartley, Brian !01 701 Brekke, Lydia Rose CH 1528 Carlisle, Patrick SC 2371 Christopher, Andy Nigel ED 1892 Nieczek, Wojtek IN 1376 Dreistadt, Paula FL 2096 Federico, Steve

NY 1479 Apter, Alexander NY 1777 Bartley, Lennox MI 396 Brekke, Meranda CA 1731 Carlson, Mike GA 2288 Chrietopher, Ian IL 1859 Dabdab, Elie NO 1333 Iressel, Dale PA 1239 Feinberg, Steve

NY 2138 Araki, Suguru M. IN 217 Basker, Chris • 1405 Brekke, Richard J. MD 1261 Carneal, William OH 1833 Chu, Ching-liu PA 1596 Dadabhoy, Ava CO 1841 Driggs Jr., Tagt Ogden NJ 1993 Fendrick, Alan

CA 1292 Aranda, Dominick Joseph CA 1884 Bass, Norman MN 398 Brekke, Sarah NY 1659 Carney, Wayne A. CA 1612 Chu, Sammy CA 1018 Dadbeh, Kamran U 1586 Drumond, Don GA 2534 Feng, Amy

0% 1620 Arcaro, Ronald Joseph KS 1568 Bassett, Donald R. NJ 1364 Bremerman, Ralph CA 164] Carpentieri, Anthony PA 1877 Chu, Sandy AL 619 Dailey Jr., Tommie FL 2006 Du Pugh, Kevin VA 1093 Fenstermacher, Ann

MO 1582 Arcaro, Thomas A. CA 1558 Bauman, M. Virgil FL 1849 Brenner, Bard IN 1580 Carmon, Juan NE 1304 Chua, Wei-Sin AL 1603 Dailey, Tommie KS 1382 Dll, Jia-Chong CA 1530 Fergusson, Olatugie

CA 1406 Archbold, Curtis CA 1332 Baumann, Kip NY 1821 Brickell, Robert Douglas MI 1844 Carter, Barry R. CA 2469 Chni, Chi-Sun 6 993 Daly III, Richard V. CA 701 Duah Jr., Robert PA 2403 Fernandez, David

MD 1814 Archer-Davies, Sam MD 512 Bautista, Romeo IN 1206 Bricker, Eugene OR 2024 Carver, Ron MA 2214 Chmi, Jane Hone NY 1364 Damouth, David E. CA 1773 Duah, John LA 1415 Field, Bill

OM

Iltll,;[1]

50 Table Tennis Today July/August 1995

III 1784 Filipowicz, Iazek VT 1252 Gauthier, Joe CA 2052 Groms, Michael IN 1391 Hazinski, Mark NH 974 Houser, Charles KY 1896 Jet, Roger

III 163 Filipowicz, Paul IL 1583 Gava Jr., Valerill CA 20?6 Grossman, Howaid KY 1674 Head, Michael NJ 545 Howe, Rob C. CA 1421 Jew, Ronald QuonHI 476 Filipowic:, Peter IL 1435 Gava Sr., Valeriu MI 999 Grost, Doral CA 1212 Hearn, Chris NJ 1295 Howe, Robert J.

MO 1608 Ji, Ted PA 583 Filippelli, Nick CA 2324 Gee, Diana IN 723 Grove, Bill C01704 Heath, Dennis TX 1705 Howell, Richard

NJ 844 Jiang, Jonathan FL 685 Filteau, Alex AZ 1735 Gee, John IN 139 Grove, Justin GA 1302 Heath, Ray MA 1369 Hrobak, Frank WA 1861 Joe, MarioMD 1288 Fink, Barry J. CA 1699 Gee, Kingston OH 1107 Groves, Jesse OH 1654 Hechler, Eugene E. ID 1682 Hain, David IL 1245 Johnson, AndySC 1070 Finn, Joseph C. TX 1972 Geeze, Donald S. WI 1939 Gruber, Dan NM 1290 Heckathorn, Jason MD 1990 lisin, Jeffrey TI 1566 Johnson, DavidSC 1674 Fion, Randy NY 1574 Gegleys, Anthony TV 1142 Grundy Jr., Arthur m 518 Heckathorn, Willian G NC 1934 Hsu, Bernard Pao-Long AL 1522 Johnson, DonKS 1360 Finney, Kelly FL 1305 Gelb, Janine CA 2238 Guan, Jimmy MA 2418 Hedayatian, Qi:Imars MD 1852 Hmt, Chang-Shing ND 1269 Johnson, Donald E.

CA 1063 Fiore, Andrew FL 632 Gelb, Lana NY 1782 Gudzenko, Gait· NC 1731 Hedima, Bemon NJ 1288 Hau, Ching MI 422 Johnson, Jameel

NJ 579 Fishman, Peter NY 1368 Gendron, Bruce TX 883 Guerrero, Enrique LA 1446 Heigl Sr., Richard NC 1679 Hsu, David NY 1309 Johnson, Jennifer E.

IN 1403 Fitzgerald, Shaun AZ 1288 Gerard, Shelly TX 1041 Guerrero, Felile NY 721 Heilmann, Nancy NJ 1495 Hsu, Fei-Hsing MI 1517 JohnBon, Lynn PaulTX 1519 Flatt, Richard IL 1555 Gerasta, Richard A FL 1978 Guhr, Roman NY 1474 Heilmann, Ronald S. CA 1137 Hsu, James TN 1526 Johnson, Ocie

NY 1533 Flores, Edwin DC 599 Gibson, Bernard R, VA 1776 Guidote, Rolando A. M01531 Heim, Daryl NJ 1545 Hsu, Kiley AL 1513 Johnson, RodneyMI 2459 Florin, Petroi PA 683 Gibson, Dan CA 1844 Guillory, Ralph CA 2221 Hejazi, Alirem NC 1371 Hsu, Michael GA 640 Johnson, Ron , -uvv-*9, -Ju91811984 Flowers, Donald T. PA 797 Gibson, J. Steven CA 2448 Guo, Da-Zhi MI 1476 Helfand, Joseph S. NC 1886 Heu, Min-Chiang SC 1840 Johnson, Steven KemitPA 1420 Focht, Charles E NJ 1757 Gigliotti, Frank CA 1664 Guo, Kai IL 1261 Helmick, Dewey NC 2092 Hu, Joey Juin-Yuan AZ 1301 Johnson, Wayne R.NJ 180 Fogel, Eric ME 1378 Gignac, Edward NY 1302 Gupta, Mool MD 1237 Helmke, Thomas W. CA 1449 Hi, Richard H. CA 1092 Johnson, William T. CO 1698 Kim, Seung CA 1532 Lam, Si-DungND 1664 Fok, Gary AZ 1279 Gilbert, Bill PA 861 Gupta, N.D, NY 974 Helrich, Kevin NY 1865 Hu, Thomas Woyu OR 449 Johnston, Casey NY 2008 Kimble, Alice L. IL 2095 Lam, Spenser, M.IIi 1668 Fong, Conan C01346 Gilbert, Mike R. IL 1184 Gustafson, Ray FL 1830 Helwig, Frederick CA 1432 Huang, Harry C.S. KY 1562 Joiner, Gary MO 1867 Kimple, Jimmy CA 1741 Lam, Waiman WaiCT 1398 Fong, John IN 1213 Gilchrist, Jim IL 1983 Gutierrez, Antonio NI{ 1518 Henault, Bili MI 1499 Huang, Jack CT 694 Jones, Andrew NY 1702 King, Leroy MI 2089 Lamse, PaulNJ 2067 Pong, Sandiway MD 1799 Giles, Kevin NJ 1927 Gutman, Harvey C01365 Henderson, Kent MD 2659 Huang, Tong Sheng FL 1673 Jones, Clayton MN 721 King, Robert NY 986 Landers, LarryNY 1005 Forbes, Mark Im 1048 Gilmore, Philip E. NY 1588 Gutowski, Raymond CA 884 Henderson, Rudy CA 1447 Hubacek, Michael D. MI 1883 Jones, Cody Luther IL 1843 King, Sean NJ 706 Landis, TomMD 1884 Ford, Chauncey Edward NY 1352 Ginsburg, Herman J. CO 706 Haddad, Dan MA 1694 Henderson, St®hen SC 1646 Hudgins Jr, Dr. Charles T NY 1496 Jones, David A. SC 1646 Kingsada, Sithakone MA 1839 Landsman, Alex M.MD 571 Ford, Gregory GA 1711 Ginzburg, Alla CO 712 Haddad, Joe la 1799 Hendrickson, Gary TX 1289 Hudson, Myers B. CA 918 Jones, Matt W'V 1361 Kirby, Bob PA 1598 Lane, JonathanIL 1436 Fossett, David IL 920 Giometti, Anthony AR 1883 Hadfield, Paul Edward KS 1623 Hendrickson, Guy R. CA 1641 Huey, Alan AL 1429 Jones, Peter AL 1891 Kissel, Ralph NC 1839 Lange, Todd

CO 770 Foster, Gerald David CA 1258 Gipson, Kirk PA 532 Hat Eric MD 782 Hendriks, Rolf NJ 990 Huey, Michael G. CA 1244 Jones, Stephen FL 1698 Kismlev, meg TX 870 Langley, JaneCA 1681 Fountain III, Hugh IN 1863 Glass, Jerry R. VA 787 Haft, Jason MO 2110 Hendry, GeorgE J. FL 1703 Hugh-Sam, Michael SD 1279 Jones, Steven K. PA 1809 Kistler, Fred E PA 1745 Lams, DimitriyCA 1018 Fountain, Wil B. FL 873 Glazerman, Steven PA 431 Haft, Jordan MA 657 Hennig, Barbara L, FL 893 Hughes, Tim DC 1611 Jones, Travis PA 793 Kistler, Jere TX 1377 Larch, RolandMI 1699 Fowler, Brian PA 1785 Glecos, Robert A, AZ 1291 Hagen, Mike PA 1219 Henninger, Robert T. MA 520 Hughes, Tom 2079 Jonson, Pal MN 587 Kittleson, Adam 8 1067 Lawn, Richard G.MI 1392 Fowler, Jadon PA 1721 Gloster, Jerome WI 1206 Hageretrand, Robert G. MD 1656 Henri, Randal' PA 1223 Hughey, Robert 1[E 1534 Jordan, Kip CA 641 Klein, Christian WA 1498 Larson, Don

III 285 Fowler, Matthew OH 1064 Glover, Frank D. GA 1996 Hagood, Keith FL 1795 Henoley, Larry GA 1432 Hughley III, Raymond NY 1866 Joseph, Ronald 110 1315 Klein, Michael MN 1783 Larson, Donald E.KN 598 Fox, Andrew OH 1372 Godwin, Gary R. IL 1593 Hahn, Ki Suk AZ 756 Hensley, Le Ruy N. 1714 Hui, William NJ 1742 Joyner, Samuel Eugene NY 1469 Kleinhmer, Douglas CA 516 Lau, ChrisOH 1235 Fox, Carlos B. LA 770 Goecke, Douglas John NY 1815 Haidvogel, Roger Paul KY 1583 Henthorn, C. 3ud N'Y 1552 Hulihan, Kevin MO 1371 Jurov, Iavor MA 543 Kleper, 14les H, IL 1482 Lau, Kevin

OK 724 Fox, Charles IN 1457 Goeller, Jerry WY 1817 Haines, Richard C. NY 804 Herbst, Tim MA 835 Hull, Bill CA 1420 Jutila, James MI 1506 Kline, Ed MA 2348 Lan, Iwing Yiu

MA 1870 Fox, James Neal IL 1666 Goertz, Rick SC 1657 Hair, Don NJ 579 Herman, Abe CA 924 Hullinger, Rick FL 1838 Kadin, Rick AZ 940 Kling, Fred AY 1834 Lau, PaulCA 918 Fox, Richard CA 1941 Gogo, Ricardo MO 1969 Halbig, Fred M IL 1436 Hermann, Peter OK 832 Humphery, Helen OH 1936 Kaganovich, Greg M) 1441 Klotzer, Charles IN 1176 Lauer, Ben

MN 2073 Fox, Robert MD 1521 Golab, Thomas J. 03 1415 Hale, Barbara CA 390 Herms, Kevin TX 1058 Hunnicutt, Steve NY 1123 Kaler, Nataeeya ME 1942 Klugman, Harvey PA 1893 Laughlin, KenWA 1384 Prater, Mike MO 1288 Golby, Tim NC 1415 Hall, Andrew J. OR 608 Hernandez, Maribel NJ 1249 Hunt, Cdr. John West NJ 1765 Kam, Davis MO 167D Klutho, Thomas J. FL 1545 Launonen, Matti

C01222 mil, Nicola FL 1629 Goldberg, Gerald S, 08 849 Hall, E. Jama'. VA 740 Herr, Paul CA 2044 Huo, David NY 1456 Kam, Peter CA 147 Inettle, Marjorie L. NJ 1261 Lautard, Isabelle

MA 1673 Francois, Mozart Tx 1833 Goldberg, Stuart OH 1092 Hall, Everett CT 1510 Hertz, Joseph H. OR 480 Hurley, Marta VA 1605 Kaminsky, Barbara 01 1609 Knicely, Jack GA 1204 Laviera, Andreasus

FL 1481 Franks, Kyle 10 965 Golde, Michael CA 1426 Hall, James FL 1670 Hess Jr., Kipling Randall NY 1564 Husbands, Micheal 1{N 1865 laminsky, Jonathan *D 1946 Ko, Christopher J. CA 1547 Law, George

WA 1488 Fredrickson, Harold GA 1613 Golden, Carl J. AR 1958 Hall, Jamey VA 1705 Hess, Johnny L. CO 1504 Hutchins-Knowles, Brian CA 1709 Kamiya, Tad NY 1044 Ko, Kevin C'T 2046 Lawrence, wilbert

WA 1562 Fredrickson, Tore Elving NY 1439 Golachmidt, Daniel AZ 1647 Hall, Larry IN 1185 Hetfield, Jack PA 1738 Huynh, Phuoc Van FL 1973 Kan, Heng-Chuan OR 1741 Kobemick, Mark NJ 2299 Lawson, Anini

NY 999 Freedman, Andrew AZ 1007 Goldstein, Eliot PA 1066 Hall, Marvin D. 2094 Hewitt, Lanny G. CA 2019 Huynh, Quan NJ 1509 Kan, Roark NY 1374 Koch, Jeff H. IL 1728 Lawson, Thomas RalphOK 1185 Freeman, William E. NY 2224 Golubovic, Maria OH 1811 Hall, Thomas Edward IN 1454 Hewitt, Randy - GA 2534 Hyatt, Michael . OH 1511 Kaneck, Michael PA 688 Kogan, Martin N. KS 1451 Layton, Lloyd L.NE 1652 Freudenburg, Guy SC 1809 Golubow, Jerry I. PA 1151 Hall-Baker, Carol IN 2207 Hicks, H. Richard GA 2257 Hyatt, Robert PA 1359 Kang, Chongsheng PA 1280 Iohut, William S. MI 211 2 Duff, Ikonna

CA 1379 Fricke, Berni NY 1544 Gomes, Walter L, RI 2053 Hamamjian, Eduard M0 1838 Hildebrand, Jeff FL 2551 Hylton, Stephen IL 1710 Kania, Marek CA 1811 Kondo, Leroy Ioui8 VA 2035 Le, Daniel

RI 1814 Friedel, Lance Ne 1519 Gomez, Elias NM 1777 Hambleton, Daniel Ne 2153 Hill, Danny NY 1298 Hyttinen, Arvo PA 1131 Kanodia, Nikhil NJ 166 Kong, Samson III 1207 Le, John R.

NJ 792 Friedlich, Brian NY 2105 Gomez, Elvis NI! 843 Hambleton, Karen CA 907 Hill, Jim IL 2142 Ibanigor, Andy NY 1515 Kaplan, Allen MI 1862 Koorey, Damian OR 1697 Ie, Ly AnhFL 1808 Friedman, Aron D. CA 1307 Gonzalez, Don NH 1223 Hamilton, Benjamin MI 1479 Hill, Phillip CA 1951 Ibrahim, Dr. Azmy • 1599 Kapoor, Nighikant MI 627 Koorey, Deborah OR 870 Ie, Ly Binh

IL 1237 Friedman, Ted FL 404 Gonzalez, Karina OH 2138 Hamilton, Don R. NY 1804 Hioe, Foek T. WA 823 Igarta, Julius MO 1957 Kapustin, Monid DE 1816 Kopolovic, Peter OR 873 Le, Ly Hien

FL 1005 Friedricks, Ted FL 793 Gonzalez, Laura CA 2052 Hamilton, Eric R. ID 1387 Hiratguka, Jon OR 1709 Ignazzitto, Sam Ne 2080 Karimanal, Kamalakannan CA 1460 Kopper, Harold J. OR 1071 k Ly Phuong

MN 304 Friehof, Justin FL 1377 Gonzalez-Posada, Jose A NH 1238 Hamilton, Mart RM 1843 Ho, Anh Thu OH 1644 Ihama, Victor FL 336 Karjobn, Sophia IL 1339 Koscielski, Daniel CA 2191 Le: Phuong

LA 1728 kiley, Keith NY 1724 Gooden, Clive FL 1005 Hammersmith, Joel PA 886 Ho, David TX 1998 Ikeda, Hiroshi 10 1737 Kasten, Harold S. CA 1598 Koshimoto, Hiroshi CA 1349 k. Quyk

TX 1836 Frusina, Ovidiu M. NY 1736 Goodman, Ira MA 801 Hamnett, Lucy NM 1294 Ho, Lam MI 1970 Iloh, Tesilimi leI 773 Kaufman, Kathy FL 1528 Kotlarchyk, Alex CA 1662 2, Son V.

NV 1720 Fu, Billy CA 946 Gorby, Bob 21 420 Hann, Peter WY 1742 Ho, Na-Suk IN 1934 Imbo, Sam Oluod PA 1413 Iaushal, Anil NY 745 Kotlarczyk, Jesse CA 2184 Le, Tuan

NJ 1978 Fu, Joan NY 1974 Gorcheck, Charles E. IN 164 Hans, Carrie CA 249 Ho, Phillip IL 1734 Imhoff, Brian AL 1802 Kawamoto, Ernesto Ryuki NY 967 Kotlarczyk, Mark 1049 Ma, Hey

MD 1985 Fuhrmann, Frank KS 1557 Gorechan, Branko IL 1171 Hanabrough, Reginald 08 1923 Ho, kong TX 506 Ingraham, James CA 1615 Kazemi, Behnam 18 1904 Kouatli, omar C01853 Leatherwood, Robert K.

PA 1874 Fulcomer, Dave FL 1399 Gorlick, Todd VA 1759 Hanson, Dana Brent OR 1606 Ho, Robert W„ H. NM 1635 Ingram, George CA 847 Keene, Daniel RD 1759 Rovac, Paul CA 1908 Ie, Bunny

KS 1612 Fuller, Ben MI 1495 Gorzelewski, Jan NY 1329 Hanula, Walte SC 1372 Hoagland, Tim IN 1161 Ingram, Mark NC 1547 Kellenbarger, Richard IE01942 Kraly, Stephen Michael MD 1663 ke, Donald E.

TX 1049 Fuller, Jerry MI 520 Gorzelewski, Paul PA 776 Happner, William L. CA 1830 Hoang, Thy CA 1461 Insalaco, Bill TX 1744 Keller, Chuck NJ 1351 Kramer, Daniel VA 1618 Lee, Doua

NY 1313 Fuller, Michael C'T 1830 Gosebruch, Henry O. NY 867 Harder, David CA 1905 Hoang, Tuan CT 890 Inekeep, Philip B. MI 668 Kellogg, Thomas NY 1209 Kravchenko, Pyotr CA 629 Lee, Ellen

TX 1973 Fun, Tom CA 1513 Grady, Kenneth W. GA 1833 Hardy, Richard Hoyt MD 1893 Hochman, Stephen VA 1547 Iparraguirre, William NH 2027 Kelly, Timotny J. NY 1061 Irein, Erick CA 1769 Ike, Hawk N.

TX 899 Fuquay, James 0. NY 1214 Graeber, ,lens le 1660 Hargrove, Kenneth Eugene CA 1656 Hocke, Patricia AZ 1324 Irving, Dorothy CA 1017 Kelsey, Debbie ID 1271 Krishnan, G. NJ 1832 Ike, Howard Edward

TX 1610 Fuquay, Zack IN 1808 Grambo, Alan A. GA 1838 Harleston, Johnathan C01666 Hodge, Bill NY 2022 Irving, Owen CA 1389 Kendall, David L. IN 1799 Krizman, Dave MD 516 Lee, Iris

AZ 1360 Fuschino, Michael AR 1103 Gran, Ed IL 1707 Ham, Stanley MD 2131 Hodges, Larry Bruce CA 1209 Ish][hanian, Ari-Hovig NY 1565 Kendall, Derril MD 1702 Kronlage, Yvonne M. CA 998 Lee, Jackie

BC 1211 Fynn, Sonia PA 1531 Grandalski, Joe AL 1472 Harper, Bill NY 904 Hodges, Wayne CA 1299 Ishkhanian, Haroutiolm NY 943 Kendall, Gail CT 1852 Krosnoshchyok, Alex CA 1293 Lee, Jennifer

MD 744 Gaber M.D., Jerome PA 934 Grande, Jerry GA 1526 Harper, Catherine B. IL 1331 Hoekstra, Elvin CA 844 Isbkhanian, Hovig CA 898 Kendall, Joshua M01666 Kruse, Larry CA 1090 Lee, Johnson

CA 2002 Gabriel, Freddie NJ 198 Granger, Rashon AR 1237 Harper, David CA 1047 Ishkhanian, Lily PA 1576 Kennet, Joel NY 2428 Kubo, Hisashi CA 1458 lee, JonathanGIA 2183 Hoff, Ty

AZ 1699 GaNell, Jeff PA 2017 Grant, Michael AR 328 Harper, Jacob PA 1729 Hoff, William G. CA 1056 Ishkhanian, Palig WI 1004 Kenyon, Richard MD 2359 Kubo, Nasamichi LA 1590 Ie, Kagin

AL 1499 Gain, Paul CA 1832 Gras, Ramon AR 315 Harper, Lucas OR 1117 Hoffman, Jay CA 1394 Ishkhanian, Rafi CA 1853 Kerekes, Louis NY 2194 Kucherenko, Bogdan CA 727 Ike, MaryCA 1498 Gaines, Joseph I, IN 1735 Graves, Bert AZ 1833 Harrington, John G. FL 806 Hoffmann, Kimberly AL 1059 Israel, Charles le 1961 Kerkow, Gary Erwin OH 1488 Kugelman, Michael NY 1413 ke, Nai

NY 1124 Gaisin, Masgut FL 1711 Greaves, Wesley IL 1731 Harris, Bnce GA 1860 Hogan, Henry T. NY 1369 Israel, Vita IN 1873 Kerner, Ercel IN 585 Injawaki, John ID 2214 Lee, Richard

AL 1907 Gaither, Don PA 2274 Green Jr., Enoch OK 1168 Harris, Jonathan IL 297 Hogsbead, Chad OR 1984 Iwasawa, Fuliaki PA 1219 Kerns, Ivan NJ 2067 Kuklakis, Mike FL 585 lee, Ryan Andrew

WA 1378 Galindo, Mark J. IN 1444 Green, Eric I) 1871 Harris, Mike B. IL 1899 Hogahead, Edward William MA 484 Izen, Seth OH 1780 Keselman, Alfred OH 1008 Kurkovakaya, Diana CA 585 Lee, Shelley C.

OR 1160 Gallagher, Stephen IL 1372 Greenberg, Marty I[1 1735 Harris, Rex OK 1374 Hogue, Diana NJ 1871 Jackovino, Adam J. OK 1687 Keller, Larry N. CO 2012 Kuseski, Roger CA 1656 Ike, Stacey L.

IL 1527 Gallas, George IE) 1?36 Greenberg, Morton NC 1404 Harteook, Warren NY 1602 Holck, Bruce F. PA 1889 Jackson, Charles P. MD 1161 Ketchel, Mel FL 1694 Kutzer, Dan CA 1434 Ike, Terrence

m 1321 Gangi, Nicholas R. £ 906 Greene, Kevin OK 1107 Harvey, Percy A. NJ 272 Holder, Janelle AR 1917 Jackson, Don HO 1644 Key, Chance GA 1501 Kuzia Jr., Stan MD 2007 Ike, Vivian

CA 1364 Ganoy, Rosendo iII 1292 Grenell, Mark TX 1951 Harville, David W. NJ 2047 Holland, Bob MD 2042 JackBon, Morris FL 1309 Khan, Imqtedar NH 1588 Kuzia Sr., Stan CA 1616 Lee, Wesley• 2636 Gao, Jun OR 1298 Grenz, Bob CA 2191 Hashimoto, lasant CA 1647 Holland, Rudy H. PA 806 Jacobsen, Grant CA 1971 Khazaeli, Javid CA 701 K'vicala Jr., Paul TX 1741 Leggett, Jim S.

![I 501 Garagiola, Delores 18[ 1878 Gresham, Dennia E. MN 1090 Hatlen, Lars MN 723 Holm, D'Arcy NY 881 Jacobucci, Michael It, 1448 Khiev, Sakom lim CO 2018 Kwok, Sai NJ 2055 Lehman, Christopher B.

OR 303 Garcia, Erika NU 1724 Gresham, Elisabeth M. IN 1679 Haun, James A. CA 1769 Holainger, Natt MA 2112 Jafar, Shuja GA 1815 Kho, Ben CA 1604 Kwolek, Joseph M. NE 724 Lehmer, Gary

m 1917 Garcia, Manuel NM 1949 Gresham, Toni M. WI 1403 Hauser, John NJ 1874 Holz, George Ernest • 2097 Jain, Ashu CA 1453 Khoddam, Ramin FL 1483 La Adamas, Aser . 844 Iehr, Jesse

CA 1309 Garcia, Pete P. IL 1930 Greydinger, Dimitri NY 1980 Hawk, Harry R. CA 1519 Homer Sr., nobert L. NJ 2183 Jain, Deepak AZ 92? Khoilian, Gann m 1260 La Bonte, E. Thomas AZ 1659 Ieichter, Horrie

SC 1320 Garcia, Victor MO 1273 Griffin Sr., Harold OH 1482 Hawkins Jr., Larry D. CA 1579 Honda, Hackle TX 1938 James, Richard Gary NY 2081 Khurana, Sanjeev AL 2144 La France, Keith G. FL 1884 kite, Sandro

AZ 1339 Gardner, Richard AL 495 Griffin, Tom NJ 1437 Hawking, Carl PA 1769 Hong, Lan NJ 2109 area, John m 1481 Kibria, Masud NJ 391 La Porte, Valund Jy PA 1853 Ikitzel, Michael

ID 1318 Garfield, Brian GA 1367 Griffin, Vince MI 445 Hawkins, Gertrude NE 1578 Hong, Soongoo CO 1524 Jaros, David Ike IL 1808 Kieeelhogrt, John NI[ 1806 Lachance, Carl IL 1762 Iaieux, BillMI 1472 Garland, Larry WI 842 Grimm, Charles OK 1895 Hawkins, Larry TX 1301 Hangsongkia; Theera PA 1522 Jeffcoat, Mark CA 989 Kiessling, Richard Al 1878 Lai, Alex Kwok-Kwai FL 1687 Ieno, Vilian

FL 1207 Garlock, Donn MN 980 Grindeland, John CA 1485 Hawley, Greg A. AZ 1448 Hoover, Kenneth H. CO 2054 Jeffries, Dana Dean CA 1595 Kilgore, Charles TX 1981 Lai, Steve TI 1191 leslie, Pete

CA 1692 Garratt, Nicholas • 859 Grindeland, Martin NE 2032 Hayes, Donald B. CA 1893 Horiuchi, Masant VA 1558 Jenkinson, Glenn I. NJ 1842 Kilpatrick, David MA 1787 Lam, Bing K. CA 1852 lang, Dr. Kent

NJ 649 Garrett, Jason MA 546 Gringorten, Shuldon NJ 1029 Hayes, Fred;ick L. NC 2087 Horth, Marcus P. OR 921 Jensen, Stanley NJ 1808 Kilpatrick, Join = 1841 Lam, Chi W. CA 1722 Ieung, Patrick C.

TI 1662 Garrett, Rob oK 1655 Grismore, Michael MI 1526 Hayes, Roge: MD 1971 Horton, Herbert R. NC 2041 Jeskova, Irina PA 1480 Kim, Byung OR 2162 Lam, lau IN 1965 levin, HowardIII 1657 Gasiorek, Chris WI 1102 Grob, Jacek VT 1834 Hayford, Jit CA 1447 Horath, leslie NY 1509 Jess, David OH 2303 Kim, Dan CA 1776 Lam, John T. IN 1380 levin, Michael L.

IL 1485 Gatea Jr., Robert E. CA 1158 Grobee, Fred C. AR 1363 Haynes, Jack M. NJ 807 Hou, Brian 10 193 Jessico, Jason CA 1578 Kim, Itung WA 853 Lam, Karen NY 2047 levy, JeffreyIL 1457 Gates, Dawn M. AZ 1752 Groenig, Nadine L. CA 1419 Haze, Ike IL 1919 Houed, Luis F. AZ 1742 Jet, Jay NJ 1369 Kim, Sangyol WA 1443 Lam, Philip NY 957 Ievy, Martin

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July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 51

PA 1723 Martin II, James E. CA 1402 Meyer, Henry CA 1742 Muramoto, Ralph M. OH 1624 Okafor, Edward NJ 876 Piccioni, Horatio MN 134? Reynolds, Ross

CA 1355 Martin, ited J. CT 914 Meyerhoffer, Bill NC 1092 Murnahan, Tony CT 2070 Okasia, Chris TN 2009 Pickett, Ronald MA 1147 Ribak, Mitch

LA 1813 Martin, Richard H. AZ 1146 Meyers, Leroy AR 881 Murphy, Jason MI 1863 Olado):un, Abayomi IL 1876 Piekosz, Waclan FL 1164 Ricevuto, Carmen

VA 1691 Martin, Roger C. ICI 282 Mezin, Angela CT 1777 MuIphy, Kevin PA 1215 Olejweck, JOBeph MI 2333 Pietrak, Bernie TX 761 Richard, Julie

MA 1921 Martinellot Lewis CA 1342 Mezin, John MA 1699 Murray Jr., William lili 1387 Oliveira, Mark OR 1856 Ping, Ken PA 2149 Richards, John

n 1706 Martinez, Sa-Ni MI 514 Mezin, Nicholas MA 1546 mirAy, John NJ 199 Oliver, Bari MI 12?4 Pirrala, Donald CA 1479 Richardson, Mel

NJ 2144 Martia, Dylan MA 10?4 Miano, Jack ICI 1237 Murray, Methuselah U 634 Olivier, Alyssa K. KY 2169 Plaisted, Thomas LA 1629 Richterman, Mark

UT 2003 Martz, Al C01722 Middlecoff, Jack CT 1822 Myers, Mark KS 1834 Olivier, Paul KY 1041 Plaisted, Tony MD 1627 Riddick Jr., Frank H.

NJ 1242 Marvald, Irwin IN 1670 Mielke, Barry OH 1868 Myers, Neil PA 919 Ollivierre, Rudolph m 1196 Platt, Steve TB 2040 Ridzuan, Yusof

MA 1258 Masek, Roman (0 1033 Miescke, Dave MN 814 *re, Lia GA 2038 Olsen, Donn Stephen PA 1907 Plevinsky, Mar'vin IN 1829 Riley, John R.

WA 574 Maslan, Ben ME 1123 Milcendean, Yann HI 1069 Nagler, Derek 1 1671 Olaher, Dick WA 1107 Plisterman, Steffen IN 1601 Riley, Richard

WA 471 Maslan, Jonathan AZ 1698 lilian, Larry EN 632 Najmuddin, Raza MN 2423 Olson, Brandon G. GA 1421 Plummer, Clifford CA 1593 Ritter, Mark

WA 804 Maslan, Mike KS 1593 Miller II, Carl C. HI 1864 Nakamura, Michael GA 1543 Olugbenga, Kareem IL 1770 Plunkett, Mike GA 2234 Rittmaster, Roland

OR 1720 Mason, Bill m 552 Miller, Ashley CA 1294 Nakano, Wayne NY 1674 Olugbile, Michael OH 1745 Podis, Gary CA 1754 Ritz, James

1-800-547-5891 lili 768 Masood, Azer IL 821 Miller, Burtlyn C01796 Narayanan, Venkat OR 784 Onchi, Fumi MD 1536 Podolak, Edward PA 1048 Rivera, Edwin

MA 1603 Massarsky, Lev U 1056 Miller, Chris IL 1445 Natale, Chris LA 1635 Oporowski, Bogdan 08 1096 Poelzing, Walter TI 1632 Rizk, Rene

KY 1153 Massengale, Sheila OK 1647 Miller, Gary IL 1615 Nauyalis, David MD 582 Oppenheimer, Caroline OK 519 Pogue, Tim MD 974 10, James

LA 1834 Massoth, Roland R. 'Rick' CA 948 Killer, Glenn IL 1901 Nazar, Naved PA 1034 Orbin, Rick AZ 1674 Polk, Harry NM 1749 Roady, William Harvey

PA 1107 lewis, Bryan 1[1 847 Im, JerryE 2549 Masters, Brian m 1556 Miller, Greg IS 1057 Nazarenus, Corbin DC 1067 Orfield, Daniel CA 1677 Pollaine, Steve ¤ 1856 Robb, John P.

FL 1374 Lewis, Donnavan AZ 1774 Imi, George10 1702 Mastylo, Zbigniew OK 566 Miller, James Ne 1801 Neal, James Franklin IS 1517 Omer Jason AR 1382 Pollan, William D. NE 1458 Robbins, Norm

oR 1237 Ialis, Ed MD 1937 Lu, JulieIN 1010 Mathews, David IL 2101 Miller, Jason T. III 331 Neda, Johnny IL 1711 Oros, John CA 1327 Pollock, Dave CA 1739 Roberson, Samuel

PA 2106 lewis, Michael A. MD 1830 Lu, MargaretIL 1517 Mathews, Mark PA 1371 Miller, John L. 71 1621 Neely, Bill RE 1340 Orr, Jim NJ 1663 Ponamgi, Ravi SD 829 Roberts, Charles

IA 1?74 Lewis, Paul Wayne MA 1460 Lubega, NowaMD 1264 Matkovic, Paul PA 1556 Miller, Michael 101 706 Nelson, Shawn NY 786 Ortel, Philip IL 1391 Popiel, Barbara CA 2196 Roberts, Courtney

KD 2017 Li, Andy TX 1238 Lucero, JaimeCA 1743 Katossian, Samuel PA 1144 Miller, Mike IN 1860 Nelson, Tom E 1386 osborn, John A: 1480 Porter, John M 1615 Robertson, Ievin

RI 1893 Li, Bing NJ 1949 Luethi, AndreasNe 2014 Matthews, Rick OH 1669 Miller, Paul CA 2069 Nemana, Sailu WA 835 08ier, Daniel CA 1520 Portillo, Christopher NJ 1606 Robins, Richard

CA 2011 Li, Jinny CA 1799 Lui, BillNJ 905 Matthies, Matthew NY 1503 Miller, Ronald Howard WA 1047 Neppe, Dr. Vernon PA 1599 Osteman, Karl NE 1697 Portrey Jr., Dennis CA 1247 Robinson, Joe

CA 1824 Id, Rong MD 1968 Lui, Patrick Kin LuenCA 1613 Mattos Jr., Antonio PA 1210 Miller, Ryan WA 970 Neppe, Jonathan AZ 1159 Oswald, Evan CA 1548 Meet, Robert NH 2032 Robinson, Ralph

MD 2170 Li, Sunny Ne 2026 Luisana, BryanRI 896 Mau, I-Min OR 411 Miller, Ryan MI 1436 Nesin, Liuha LA 1776 Owens, Richard MN 729 Potter, Matt GA 1046 Robinson, Robert E.

CA 2071 Ling, Samuel S. PA 498 Lulos, Michelle MarieFL 2029 Mau, Jay CA 1024 Miller, Scott PA 1488 Newcomer, Nancy NY 1337 Ozsoy, Onur KM 979 Potts Jr., Joseph A. CA 1653 Robles, Antonio

CA 2132 Ling, Willy Hwa-Fang MN 496 Lundeen, JoyceCA 1286 Potvin, Al M01829 Rochlin, BillNY 1479 lau, Stephen KS 1056 Miller, Scott CA 1530 Newt, Jerry GA 2454 Pace, Brian

IL 2028 Liang, Xiaoying 'Jo€' PA 1957 Luo, ShengGA 2514 May, Derek J. CA 1778 Miller, Thomas B. FL 1506 Newton, Damon L, Mo 1452 Pack, Richard SC 966 Powell, Ernest PA 1765 Rocker, George W.

CA 2031 Liao, Robert RI 1035 Lussier, MattGA 99 May, Kathleen MN 1392 Miller, Tom FL 1809 Newton, Dwight L. CO 1416 Padgett, Michael NJ 1163 Powere, David P. NY 1470 Rockir, David

IA 1578 Libby, David S. TX 1274 Luu, TomOR 1296 May, Larry IN 1679 Miller, Virgil OH 1403 Newton, Thms MA 1934 Pajochi, Babak NJ 1101 Powers, Matthew J. PA 1668 Rodgers, Barry E.

OR 1222 Lien, Wally WA 1967 Ly, Randall R.GA 2005 May, M. M. 'Pete' FL 1926 Millett Sr., Alan William FL 1724 Newton, Wendell L. MI 1761 Pallas, Tom PA 1956 Prakash, Kesh FL 1938 Rodriguez, Christian A.

C01196 Liette, Harding VA 1485 Ly, XengIL 696 Palm, Mike IL 2048 Prasetia, Gitosuputr FL 1966 Rodriguez, HectorAZ 1518 Mayer, Mark FL 1081 Millett, Rickey NY 1623 Ng, Charles

OK 2211 Lillieroos, christian NE 1814 Lykke, PaulNC 913 Mazurkiewicz, Gabriel FL 1657 Mills, Nesly WA 1745 Nget, Thea SC 2041 Palmer, John M 1931 Prather, Dennis CO 1616 Rodriguez, Lee

CA 1748 Lim, Albert IN 1083 Lynch, JaredCA 1583 Mc Afee, David LA 1441 Minor, Dennis IN 2070 Nguyen, Chau IL 765 Palmer, Kenneth F. FL 1749 Pratt, Steve OH 1560 Roe, Earl

SC 1748 Lim, Foong IN 1281 Lynch, JimGA 2048 Mc Afee, Richard CA 2114 Mintsiveris, Nick CA 1711 *yen, Cuong PA 1879 Panahiazar, Bob CO 2028 Preiss, Scott Matthew CO 1901 Roecker, James A.

CA 2170 Lim, Johnny S. IN 799 Lynch, JordanMA 558 Mc Auley, Edward J TN 542 Mintz, Aaron CA 1817 Nguyen, Don IL 2330 Pandit, Sharad NC 451 Presley, Duaty VA 1226 Roesell, Alex

CA 2128 Lim, Philip NY 1884 Lynch, Iurtison R.CA 1236 Mc Candless, Paul 3 1066 Mintz, Philip IN 1683 Nguyen, Hong FL 1960 Pang, Richard MI 1051 Preston, Jim CA 998 Roman, Ramon

LA 1396 Lim, Steven 'K.T.' AZ 1621 Ma, MankitCA 1449 Mc Cann Sr., Frank CA 2139 Miranda, Rudy L WA 1279 Nguyen, Kennedy NY 1735 Panich, Svetlana M01152 Preuse, Eugene R. TX 2594 Rop, Darko

10 1612 Lim, Wang WA 1916 Ma, Steve M.IL 2032 Mc Cartney, Marlon vt 1406 Misheako, Vyachealav Jen CA 2701 Nguyen, Khoa Dioh OH 2217 Panno, Phil RI 1188 Preziost, Eric NC 1874 Roper, Justin

CA 1010 Lin, Kelvin Al 1512 Mac Dowell, GordonMI 1726 Mc Cam, Cleo MI 1502 Misaad, Join CT 1787 Nguyen, Kim CA 1146 Pappaa, Alex VA 1111 Price, Jerry L. NE 2223 Rosalez, Guillermo

MD 1842 Lin, Laura AZ 1251 Mac Farlane, H, Jimm 1424 Mc Carty, Mike CA 1470 Mitchell, James L. MI 1813 Nguyen, Lam CA 1116 Paras, Alex OH 1203 Price, Mark CO 1553 Rose, Larry

CA 1555 Lin, Oliver WI 1439 Mac Gregor, David L.AR 581 Mc Connell, Matthew FL 1658 Mitchell, Joe Ed TX 874 Nguyen, Le Hang Thi KS 1635 Paretsky, Jonathan PA 1017 Pritchard, Thamas J. TX 2197 Rosen, Peggy

CA 1566 Lin, Patrick Ne 1668 Mac Kenzie, BryanAR 1087 Mc Connell, Scott FL 1535 Mitchell, Lloyd OR 1371 Nguyen, Nba CA 602 Paris-Salb, Ian WA 1055 Prut, Yoni TX 1843 Rosen, Walt

CA 2144 Lin, Syh-Jae Ne 1319 Mac Kenzie, DavidPA 2176 Mc Coullum, Henry CA 1855 Moayery, Mohamad KS 1421 Nguyen, Phuong D. AL 1?02 Parker Jr., Toney iii 1185 Pryce, Doug NJ 969 Rosenbaum, Ruth

CO 1584 Lindblom, Jon 61 599 Mac Millan, ScottIN 1913 Mc Cracken, Sean AL 1881 Mobley III, William H. CA 1822 Nguyen, Quynh K. Ne 1694 Parker, Brandon MD 1306 Pals, Chris OR 463 Rosenberg, Arielle

CA 1599 Lindo, Howard George CA 1998 Mac, ThinhKS 912 Mc Cue, Terry NJ 1770 Moebius, Bernd CA 2061 Nguyen, Roger Trong AL 1337 Parrett, William J. AL 1612 Putman, Barry OR 732 Rosenberg, David

MI 211 Ling, Enoch VA 1499 Mackliet, Bruce R.PA 651 llc Cullough, Paul W. NJ 2301 Mojaverian, Parviz OR 1689 Nguyen, Tai PA 685 Para, Debra MI 948 Puttler, Leon MD 1382 Rosenberg, Jay

MI 539 Ling, Yibo MO 1620 Maddux, ThomasFL 1112 Mc Daniel, Mark IL 2036 Mok, Kent PA 1476 Nguyen, Tam Nhon PA 1472 Parry, John SC 1507 Quam, Steve OR 1549 Rosenberg, Mark

MD 1476 Liou, Yeong C01555 Madigan, Thomas DarrelNJ 899 Mc Fadden, Mark NY 1629 Mok, Peter CA 1599 Nguyen, Thanh NO 1699 Paryavi, Mehdi CA 1299 Quant, Dennis CA 1210 Rosenblatt, Nilliam B.

NJ 951 Lipton, Douglas IL 1913 Madrigal, Primo O.CA 899 Mc Fadden, Todd CA 1239 Mokaddem, Amine CA 2199 Nguyen, Thinh MA 891 Pascale, RoBB TI 1378 Quillin, John NY 913 Rosenstein, Vadim

NJ 634 Lipton, Noah CA 649 Maes, JohnNJ 971 Mc Gee, Jobn CA 1717 Monneray, J. P. CA 1478 Nguyen, Thomas IL 2127 Pasbuku, Paul Victor MI 1796 Quinn, Robert Calvin NJ 2301 Rosenzweig, David

NJ 1383 Lisman, Al CA 1651 Magana, Ivan!5 1217 Mc Glothlin, Steve NJ 1463 Monroe Jr., Harry PA 1508 Nguyen, Tri NJ 798 Pattanayah, Ari NJ 2029 Rabinovich, Alex PA 1570 Roskos, Ken

MN 503 Little, Ashley AL 1722 Magic, AskhabovCA 1852 Mc Kinstry, Jim FL 2257 Montalvo, Ariel PA 1962 Nguyen, Tuong-Oach Ati 1763 Patton Jr., Charles Richa NY 1653 Rabinovich, BorisM. NY 1357 Ro88, Frank

MN 542 Little, Brad NY 1932 Magnus, 0. J.NJ 1912 Mc Knight, Brian Keith FL 867 Montalvo, Cynthia TX 1584 Nguyen, Vinh Ne 993 Paul, Douglas A. NY 1586 Radunsky, Alex GA 1284 Ross, Steven

CA 1416 Liu, Chuan-Chiao Robert KS 1403 Mai, JeffTx 1185 Mc Knight, Jeffrey TX 1253 Montalvo, Radame Ntt 2014 Nguyen-Duy, Pipo CT 1017 Paushter, Ernest OH 1759 Radzeli, Louis CA 806 Roseman, Herbert

KS 1827 Liu, Chun-Yen = 496 Makie, KevinOR 1199 Mc Larty, Jack AR 445 Montemayor, Aaron S. KY 1535 Nichols, Steve CT 1240 Paushter, Evan 0£ 985 Ragon, Victor PA 1561 Roth, Frank A.

CA 1861 Liu, Fong MA 1127 Maklae, GregCA 1597 Mc Laughlin, William B. AR 897 Montemayor, Albert IL 1076 Niemann, Eric R. TX 2194 Pawloweki, Toraten AZ 885 Rainbolt, Randy VA 1406 Rothrauff, Charles E.

IA 1736 Liu, Guojun CA 913 Malek, AuriaMI 1630 Mc tran, Keith TX 1195 Montes, Adrian IN 1596 Nimtz, Branden FL 1741 Pawly, Richard RI 1899 Raky, Haig TX 1783 Roufeh, Jalil

CA 1252 Liu, Henry H. CA 1499 Malek, ChrisPA 1452 Ramachandran, Sanjay TX 1593 Roufeh, MahinFL 1695 Mc Leod, Casey TX 1162 Montes, Edmund NY 2202 Nisbet, Ben J. IN 1021 Pay, Mark

NY 2255 Liu, Hui Yun CA 1280 Malek, ScottNY 1378 Mic Nally, Tom RI 704 Monzack, Nathaniel 08 2009 Nittskoff, Earl TX 1579 Payne, Robert AZ 1734 Ramakriahnan, Kartik MA 1390 Roughan, Brian

ED 1968 Liu, Hui-Lung NJ 1241 Malench, MarkPA 949 Mc Naney Jr., Jim GA 1786 Moon, Warren Henry GA 1472 Nix, Justin OK 2178 Payton, Yumiko PA 2270 Ramanathan, Srinivasan MA 13?8 Rounseville, Philip E.

CA 1274 Liu, Jinny WI 1727 Malijewski, StanAL 1295 Mc Neal, Robert E. NY 1437 Moore, Andrew IN 598 Noerr, Richard E. IN 1687 Pearson, Paul CA 1404 Ramirez, Adrian TN 1792 Rountree, Dennis

CA 2177 Liu, Mark NJ 823 Malinowski, RobertCA 1406 Mc Nulty, Dean S. AR 1308 Moore, Gary E. FL 1446 Nolan, Jim !01422 Pearson, Robert PA 2040 Ramirez, John C. MA 995 Roussel, Janelle C.

IA 557 Liu, Michael PA 1491 Malis, ChrisNC 1736 Mc Pherson, Steve NY 407 Moore, Leslie XY 1097 Nomura, Tsuyoshi PA 1747 Peffer, Rodney Linn MA 1984 Ramis, Luis KN 453 Bowen, Jared

NY 958 Liu, Teee Ming PA ,171 Malia, Timothy C.NC 1942 Mc Queen Jr., James A. NY 770 Moore, Scott OK 1555 Noori, John • 873 Pelissier, Craig IL 2004 Ramni, P. V. NE 1778 Roybal, Jeffrey E.

NE 1311 Liu, Yi m 1978 Malkawi, AhmadOK 1615 Mc Quillen, Ryan AL 1776 Moosa, Shoaib IL 1958 Nordby, Nark Andrew lili 720 Pelissier, David RI 1146 Randall, Fred NV 1799 Rubin, David I.

PA 1746 Livingston, Gary WA 1140 Malia, MoPA 949 McComsey, Ronald T. KS 1538 Moots, Joel NE 1218 Norgard, Nick mI 1154 Pelinier, Don NC 863 Rannow, Robert L. FL 1542 Rubin, Henry

CA 2027 Livshits, Boris NJ 1251 Mallows, Colin L.NY 953 Meadow, Mark R. AR 1121 Moquett, Ron NE 371 Norgard, Shay IL 1792 Pell, Paul B. CA 1667 Rasay, Raul KS 1116 Rucker, Charles

CA 1090 Livehits, Katherine NJ 1266 Man, Li-lingNY 182 Meadow, Matt David OK 1183 Morales, Angel J. GA 1437 Norman, Anthony MA 1008 Pellegrini, James MD 1731 Ratner, Mark J. CA 597 Rucker, Richard

NY 2042 Lloga, Milagros CA 1240 Mancuso, TonyAZ 1582 Meany, Dave CA 1129 Moramarco, Jack IL 1630 Nowak, Arthur WA 936 Penders, Tony TX 2041 Rautie, James A. PA 314 Rudderow, Bryan

CA 1624 Inatolt, Wendell CT 1393 Mandel Dr., NeilTX 1820 Medcalf, Randall CA 1107 Moramarco, Joa IN 1149 Nowosielski, Jobn GA 2472 Peng, tin CA 1056 Ray, Jim CA 1833 Rudeman, kon

WA 1704 Iack, Raymond OH 1519 Mann, BendtKS 2011 Medeiros, Carla A. NJ 1655 Mordecai, Edward PA 1157 Noyes, Jim IL 1197 Pepelmuter, Joe KY 1636 Rayan, Wael CA 543 Rudesill, Alan

IL 1133 Ingan, R. Douglas At, 15?1 Mann, Thomas H.CA 1807 Mehmedbasich, Enver NJ 1448 Moreau, Alix TX 1811 Nsekpong, Ime MI 2049 Peradotto, Dave CA 1621 Raymond, Jim CA 1245 Rudesill, David

MD 2135 Lonergan, Brian Patrick IN 1363 Hansour, TonyNY 1143 Mebringer, Vince FL 1665 Moreau, Richard GA 2179 Nunes, Thomas AZ 1834 Perez, Carlos M. ME 1642 Reben, Howard T. OK 1199 Ruminer, Donal E.

MD 898 Lonergan, Cathy Ann NJ 1057 Maramara, MannyMA 1298 Mei, Guang CA 889 Morris, Jeff AL 1501 Nunmally, Rusty CA 1909 Perez, Mike KS 1310 Rector, Roger Al 895 Rush, Harold

Mi) 2399 knergan, Sean Michael AZ 1214 Marconias

MA 1161 Mei, Wally CA 1026 Morrie, Paul AR 730 Nutter, David IN 1690 Petersen, Dirk FL 1449 Redding, W. C. PA 1734 Russo, DannyMD 1997 Lonergan, Terry George IN 1419 Marcum, Cindy

CA 1349 Melamed, Isaac E. NY 984 Moses, Douglas J. IN 855 Nye, Brock WE 1524 Petersen, Leroy F. 0 1596 Rede][opp, Dallas KS 1136 Ruthven, IesICI 299 Ung, Dana IN 1846 Marcum, Jerry

CA 1651 Melidonian, Hovig NJ 1478 Moskowitz, Manny NJ 1160 O'Donnell, William MN 2285 Petersen, Todd Le Roy PA 2081 Reed, Barney David WI 1609 Rutkowski, AlanM01609 Long, Ian R. MA 1872 Marcus, David J.

MA 973 Mello, Brian J. PA 1410 Moss, Richard H. NE 1493 0'Neal, John R. KN 1110 Peterson, Aron PA 2456 Reed, Barney J. CA 1928 Ryan, BillKS 885 Long, Walt NY 1209 Marcus, Fred

GA 2252 Melvin, Oscar AR 1471 Mowrey, Richard 3 1737 0*Neal, Tracy Allen PA 1670 Peterson, Daniel D. NE 410 Reeves, Chris PA 1299 Ryan, JimIS 1307 Iung, Wayne GA 202] Marcus, Robert G.

PA 1144 Memarzadeh, Masood IL 1637 Moy, Phillip PA 1430 O'Neill, Pat MI 323 Petrovich, Chris MI 1144 Registrar, Akshay TX 2036 Ryan, Scott M.101 1488 Iunnon, Merle Dean al 1628 Margolis, Laurence J.

PA 1554 Memartadeh, Medhi CD 1363 Mracek, Jiri VA 2570 O'Neill, Sean Patrick NE 1484 Petterson, Jarry NJ 735 Relberger, John PA 1077 Ryder, Howard A.FL 1806 Look, Raymond CA 1649 Marinas, Michael K,

NY 799 Menkin, Sergey NJ 2162 Mualem, Patrick TX 2324 Oak, Niraj OR 457 Pettit, Evan GA 1198 Rehmann, Nash MD 746 Ryker, DaveSC 992 Imney, Robert CA 1784 Marinsik, Dan

AZ 1833 Mennesson, Bertrand TX 908 Mueller, Ricky TX 1832 Oak, Rashma IN 757 Petty, John D. GA 773 Rehmann, Sher MN 1387 Sabas, JosephCT 549 Lopez, Arturo NJ 1114 Markell, Jack

IL 1841 Menzer, Michael NT 1608 Muha=ad, Wali AZ 1182 Oceretko, Arkadij IN 2009 Petty, Tyrone PA 1924 Reid, Gerald 10 934 Sabas, Kristopher J,ID 1684 Lopez, Jose PA 1423 Markiewicz, David

CA 1942 Remenyi, Frank KS 1155 Saboowala, ShabnawazCA 1864 Mercado, Rodolfo MN 1289 Mui, Edward IL 1477 Offergeld, Martin IL 1413 Pham, SonCA 1291 Lopez, Juan Antonio MI 1251 Markovic, St jepan

AR 1776 Meredith, Victor W. CO 1784 Mui, Mike NY 1527 Ofray, Fernando FL 1511 Pham, Tuan KS 1367 Rempel, Gregg IA 1818 Sackpraseuth, KhamprasongKY 1742 Lorano, Victor J. NY 1253 Marks, William

CT 1312 Merrill, Gary FL 1321 Mullen, John FL 1203 Ognibene, Samuel CA 2164 Pham, Tuan NJ 1190 Rendon, Hector IC 1824 Safrany, StevePA 877 Loraw, Yoko NY 1765 Maronian, Andre

FL 1729 Reterski, Michal MI) 2252 Sakai, DavidIL 1085 Mertes, Chris OH 1490 Mulvaney, Ward B. PA 1455 Ogorzalek, Joseph F. PA 1722 Pham, WetPA 1331 Lotstein, Herman NY 1398 Maronian, Marc

PA 1528 Metz, Willia D. VA 1946 Mundy, Rick GA 1818 Ogundele, Kunle OR 1306 Phan, Andrew 2 1058 Reusch, Gilbert E. GA 1466 Salam, AlyNY 1268 Inukedes, Gregory NY 1815 Maronian, Robert

KS 1388 Metzger, Clifford Le Roy KS 1049 Muninger, Sheldon MI 2537 Ogundimu, Gbena MA 1449 Pho, Kevin AL 1235 Reynolds, Donald G. VA 1791 Salas, JohnCA 1134 Loveless, MiR OR 701 Marsh, Bryce

VA 1416 Meunier, Akmal J. FL 2015 Munroe, Chedy TX 1922 Ohara, Kazuhiro IL 1497 Phothiboupha, Konoi AZ 499 Reynolds, Jason A. NY 1671 Salata, MartyCA 1041 Loveless, Steve IN 1112 Martilla, John

IL 1071 Meyer, Barbara MD 1924 Murad, Matthew NY 2010 Ohore, Ajayi NH 1408 Picard, Dorlon H. CA 1092 Reynolds, Rick NJ 1437 Salazar, Rodolfo

51 Table Tennis Today July/August 1995

PA 1163 Sales, Louis CT 1661 Shana, Harish IL 2071 Solis, Engelbert MD 1807 Tan, Andy MA 1955 Tgay, Wen-Jim CA 1248 Wasserman, Si

CA 2216 Samari, Rain R. MA 1572 Sharla, Prem L. CA 1148 Solis, Lib CA 906 Tan, Chan 8. PA 616 Tseng, Micheal NE 829 Waterbury, Ryan

NJ 374 Samkoff, Aron PA 1464 Sharma, Rakesh WA 1930 Solomon, Christian MA 2312 Tan, lean Seng CA 1082 Tu, Stephen MD 1528 Waters, Julian

NJ 1149 Samkoff, Rhoda NJ 1728 Sharpe Jr., Barrington H. IL 1418 Soltwisch, Daid Lee OH 1889 Tandler, Evan C. NJ 1111 Tu, lin jun 'Jimmy' IN 1201 Watkins, Roger

ND 2097 Sampson, Thomas PA 2178 Sharpe, William J. PA 1251 Soltys, Greg NY 2081 Taneda, Hirosti IL 1853 Tuazon, Manuel NM 931 Watson, Ryan K.

FL 1442 Sanders, Robert KN 1707 Shaw, Pat M. 18! 1723 Sommers, Marvin CA 1230 Tang, David 19 194 Tubillena, Ruel L. AL 1731 watts, Ednrd

)MI 1837 Sanders, Ross Stuart ME 1348 Shea, Bill TN 1870 Sourinthone, Lock CA 1178 Tang, Hai MD 505 Tucker, Tavis TX 676 Watts, John

FL 1347 Sanders, Suzanna PA 1439 Sheckard, Stephen P. TN 1590 Sourinthone, Noi CA 1253 Tang, Stephen OR 846 Tulchinsky, Alex VA 1512 Weaver, John S.

NY 1477 Sangabi, Hamid OK 1682 Shehada, Khaled N 1913 Sourinthone, Eaymek IL 1939 Tangpong, Charnchai OH 1474 Twmer, V. M. 08 1516 Weaver, Terri

NY 1751 Sangsiri, Thongchai VA 649 Shelton, Alan TW 1971 Sourinthone, Saymork-Jay VA 939 Tanner, Edward J. HO 774 Turney, Douglas E. OR 295 Webb, Jennie

CA 1980 Sanguinetti, George VA 704 Shelton, Jon V. NY 1570 Spall, Mark WY 1449 Taplin, George Earl CA 1459 Tutt, David IN 326 Weber, Mandy

CA 492 Sankey, John MD 1964 Shea, Jessica KY 1311 Spann, Raymond D. AZ 1901 Tarkowski, Jin CA 2077 Ukapatayasakul, Bill IN 1561 Weber, Mari

IL 970 Santarelli, Joe VA 1796 Shen, Pao-Ching OK 1126 Spaven, Cortney CA 1188 Tatgumi, Robert 00 1559 Uliano, Frank IN 1842 Weber, Mark Ben

NJ 1710 Santos, Jose CA 1951 Shen, Sam LA 1192 Speights, Earl WA 1128 Taucher, Henry CA 1626 tmel Jr., David CA 1987 Wedret, Mark

CA 1866 Sapaden, Gerard OH 2049 Shen, Yebo NY 1203 Spektor, Igor OR 1379 Tawiah, Edmund CA 1819 Imel, David VA 649 Weeks, Celus F. 1-800-547-5891PA 2012 Saperstein, Robert CA 1561 Sheppard, Douglas PA 1832 Spellman, Dennis M. NE 1049 Taylor, David T. CA 1102 [mel, Priscilla MI 1357 Weems, Jerome F.

GA 2093 Sapre, Yogesh FL 796 Sherman, Iee AL 1824 Spencer, Ronald • 1353 Taylor, Dennis M. CA 1522 Un, See FL 1184 Weglinski, Murray

FL 1523 Saria, Roberto NY 1497 Sherwood, Gary CA 1451 Spesick, Tomi PA 2022 Taylor, Randy NJ 256 Ungco, Niki VA 1764 Wei, Tsui-PingTX 1516 Wise, Jeffrey PA 1559 Yang, Te-Hain

It, 867 Sagieta, Alfonso E. NY 1002 Shieh, Lawrence CA 1108 Spicer, James NY 1138 Teigman, David OK 2173 Uppal, Mohanad Amaad Al 1856 mich, BobCA 1544 Wishniowski, Stanley OR 2224 Yang, Iiaomin •Simone·

OR 438 Saucedo, Nikki NJ 1905 Shieh, Szu-Huang ME 1196 Spiegel, Eric NJ 1468 Teitelbaum, Howard OK 1368 Valadez, Terry PA 549 Weinberg, JasonNJ 1311 Wianiewski, Vincent KD 2113 Yao, David

CA 1891 Savitz, Bernard U 1649 Shin, Yong H. OH 528 Spilker, gri GA 1488 Telfor, Clarence E. FL 1424 Valarezo, Erick CT 1067 Weinberg, leonIL 1246 Wittekiend, Terry NY 1320 Yao, George

FL 1648 Sawani, Asad AZ 1752 Shivapuram, Kupendra OH 1449 Spilker, Sandy CA 1?77 Teneriffe, Joey CA 2301 valencia, Fernando AZ 1149 Weinberger, ArnoldME 2024 Wittner, Gary D. VT 1287 Yarosevich, Walter Charle

IL 1537 Saxon, Allan NY 979 Shmulevich, Michael OH 321 Spilker, Sherry CA 1262 Terry, Jim PA 1156 Valentino, John If 999 Weir, Ken181 1605 Witz, Lawrence E. IN 2007 Yates, Jim

PA 1018 Scalley, Mark CA 2361 Shodhan, Shashin OH 421 Spilker, Tracey CA 1924 Tesar, Barry CA 1610 Valenzuela, Corazon B. AZ 1604 Weiss, JacobIQI 1794 Witz, lenard Edward CA 1048 Yee, Chim

WI 1623 Scanlan, Thomas N. *0 1156 Shores, John S. N. 1721 Spitzer, Robert AZ 1420 Thayar, Narendran FL 796 valldejuli, Douglas AZ 1169 Weiss, JeffreyOR 1257 Wojahn, Brent CT 1654 Yee, David

AZ 1Q89 Scarborough, Craig OK 1927 Short, James R. AZ 1041 Splistiser, Henry IN 712 Thayer, Carrie MD 1648 Van Dusen, Phil OR 224 Wojahn, Neal CA 1610 Ye., RobertPA 1345 Weiss, Richard

PA 1257 Scarpignato, Michael 00 1111 Shriver, Patrick AZ 1390 Splistiser, Jo A. MN 1724 Thayib, Kimanto MI 1895 Van Eizenga, James M. C01770 Weissberg, George J.MA 1628 Wolf, Peter IL 1547 Yee, Tunwa

NY 1482 Scavo, Bruce A. MD 1387 Stout, Richard IiI) 1617 Squires, Michael RI 1474 Theroux Jr., Arthur R. SC 1699 Van, Khang ICI 1340 Wolfe III, Henry NA 1612 Yee, Wing10 1710 Welsh, Richard William

CA 1776 Schaaf, Diego NJ 2123 Shtofnakher, Simon VT 2340 St, George, Jason CA 2123 Therriault, James IA 1416 vang, Thai KS 1622 Wendt, Jimla 742 Wolfe, C. Virginia MD 2198 Yeh, Jimmy C.

MI 1493 Schaefer, Timothy J. PA 1888 Shughart, Scott VT 1669 St. George, Joseph F. CT 798 Thew, Robert W'V 1051 Vanoster, Dan WA 1481 Wolfe, Chris IN 2380 Yeh, NormanDE 1454 Wersinger, Robert

CA 1244 Schafer, Philip J. MA 2019 Shuster, Eugene M. CO 1812 St. Gemin, Tim !01 583 Thirty, Jerome WI 764 Vanselow, Scott HA 1648 Wolfe, Wes MD 2383 Yeh, StephenAZ 1546 Wesley, David

CA 1293 Schaffer, Dave OH 2097 Shuster, Leonid M. m 1695 St. John, Mark A. OK 2104 Thomas, Brian N'V 2008 varela, Steve NY 951 Holfeil, Bruce IN 1691 Yeh, liu-KuangAL 1330 West, Eddie H.

NJ 1627 Schall, Terry OR 641 Sickles, Daniel J. MI 1948 Stadelman, Ralph L. NJ 1178 Thomas, E. Uoyd OH 1461 Varian, Don CA 1169 Wolgast, Stephen CA 1219 Yeung, KennethIA 1773 Westphal, Brian Darold

CA 1668 Schanilec, Robert RI 596 Siddiqi, Assad E 1134 Staehlin Jr. Martin 3. OK 1465 Thomas, Paul NJ 1196 Vasconcellos, Jose RI 956 Wolke, Richard £ 1103 Yeung, LennyMA 1016 Wetmore, leonard

WI 1337 Scharte, Art NY 1546 Sierra, Jaime OK 1043 Stafford, Doug AZ 1584 Thomas, Robert PA 726 Vastine, Anthony J.AL 1848 Wetzel, Michael

IL 2103 Wolaki, Darius: • 1596 Yim, Sung G

WI 1393 Scheer, Thomas CA 1377 Siti, Vivek NY 1424 Stafford, Will NJ 786 Thomason, Katawan PA 1535 Vastine, Donald IL 2231 Wolski, Woiciech CA 1656 Yfp, CalvinPA 1707 Wetzler, Warren

MI 1512 Scheipner, George CA 1654 Silberman, Allen MD 967 Stahl, Janice A. SC 2199 Thompson, Armeal B. PA 402 Vastine, Elizabeth A.OH 1504 White II, Philip C.

10 1489 Womack, Brad NJ 2383 Yip, LilyVA 1489 White, Paul

CO 1455 Schelly, David PA 586 Silcox, Jonathan TN 1861 Stallings, Shaun 0. FL 1748 Thompson, Delroy PA 1179 Vastine, Joseph NJ 1603 Wonderlin, Eugene IN 1749 Yoder, Dana

PA 2101 Scheno, Joe CO 1731 Silver, Norman H. NE 624 Stalp, Jeff CA 1403 Thompson, Dennis D. TX 1063 Vaughan, JimyAZ 1038 White, Paul

CA 2081 Wong, Chi M01699 Yoshikawa, FumioKS 932 Whitted, David

AR 1524 Schick, Greg MA 1139 Simmons, Phil WA 1740 Stan®, Jon AL 1541 Thompson, Pkil MI 1884 Vaysman, Roman MT 1706 Wong, Chun MO 1752 Yoshikawa, TedOK 807 Whitten, Matt

MA 1232 liong, David MO 1248 Yeshikawa, Yasuyo 'SueAZ 1749 Schiele, Bernhard NJ 319 Simon, Barbara FL 1515 Stanley Jr., Roy B MD 1757 Thoren, Stephen MI 2324 Veillette, Michael

TI 1888 Wiederhold, Gary MiltonTX 1930 Schilhab II, Roland M. NJ 1634 Simon, Casey TX 1619 Starr, John David MD 1134 Thorne, Oliver J. TX 1920 Vela, Martin MT 1231 Wong, Jason OR 1863 Yaunan, Doug

TX 1571 Wiederhold, ToddTI 2021 Schilhab, Susanne NY 1245 Simon, Dave MA 1545 Staniak, Stan PA 971 Thornton, Anthony WA 1162 Velasco, Adolfo MA 1635 Wong, Jasper NY 1879 Young, Donald A.

RI 1180 Wiening, JonOH 2159 Schlabach Jr., Roy NY 1901 Simon, Matt NJ 1654 Steadman, Gary MD 1395 Thornton, John N. 1066 Venkatram, Chitra NJ 1465 Wong, Lawrence A. FL 1897 Young, Jeffrey E.

mi 2319 Wilig, Dan JamesNY 1232 Schlick, Peter lei 1690 Simone, Angelo Al 1152 Steele, Les IL 779 Thorpe, Earl NJ 613 Venkatram, Kartik CA 1441 Wong, Martin CO 1844 Young, Kevin

MN 1272 Wiita, JohnNY 1346 Schloss, E. S. lei 742 Simone, Paul CA 1812 Steidley, Dale TX 1824 Time, Ralph OH 938 Verbus, Jeffrey CA 1285 Wong, Patrick PA 936 Young, Robert A.

AL 1702 Wilder, David EarlOK 2021 Schlosser, Ralf CA 1286 Simons, Gilbert PA 2042 Steiner, Sanuel L, WA 2136 Tinsuwan, Sakda CA 1044 Verdieck, Tyler OR 1823 Wong, Peter Y. IN 1815 Yu, Chth-Ching

1[D 1190 Wilhelm, JonathanNY 1352 Schmidl, Werner W. = 387 Sinykin, Alex MN 528 Stenson, Bradley CT 1447 Tinyszin, Roman AL 1369 Vermund, Julian TX 1811 Wong, Scott CA 1261 Yu, Kent

KS 1065 Will, TomNJ 2024 Yu, MingCA 2191 Schmidt, Avishy • 338 Sinykin, Andy CA 1622 Stevens, Jeff Alan MI 910 Tipton, Bill AL 905 Vermund, Sten CA 1196 Wong, Walter

IL 1121 Willard Jr., JosephCA 2055 Schneider, John 18 490 Sinykin, Dan 11,1 1469 Steward III. Daniel OH 1887 Tith, Iosal KN 445 Vieau, Chad CA 1693 Wong, Wilfred CA 1881 TU, Nelson

AZ 1427 Williams, C. ScottNY 1004 Schoenberg, Stacy !11 1797 Siny][in, Stu NC 1435 Stewart, Ar:hur P, OR 1683 Titrud, Tim CA 2116 Villablanca, Reynaldo S. AR 1153 Wood, Gary FL 1667 Yuguf, Marlon

MD 1469 lillians, Charles JamesPA 1233 Schorn, Joe CA 1064 Siqueiros, Adrian DC 1796 Stewart, Joseph A. LA 1161 Todd Sr., John NY 1916 Villarica, Al WA 1758 Wood, Mark C. NY 1993 Zagula, Adam

GA 2261 William, DavidE 1742 Schroeder, Guenther CA 1644 Siqueiros, Antonio III 1742 Stewart, Sidney M) 491 Todd, Amy L. IiI 1368 Viner, Jim NY 1898 Wood, Thomas R. IL 1347:ainal, Zaqif

IL 1067 Williams, DeanRI 1024 Schuellin, George CA 1886 Siqueiros, David OR 515 Stocklin-Enright, Thomas TX 1565 Todd, Calvin iII 866 Viner, Joe MA 1303 Woodward, Bob CA 2085 :ajac, Piotr

GA 877 Williams, EgbertNY 798 Schultz, Steve CA 599 Siqueiros, M. Jorge AR 1753 Stogner, J. Duke 10 1782 Todd, Danny R. NY 969 Vinocour, Joshua SC 1597 Worley, David D. NY 2118 Zalessakiy, Oleg

CA 1514 Williamo, Jaes C.NJ 1299 Schuman, Noman NC 957 Sitek, Mark A. lEi 1439 Stone, Paul S. MO 1327 Todd, Judy L. IL 1906 Virragh, Attila PA 799 Wright II, Drexel MI 889 Santo, Eileen

17 1702 Williams, JeffCA 1648 Schwab, Simone MA 1183 Siu, Yat SC 2071 Stout, David !10 469 Todd, William H. CA 1934 Vo, Quang Duy IL 1056 Wright, Joe CA 1779 :avala, 0110

KS 1496 Williams, JimIA 1527 Schwarz, Bill NY 1372 Skeete Sr., Carl TX 1555 Stovall, John 0 1110 Toenjes, Eric CA 1705 Vo, Timothy V. CA 1714 Wright, Richard CA 979 Zavala, Rosario

AR 1042 Williams, JohnCT 1432 Wu, Alex CA 582 Zeiger, Kalman1101591 Scott Mid., Earl David FL 667 alar, Greg SC 1732 Stowell, Mike MO 1149 Toenjes, Nick VA 471 Voinov, Vitaly

AR 314 Williams, JontlyMD 1948 Scott, Andre NJ 1468 Skolarczyk, Joseph 06 2088 Strain, David W. IN 2316 Tolkachev, Victor Co 1973 vollmar, David CA 1653 Wu, Chia CA 1490 Zelenkovsh, Alec

MA 366 Williams, MichaelFL 1761 Scott, Barry H. CA 1212 Skrbec, Karol NJ 1305 Strano, Robert J NJ 466 Tolmazin, David AR 1640 Volpert, Clem MD 403 Wu, Katherine FL 1588 Zeller, Carlos

CA 1162 Williams, Richard A.C'T 1032 Scott, George A. MI 1993 Skrzypek, Dave GA 1103 Strassburger, Gus N J 1430 Tom, Gene

MN 564 Willis, Chrism 1031 Wu, Sun Man WA 1085 Zeng, Jia

FL 1230 Wu, Max CA 1529 Eelms, TedCA 2041 Von Schimelmam, Ron

OR 1202 Scott, Jaime CA 1721 Slade, Ivan MA 1027 Strel:off, Alan NJ 18? Tpking, Ila'keem IL 817 Vongsavanthong, PhaydaraAR 1061 Willis, Damey

OR 1609 liu, Tony CA 1402 Zhai, LingAL 1679 Scott, I,amar MD 1992 Slapnik, Bob IL 1815 Strong, William R. WA 1052 Ton, Anthony T. WA 1549 Voronin, AlexPA 707 Willoughby, Larry

FL 1840 Wyatt, Russell S. VA 1840 Zhang, DavidIN 559 Scott, Sam MD 1404 Suit, Karl TX 1139 Stroud, Mickey PA 1906 Tong, Kwok-Kong MID 1245 Vos, John G.VA 1644 Wilson Jr., Herbert K.

Iii) 1220 Iiao, Han OH 1717 Zhang, WillIN 283 Scott, Stephen CA 1245 Smart, Roy NJ 2208 Strucinski. Piotr CA 1319 Tong, Teddy Y. KS 1832 Voth, VanceIN 282 Wilson, Holly Ann

PA 899 Xiao, Wei Liang OR 754 Zhou, ChingPA 684 Scripkunas, Cas DC 1634 Smith III, William C. 01[ 2003 Struth, Aaron FL 2269 Torino, Anthony PA 1190 Vrabel, JohnTX 1916 Wilson, Jimy L.

IA 2082 Xiao, Yufei NJ 1802 Zhou, ZiweiPA 1680 Sealy, James E. GA 2074 Smith, Alford OK 1365 Stucker, David C. FL 1493 Tran, Danh PA 2007 Vrabel, MarkIN 1679 Wilson, Sharlene Krizman

NJ 1555 Iie, Bin MD 1470 Zhu, ZichengNY 1716 Seaman, Mike MI 1316 Smith, Arnold NY 1045 Su, Joseph C. CA 2386 Tran, De CA 431 Yulfolich, ValeriiaKS 1114 Wing, Gary W.

WI 1526 Xiong, Neng Sou WJ 2694 Zhuang, Yong Iiang 'DavidAR 1665 Seedtibood, Amp TN 1574 Smith, Chad III 1327 Suau, Raul WI 1686 Tran, Duc MA 1433 Wade, JohnAZ 984 Winkler, Ie

MD 2586 Iu, Huazhang CO 1608 :imerman, Dave)81 1374 Seeland, Dan CA 1599 Smith, David MI 374 Subonj, Dorela TI 1024 Tran, Hung VT 1153 Wade, RobertAl 612 Winkler, Matt

PA 1924 Yabika, Don H, 110 1343 Zimmeman, MichaelPA 2593 Seemiller, Daniel Robert FL 107? Smith, Donald MI 607 Subonj, Simona OR 1682 Tran, Phieu MD 1828 Wah, Jack

OK 1749 Winn, JamesFL 1124 Yakubu, O. Sason AZ 1939 Zochowski, Marek

PA 2355 Seemiller, Randy Lee m 1917 Smith, Douglas NY 1594 Suen, Edmund 1% 1465 Tran, Son KD 1561 Wah, MichaelNJ 913 Winsten, Michael

FL 936 Yakubu, Victor MD 977 Zucker, MiltonIL 1114 Seipp, Mark IN 1417 Smith, Earl K. WA 1380 Suen, Edward CA 2004 Tran, Thanh Khac 143 808 Wahl, Adam

m 1599 Winters, Craig DouglasOR 1249 Yan, Ilan NJ 2003 Zuehlke, John

IL 956 Seipp, Stephen AZ 1719 Smith, Edward B. Ne 969 Suggs, Kyle CO 1801 Tran, Thien KY 1286 Wakefield Sr., Edwinm 1891 Wintrich, Thomas Charles

WI 1430 Yang, Chung PA 1740 Zukerman, MichaelCA 1166 Semenza, Judy TI 1256 Smith, Jerrel CA 1422 Sullivan, John TX 2271 Tran, Tuan Anh Ngoc PA 2041 Walk, Daniel H.

LA 1235 Wise, DannyMA 1627 Yang, Lifan

NJ 1793 Semple, Roger P. OR 440 Smith, John Ne 1689 Sullivan, Mike CO 1694 Travis, Terry PA 1857 Walk, Dr. William G.

NJ 1571 Sental, Craig IN 138 Smith, Kassandra L. NY 1090 Sung, J. T. MI 1006 Treisman, Edward PA 2226 Walk, Michael

III 1660 Sepahbodi, Teymour MA 1970 Smith, Lynwood J. NJ 2233 Sung, Virginia NH 935 Tremblay, Mark IL 1790 Walker, Amie If higher rated If lower rated

MI 1451 Seman, Jonathan MI 749 Smith, Michael VA 1236 hon, Linda WA 1237 Treneer, E. Gene AZ 1384 Walker, Joe A. ..il=Efi player wins: plaver wins:

TX 1396 Serna, Cesar T. GA 1561 Smith, Michael R. CA 1707 Suran, Frank CA 1496 Trillo, Abner ME 1278 Walsh, Andy ..............1.1 Higher Lower Lower HigherNE 1694 Serrano, Francisco 110 674 Smith, Mike CO 1824 Sutz, Alal CA 1977 Trinidad, Ferdinand C01637 Walsh, Timothy W. rated rated rated rated

MD 1388 Seto, Andy MD 1548 Smith, Nelson CA 1201 Swander, Lee E. MD 757 Triplett, Lee MI 993 Walters, James player player p layer player

MI 2137 Sexton, Frank IN 123 Smith, Nicole M. ID 2563 Sweeris, Toddl PA 1432 Troester, Jim SC 1629 Walters, Jeff gains loses gains loses

CA 1745 Shackelford, Chuck 72 1632 Smith, Randy CA 319 Swiryn, Jeff 0 1422 Troppmann, Viktor MA 1618 Wang, Daniel Rating difference

IL 1905 Shafai, Ali TX 1962 Smith, Samuel Mark MI 527 Sylvester, Larry DI 1420 Troyer, Lloyd NJ 1648 Wang, Peng 0 - 12 8 8

13 - 37 7 10NC 1973 Shah, Akash NM 1529 Smith, Victor Herbert OR 995 Szabo, Aaron IN 1990 Troyer, Nate AL 680 Wang, Philip

38 - 62 6 13TX 1207 Shah, Man NY 1665 Smith, William LA 1564 Sze, Peter n 1835 Trudell, Robert 18 1641 Wang, Ping63 - 87 5 16IN 1474 Shaikh, Ajazuddin AR 1564 Smithey, John IL 1682 Szeto, Gene Hal 10 2089 Truelson. Thor J. NY 1415 Wang, Shu

88 - 112 4 20IN 1135 Shaikh, Kashif ME 1229 Smithmer, Scott NJ 1433 Tafjord, Ofind Ne 1?12 Truesdale, Harry MD 911 Hang, Yang113 - 137 3 25

IN 189 Shaikh, Nausheen MA 1216 *th, Andrew TX 2303 Tai, Gewge NY 941 Truett, Kevin 111 1296 Warren, Zachary 2 30138 - 162IN 202 Shaikh, Noreen NN 1592 *th, Cornelius E. CA 2089 Tajima, Masaaki IN 326 Trundle, Sam PA 1016 Warshaw, Chris

163 - 187 2 35MD 128? Shank, Jeff KS 1140 Sacha, Bill MI 1343 Takashib&, Auniko NJ 1566 Tgai, Sheng-Jen NY 1245 Warshow, Edward

188 - 212 1 40ID 622 Shank, Jes NY 1909 Soffer, Walt MI 1849 Talifero Stanley WA 1027 Taang, Irving NY 1069 washington, Basil 1 45213 - 237NY 1343 Shapiro, Neal 110 1749 Sokol, Stanley W. CA 1202 Tamburovic, Philip RJ 1880 Taay, Rung-Iai IN 1384 Washington, Octavia

238 & Up 0 50

008:e pQ:1 , Qc,

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 53

USATT OFFICERS

NATIONAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE President

July 22-23, Glen Park Open, SanFrancisco, CA. Contact: Masaaki

Tajima, 1646 26th Ave., San Fran-cisco, CA 94122, 415-566-0127.

**

July 22, OCTTC Summer Open,Yukon, OK. Contact: Beverly Bell,204 Madison Ave., NE, Piedmont,

OK 73078, 405-373-2169. **

July 22-23, Colorado Springs July

Open, Colorado Springs, CO. Con-tact: Dana Jeffries, Apt. 301,2770East Uintah, Colorado Springs, CO80909,718-632-7664.

July 22, Strike One July Open,Burlington, MA. Contact: LimMing Chui, 347 Bedford St., Lex-ington, MA02173-3351,617-862-1551.

July 22, Columbia July Invitational,West Columbia, SC. Contact:

Francis Kovach, 620 Colonial

Drive, West Columbia, SC 29169.

July 23, Rhode Island State Games,Lincoln, RI. Contact: Charles

Cavicchio, 25 Greenwood Lane,

Lincoln, RI 02865,401-353-6999.

July 29,27th Annual Koala SpringsSeafair Table Tennis Tournament,

Seattle, WA. Contact: TyraParkins, 505 Belmont E. #806,

Seattle,WA98102,206-622-9215.

July 29, Waco SummerRR, Waco,TX. Contact: Wickrama

Ariyasinghe, 307 Ivy Lane, Hewitt,TX 76643, 817-754-5953. *

July 29-30, Missouri Closed ShowMe State Games, Columbia, MO.

Contact: Danny Todd, 3321Jamesdale Rd., Columbia, MO

65202,314-474-6450.

August2-5,JUNIOROLYMPICS/JUNIOR NATIONALS, Des

Moines, IA. Contact: Richard But-

ler, 706-737-5008.

August 5-6, Waltham August RR,

Waltham, MA. Contact: Qiumars

Hedayatian, 15 Miner St.,

Somerville, MA 02145,617-776-2458.

54 Table Tennis Today

August 9-13, WORLD TEAMCUP, Atlanta, GA. Contact:

USATT, One Olympic Plaza,Colorado Springs, CO 80909,719-578-4583.

August 12-13, Maryland Circuit,Columbia, MD. Contact: Yvonne

Kronlage, 14160 Forsythe Road,

Sykesville, MD 21784,410-489-7291.*

August 12-13, Midwest Team

Championships, St. Paul, MN.Contact: Richard Brekke, 1222

University Ave., St. Paul, MN55104.

August 19-20, SUN TV OPEN,Pittsburgh, PA. Contact: DanSeemiller, 307 Meritt Ave., Pitts-

burgh, PA 15227,412-884-5864.****

August 19-20, San Francisco Sum-

mer Open, San Francisco, CA.Contact: Charles Smith, 836

Templeton Ave., Daly City, CA,415-333-0947. **

August 20, Strike One August

Open, Burlington, MA. Contact:Lim Ming Chui, 347 Bedford St.,

Lexington, MA 02173-3351,617-862-1551.

August 26-27, Florida StateClosed, Orlando, FL. Contact:

Olga Soltesz, 1739 Shady RidgeCourt, Orlando, FL 32807,407-830-4009. **

September9-10, FIRST ANNUAL

MISSOURI OPEN, Jefferson City,MO. Contact: Brad Wommack, 1-

800-743-8233, or Tom Maddux,

314-474-5376. ****

September 16-17, NewJersey Sep-

tember Open, Westfield, NJ. Con-tact: New Jersey Table Tennis

Club, 226 North Ave. West,Westfield, NJ 07090, 908-654-

9009. **

September 17, Strike One Sep-

tember Open, Burlington, MA.Contact: Lim Ming Chui, 347

Bedford St., Lexington, MA02173-3351,617-862-1551.

September 23-24, MATTC Open,Middletown, PA. Contact: Donald

Vastine, 20 Woodland Ave.,

Middletown, PA 17057,717-944-

7154. **

September 30 - October 1,2nd An-nual Pro-Am Oded Amitz-Lev Me-

morial Championships, OklahomaCity, OK. Contact: Christian

Lillieroos, 2409 Huntieig Court,Oklahoma City, OK 73120, 405-755-2062. ***

October7-8.MarylandCircuit, Co-lumbia, MD. Contact: Yvonne

Kronlage, 14160 Forsthye Rd.,

Sykesville, MD 21784, 410-489-7291.*

October 14-15, New Jersey Octo-

ber Open, Westfield, NJ. Contact:

New Jersey Table Tennis Club, 226North Ave. West, Westfield, NJ

07090,908-654-9009. **

October 21, Modesto Jr. College

Open, Modesto, CA. Contact: Leo

Egel, 1429 Fordham Ave.,Modesto, CA 95350.

October 22, Strike One October

Open, Burlington, MA. Contact:

Lim Ming Chui, 347 Bedford St.,

Lexington, MA 02173-3351,617-862-1551.

October 28-29, Millcreek Open,Erie, PA. Contact: Samuel Steiner,

3616 Zimmerly Rd., Erie, PA16506. **

November 4-5, Maryland Circuit,Columbia, MD. Contact: Yvonne

Kronlage, 14160 Forsthye Rd.,

Sykesville, MD 21784, 410-489-7291.*

November 11-12, New Jersey No-

vember Open, Westfield, NJ. Con-

tact: New Jersey Table Tennis Club,226 North Ave. West, Westfield,

NJ 07090,908-654-9009. **

November 18-19, Potomac Fall

Open, Potomac, MD. Contact:

DavidCheung, 9305 ParkhillTerr.,Bethesda, MD 20814, 301-530-

4057. ****

Terry Timmins

do Orange Coast College2701 Fairview Road

P.O. 5005Costa Mesa, CA 92628-5005

(714) 432-5833

Executive

Vice President

Jiing Wang

1 1511 East Garvey Ave.El Monte, CA 91732

818-443-8891

SecretaryDonna Sakai

12213 Quick Fox LaneBowie, MD 20720

(301) 805-6175

Treasurer

Ben Nisbet

67 Ridgeway Dr.

trvington, NY 10533(914) 591-4766

Vice PresidentsShonie Aki

1900 Vine Street

Berkeley, CA 94709(510) 527-1309

Y.C. Lee

1305 Via Gabriel

Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274

310-373-7402

Sheri Soderberg Pittman4337 Portland Avenue South

Minneapolis, MN 55407(612) 822-5656

Barry Rodgers399 Princeton Dnve

Pittsburgh, PA 15235(412) 823-7225

Foundation Representative

Jimmy McClure7127 Williams Creek Drive

Indianapoliq. IN 46240

(317) 255-2578

Olympic AthleteReresentative

Sean O'Neill

8469 Holly Leaf DriveMeLean, VA 22 102

(703) 448-7733

National Athlete

RepresentativeTodd Sweeris

NTTC, 15916 Indianola Drive

Rockville. MD 20855

301.670-6882

Group B Vice PresidentJeff Davis

Assistant Director of OperationsUniversity of Colorado

1420 Austin Bluffs ParkwayP.O. Box 7150

Colorado Springs, CO 80933-7150

719-593-3491

Honorary MemberJanet Stephens

Brother International Corp.200 Cottontail Lane

Somerset, Nj 08875

(908) 356»8880

Executive DirectorPaul Montville

USAIT

One Olympic PlazaColorado Springs, CO 80909

(719) 578-4583

July/August 1995

1994 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONJean-Michel Saive is using the Vmax b].ade with Vmad and um·ucrubber sheets. To become the 1994 European Champion and ' ! ,World Number "1" rated player is not possible with just aivkind of racket and rubber! The new Vmax blade with Vmax anciCmax rubbers were specially developed to give Jean-Michel S.:tivethe best power, speed, and control needed for his devastatingloops and lightning quick attacks.

43

f

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Avantgarde, Ihe bes? quill,4 rubber iorbolh gr·C or.C 3.-rrabll ty A:an,gorde 5 [Droduced From Ae, ble spor:ge thot Derm/s ;on·051,0 drive5 ' Attocking p|Iyer5 will obta,nexcellent resulls witq th,& rubberThicknesses 1 5/1 8/2,1 wm

$22.50

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Energy - T+1,6 rubber is full of '€rfergyFle,thle surloce wilb good a gnp w,table ;orC] trilrol player The high density o} thesporiue helps strong attackrhickie.1.5 mm 2.0,2.2 -*

$21.50

Cool This is the ideal rubber Er a playerembarking in competition It is very wellWanced duroble ond at o or,ce which

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Allte€ n o well lested altacking blode which. iu,table For botH good speed and con,rolIl's spec,jity i, thot it helps control attackingplayers The 5 plies are from koto. limbaand abach woods This gives perfect bolon-ce to Ihis blade

BO.50Powerle€ - A pure power blade' Very lostottocking blade lor quick oggressive ployParticularly hord 5 ply wood combination otwalnut, Oregon pine and abachi woods

¢ b Fule€ · The ,pecial patented shape 15moving the "sweet point" outword For e.tremely high speed. 5 pty construction u,ingMovinau, Limbo and Abach, woods

$31.50al@¤**11

July/August 1995 Table Tennis Today 55

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