Table Tennis In Danger In The 2020 Olympics (Photos)

The 2012 London Olympics had its conclusion last week with the Chinese Team clinching their fourth gold in table tennis. This just means that the Chinese Team has once again reigned supreme in the world of table tennis. 

All the players and teams that were defeated by the Chinese Team in the Olympic Games acknowledged the strength of their opponent. However, as for the Japanese Team, their view on the situation aroused some controversy, bringing back the issue on the possibility that table tennis might be cancelled in the Olympic Games.  

The Japanese Women Team was considered to be a dark horse in the recently concluded Olympic Games in London. Although they were seeded second, their victory over the Singaporean Team in the semifinals came as a surprise. Indeed, their performance has caught the attention of the Chinese Team, making them fully prepared for battle in the finals. 

In the final battle, the strength of the Japanese Team did not work against the Chinese Team. Li Xiaoxia, Ding Ning and Guo Yue were just too strong to be shaken. Eventually, the Japanese Kasumi Ishikawa, Ai Fukuhara, and Sayaka Hirano had to accept that clinching the gold against China is an uphill climb. It was 3-0 for China and Japan settled for silver. 

"The Olympic silver medal is neither a good or bad result. The silver medal is an incentive for me as it will inspire me further for the Rio Olympics. On the other side, there is considerable gap between us and the Chinese Team technically. In the future, we want to win the gold medal but it seems a bit impossible." Kasumi Ishikawa said.

Nowadays, we can see Chinese players playing for other countries like Spain, Netherlands, Germany, South Korea and of course Singapore. Among these countries, the Singaporean Team has the capacity of threatening the Chinese Team. However, the Japanese media believes that in essence, although they are from two different countries, it is still the Chinese players who are in the arena. It is still an all Chinese show and that is not conducive to the popularity of the sport. 

In addition, the Japanese media has also revealed that an ITTF official has said that the International Olympic Committee is already concerned for the Chinese domination over table tennis. "It is not just the Olympic Games, even in world championships, table tennis has become a game of the Chinese people themselves. This has aroused the concern of the International Olympic Committee. They may discuss the cancellation of table tennis for the 2020 Olympics." 

Not only in Japan, the previously strong countries like Sweden and Denmark have also given up resistance. Because Chinese players have been sweeping across the world of table tennis, western countries have already given up in investing a lot of money on their local players. This will only increase the possibilities for table tennis to disappear in the Olympic Games. 

"If table tennis will no longer be an official Olympic sport, then we will also lose our opportunities to win medals. It could be that our precious silver medal will be our last as well." Japanese media concluded. 

The cancellation of table tennis in the Olympic Games has been an undying issue. Every time a competition ends with a Chinese sweep, this issue is being brought up. This is not something new to our ears. The points raised by the Japanese media are very much grounded. However, through time, table tennis has been proven to be a well-loved sport and just with this basis, table tennis is here to stay in the Olympic Games.  

Photo source: sports.sohu.com