The South Paris Arena on August 4th will forever be remembered by the master-disciple pair of Wang Hao and Fan Zhendong. After winning the undisputed gold medal in the table tennis men's singles, Fan Zhendong not only established himself as a new generation leader of Chinese men's table tennis and achieved his own Grand Slam, but also became the mentor and apprentice of "Haoyue Fan Xing" who spanned two decades. Ten years of dream come true.
Release and lift "Little Fatty" into "Brother Dong"
In the table tennis competition of the Paris Olympic Games yesterday, 27-year-old Fan Zhendong defeated Swedish player Moregard 4-1 and won this extremely important table tennis medal. Men's singles gold medal.
With this victory, Fan Zhendong became the 11th Grand Slam player in the world table tennis world, and the third super Grand Slam player after Deng Yaping and Ma Long.
Because the favorite to win the gold medal, Wang Chuqin , missed the top 16 early, Fan Zhendong, who was fighting alone, shouldered everything. In the quarter-finals, Fan Zhendong narrowly defeated Japanese players Zhang Benzhi and 4-3. After the game, Zhang Benzhihe once said: "If Fan Zhendong wins the gold medal, it will also be a consolation for my loss."
After the hearty victory in the final, Fan Zhendong once again made a tribute to his favorite ball. Team-Real Madrid's celebration and led the audience to applaud themselves rhythmically. "The feeling now is release. Everyone can see the results, but along the way, I have put in a lot of hard work, so now I am very released." After the game, Fan Zhendong used "release" to explain his mood when he was crowned. At the first moment when
won the championship, Fan Zhendong and head coach Wang Hao hugged each other tightly. Wang Hao, who was also unable to restrain himself, couldn't help but kissed Fan Zhendong on the forehead, and then tried to pick up the "little fat", but the first This time it didn't work out. Xu Xin, who was watching the broadcast, joked: "It's great to finally win, don't make a fool of yourself again." The second time, the man who had always been supporting Fan Zhendong from behind used his unprecedented strength, and finally He picked up the "little fat" and held it high above his head. Live performance of kissing, hugging and lifting high.
From Athens to Paris, for twenty years, Wang Hao lifted not only the new Grand Slam, but also his young self and his greatest masterpiece. This pair of master and apprentice, known as "Bright Moon and Fan Star", enjoyed their own cheers and glory at this moment. This lift also marks Fan Zhendong's growth from "little fat" to "Dong Ge" in national table tennis.
Olympic "Sanya" finally came to a successful conclusion
Yesterday's final was the first time in 24 years that a China-Switzerland battle was staged in the Olympic table tennis finals. It is also the first time since Athens in 2004 that a non-national table tennis "civil war" has occurred in the Olympic table tennis men's singles final.
Time goes back to Athens 20 years ago. Marin , who was ranked number one in the world at the time, lost to Swedish veteran Waldner and was blocked from the quarterfinals. The 21-year-old Wang Hao competed in the Olympics for the first time and defeated Wang Liqin in the semi-finals to reach the final. In the final, they met South Korean dark horse Ryu Seung-min, who had never lost before, but unexpectedly lost 2-4 and lost the gold medal.
Four years later in Beijing, 25-year-old Wang Hao made a comeback. He is the undisputed favorite. This time, Wang Hao met Ma Lin, who was also determined to win, in the finals and failed again. When recalling that game, Wang Hao once said: "In 2008, I felt that my age, experience and ambition were all the time to win the championship. All I thought about was that I was here to win the championship." After that, Wang Hao had insomnia all night. As soon as I close my eyes, all I can think of is the scene of that final.
No one else can replace such a blow, let alone feel it. What is admirable is that as a soldier, Wang Hao can be defeated, but he will not be defeated. With two silver medals in Athens and Beijing, 29-year-old Wang Hao reached the Olympic singles final for the third time in London. This time, he is only one Olympic men's singles championship away from a Grand Slam.
However, he was facing Zhang Jike, who was in the ascendant and was known as the "Tibetan Mastiff".In the end, Wang Hao shot all the bullets of the veteran and watched Zhang Jike ascend to the highest podium of the Olympic Games, and achieved Zhang Jike's fastest Grand Slam record with a rocket speed of 445 days.
Dreams broke in London. As the eldest brother of the team, Wang Hao continued to lead Zhang Jike and Ma Long to sing all the way and locked the men's team championship. However, from the moment the men's singles final ended, the era of "two kings and one horse" also ended. At the end of the story, only Wang Hao's lonely back was left.
html During his national career in 2016, Wang Hao created the era of pen-hold and horizontal play, won 18 world championships, never failed in team competitions, and won two Olympic team championships... But everyone lamented his Olympic "Sanya". Call him "the uncrowned king of Olympic singles."
In the winter of 2014, Wang Hao announced his retirement and became the coach of the Bayi Team. At this time, the 17-year-old Fan Zhendong was already the runner-up in singles at the National Games and the main player of the Bayi Team. The fate of the two had a wonderful intersection. Also at the Tokyo Team World Table Tennis Championships in the same year, Fan Zhendong became the youngest world champion in the history of Chinese men's table tennis at the age of 17 years and 103 days.
In 2017, Wang Hao became the coach of the national team. Fan Zhendong, nicknamed "Little Fatty", lived up to expectations. He ranked first in the ITTF world rankings in 2018 and became a member of the national table tennis team.
In an interview, Wang Hao once said, "I am a soldier, and soldiers like to fight." From soldiers to generals, if he trains a Grand Slam player, he will be more excited and happy than if he wins it himself. . "Because I have not completed it, but I have cultivated a Grand Slam through my own efforts, I believe I will be even more excited."
It is worth mentioning that Fan Zhendong is the world's leading player after Waldner, Liu Guoliang, Kong Linghui, Zhang Jike and Ma Long. The sixth men's Grand Slam player in table tennis. From losing the gold medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004 to the master and apprentice working together to defend the glory in 2024, Fan Zhendong's gold medal is a completion that spans 20 years and is the perseverance and inheritance of generations of national table tennis players.
Wang Hao, Wang Liqin, and Ma Lin from the "Two Kings and One Horse" era all appeared at the finals of the South Paris Arena yesterday with different identities. Wang Hao and Ma Lin will continue to lead the national table tennis team in the team competition as the head coaches of the men's and women's teams, continuing the glory of the national table tennis team in Paris.
