Last night, the Chinese Table Tennis Association announced the "Table Tennis Project 2024 Paris Olympic Games Selection Measures" on its official website. The Olympic selection of national table tennis will also follow the Japanese team, and there will be rules to follow. To put it simply, the Chinese Table Tennis Association sets a time period, from May 8 this year to May 7 next year, the top three in each level of competition can get corresponding points, and the two players with the highest points will play in the Paris Olympic singles.
1. Internalization and openness and transparency
Before this year's World Table Tennis Championships, the Chinese Table Tennis Association announced this Paris selection system, intending to fundamentally solve the problem of Olympic selection methods that have plagued national table tennis for many years. From the actual combat effect of the Olympic Games in the past 20 years, it seems that there is no big problem, but before each Olympics, there is constant controversy about who should not be on it.
The overall strength and level of the Japanese team is far below that of the Chinese team, but their overall upward momentum is very strong, especially the women's team. The Olympic selection system currently being implemented by the Japan Table Tennis Association has given the national table tennis great inspiration. National Table Tennis has newly launched a similar Olympic selection system, and there must be many details that are imperfect at the beginning, but on the whole, it is good for first-line players, and everyone can basically stand on the same starting line to compete.
Second, whether the veteran will continue to escort
Since the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the national table tennis has followed the unspoken rules of escorting meritorious veterans in Olympic strategy. Some battle cases escort are very successful, such as Zhang Yining in 08, Li Xiaoxia and Zhang Jike in 2016. But many times, the most controversial thing to the outside world is the use of veterans. Before the Tokyo Olympics, whether Ding Ning could continue to play singles was the focus for a while, and then lost gold in mixed doubles at the Olympic Games, prompting the National Table Tennis to temporarily use the rules to replace Liu Shiwen with Wang Manyu, which ensured the women's team to defend its title.
The new Olympic selection system of National Table Tennis has no preferential treatment or policy suppression for veterans. Regardless of your age or past record, you can continue Olympic singles if you can produce convincing results and form at all levels of the World Series the year before the Olympics.
Third, the singles champion of the World Table Tennis Championships may not be able to play
The Durban World Table Tennis Championships is about to start, and the practice of "the last single world table tennis championship champion before the Olympic Games on the Olympic singles" announced by the national table tennis in the past does not exist under the new selection system. But that's not to say that the Durban singles title won't have much impact on the Paris lineup, after all, the singles champion has a huge 4,000 points.
The convention mentioned in this paragraph is essentially an explanation of why Ding Ning was on the Olympic singles before the Rio list was determined in 2016, and Liu Shiwen, the world number one in the women's singles at that time, was lost. That is to say, the outside world needs a statement, and the top level of the national table tennis will give such a statement. Of course, setting the Olympic list with a world table tennis championship is itself also lacking in science. At present, this policy is very good, the World Table Tennis Championships championship is very important, but it is not absolutely important, whether it can be on the Olympics to see the overall performance in the next year.
Fourth, does the substitute have a chance to counterattack?
Five men and five men and five men competing in Durban singles were at the forefront of the competition for Paris singles tickets. Some fans pointed out that Ma Long and Chen Meng, who did not win the championship in Houston, are slightly beneficial, and are not good for Houston champions Fan Zhendong and Wang Manyu, and Houston is not a bit of a loss for them. The biggest aspect that everyone pays attention to is whether Liang Jingkun and Lin Gaoyuan of the men's line, as well as Wang Yidi and Chen Xingtong of the women's line, have the opportunity to counterattack and ascend to the top.
To get a head start, the battle for Durban must first be fought. It doesn't have to be the winner, and the runner-up also has 2,000 points. Now the national table tennis has not officially announced the Asian Games list, who will play singles in the Asian Games, how to select, this is the focus of the national table tennis after the Durban World Table Tennis Championships, after all, the points of the Asian Games singles champion are as high as 3,000 points. In addition to the newly announced Olympic selection system, how to control and control the rhythm of the national table tennis senior management may be to a large extent in the qualification of the main players.
The Asian Games points are also the individual World Cup and WTT Grand Slam, the individual World Cup will resume at the end of this year, in the future, everyone does not need to worry about one less single World Series to calculate the Grand Slam. Only two players can be played in a single World Cup, and in fact, by the end of this year, after these two tournaments are played, which players will play in the singles in Paris will basically be decided.
Fifth, the challenge to Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha is great
This new Olympic selection system is a great challenge for the physical fitness of 34-year-old Ma Long and 29-year-old Chen Meng, after all, age and injury problems are the biggest hurdles for veterans. But this new selection system is relatively the biggest test for mixed doubles core Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha.
Remember the last Olympic cycle, before the Olympics, Xu Xin was a model worker in almost every open tournament. Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha are basically the first singles in mixed doubles, and the two also shoulder the heavy responsibility of team doubles. In the coming year, the two will face a third-tier battle in many cases in the top open. That's what Ito has complained about the most lately, the trials are too much and too detailed, and the multiple pressures of fatigue and injuries on the players are unimaginable.
Sixth, the scope of the world ranking is also narrowed
The new selection system, the mixed doubles world ranking on May 7 next year will determine the mixed doubles candidates, and the current probability is Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha. On May 7 next year, the Olympic points set by the national table tennis will be counted as the top two singles, and if there are those with the same points, they will be ranked according to the world ranking at that time.
The Chinese Table Tennis Association clearly stipulates that if there are less than 3 men and women in the mixed doubles and singles quotas after the quota is determined, the senior management of the national table tennis will determine the third person according to the actual situation. If Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha want to pursue the dream of three gold kings at the Paris Olympics, they must withstand a lot of pressure and intensity in the next year.