Ding Ning of China beat Li Xiaoxia of China to win the gold medal in the women’s singles tournament. Photo“There was too much competition,” said Ni, who left the national team in 1986 to attend college before joining a professional club in Germany in 1989. I just went for it.”Marcos Madrid, a player from Mexico, sighed and smiled when asked how players felt about the spread of Chinese players worldwide. Chinese players often double as coaches and valuable sparring partners for players in their adopted countries. At the moment, players who switch allegiances after turning 21 are not eligible to play in events like the world championships, the World Cup and the World Team Cup.

Source: New York Times August 17, 2016 09:00 UTC