Chinese dominate at ITTF Pro Tour

(BEIJING, December 16) -- After four days of competition, the Volkswagen "Good Luck Beijing" 2007 ITTF Pro Tour Grand Finals came to an end the night of December 16, 2007. In the competition venue, the Peking University Gymnasium, the Chinese team took all four golds.

Ma Lin claimed the championship title in the men's singles. Li Xiaoxia won the women's singles, her first championship title in an important international competition. The team of Wang Liqin and Chen Qi took the men's doubles gold and Guo Yue and Li Xiaoxie were the champions in the women's doubles.

Under the double stress of cumulative Olympic scores and competition in their home country, the Chinese team delivered a great performance. Although in a few battles, it was difficult for the Chinese players to defeat their rivals; looking at the results, the Chinese team maintained their lead.

Due to injuries, a main Chinese rival, Oh Sang Eun, did not come to Beijing to compete this time around. Rye Seung-Min, another strong ping pong player, was defeated by Wang Hao in the first round. Table tennis powerhouse Timo Boll was eliminated by Ma Lin in the quarterfinals.

The main rivals against the Chinese women, Tie Yana, Li Jiawei and Wang Yuegu were also defeated in this competition.

Former world champion Wang Tao believed that Boll, Rye and Samsonov did not showcase all of their skill in the competition.

The Peking University Gymnasium is the first venue in Olympic history that is especially designed for table tennis. Besides the "China Ridge" outlook, which has significant symbolic meaning, the building embodies professional table tennis features in terms of speed of wind, lights and background suitable for competitive table tennis.

Many players noted that the venue's air-conditioning system was very good and they did not feel the effect of winds on the ball at all.

However, the players' reactions regarding the lights were not very good. Wang Yuegu of Singapore said she felt dazzled under the lights when she served.

The organizing committee said they would listen to the feedback provided by all sides to generate all-around improvements.