Wang Liqin (; born June 18, 1978, Shanghai) is a retired
Mainland Chinese
Mainland Chinese or Mainlanders are Chinese people who live in or have recently emigrated from mainland China, defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) except for Hong Kong ( SAR of the PRC), Macau (SAR of the PRC), ...
table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
player. As of January 2014, he is ranked 12th in the
International Table Tennis Federation
The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) is the governing body for all national table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the p ...
(ITTF). He began playing at the age of 6 and was picked for the Chinese men's national squad in 1993 when he was only 15 years old. He holds three majors (3 World Championships). He has been ranked #1 by ITTF for 25 consecutive months, from September 2000 to September 2002, which is the second-longest period for being consecutive #1 of the world as of January 2011. At the end of 2013, Wang Liqin retired from the national team.
Table Tennis Master
Style/Equipment
Wang changes his playing equipment often. He has perhaps used more than 10 different model of rackets, some of them for a longer period of time, e.g. The Butterfly Timo Boll Spirit, Stiga Clipper CR, Offensive CR, Rosewood V, DHS Hurricane King II, III, and some Nittaku's models. His main forehand rubber is DHS Hurricane II, III, TG III. It is said that he had used Nittaku Hammond, the Tenergy series, and many other rubbers for his backhand.
Wang Liqin uses the shakehand
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
grip. He plays a forehand dominated style with the occasional backhand loop to open a topspin rally. His above average height allows him additional leverage for acceleration and momentum, creating more powerful shots. Many often describe him as possessing one of the most unusual and powerful forehand shots.
Awards
Wang won the gold medal
A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture.
Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...
in doubles at the 2000 Summer Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...
in Sydney, Australia, and the bronze medal
A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...
in singles at the 2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
held in Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, Greece, as well as at the 2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...
held in Beijing, China. At the 2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...
Wang won gold medal in team competition with Ma Lin and Wang Hao. For most of 2004–6, he ranked as the world's best table tennis player.
Wang Liqin won his first World Championship in Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
, Japan in 2001. In 2003, Wang made it to the quarter-finals of the World Table Tennis Championships. He has since won two more World Championships – 48th WTTC 2005 in Shanghai, China and 49th WTTC 2007 in Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...
, Croatia
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, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
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, capit ...
. Wang Liqin is ranked #12 in the world for Men's Singles, based on the ITTF World Ranking page as of January 2014(www.ittf.com).
Pro Tour winner (×21):
Lebanon Open (1998), Swedish Open (1999), USA Open, China Open, Japan Open, Denmark Open (2000), China Open, England Open, Sweden Open (2001), China Open (2002). Germany Open, Swedish Open (2003), China Open, Korean Open, Singapore Open (2004), Qatar Open, China Open (Shenzen), China Open (Harbin) (2005), Qatar Open, Japan Open (2006), Qatar Open (2010)
Runner-up (×10):
Qatar Open, Japan Open (1997), France Open (1999), China Open (Kunshan), China Open (Guangzhou) (2006), Qatar (2007), China Open (2007), China Open (2008), China Open (2009), China Open (2012)
Men's doubles
Pro Tour winner (23):
France Open (1996), Yugoslavian Open (1997), Japan Open (1997), Qatar Open (1998), China Open (1999), China Open (2000). Sweden Open, China Open (2001), Denmark Open, Qatar Open (2002), Japan Open (2004), China Open (2005), Qatar Open, China Open (Kunshan), China Open (Shenzen) (2006), Hungarian Open, Japan Open, German Open (2007), Korea Open (2008), England Open (2009), Sweden Open, Qatar Open (2011), China Open (2012)
Runner-up (23)
Sweden Open, Japan Open, Austrian Open, Brazil Open (1997), Malaysia Open, China Open, Australia Open (1998), USA Open, Denmark Open, Brazil Open (2000), China Open (2002), Japan Open (2003), Japan Open, Singapore Open (2006), China Open (2007), Qatar Open (2009), China Open, Kuwait Open, Qatar Open (2010), UAE Open (2011)
He is included in ITTF hall of fame. Currently he is serving as a coach of his Shanghai team at Chinese super league.
See also
* Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
* List of table tennis players
This list of table tennis players is alphabetically ordered by surname. The main source of the information included in this page is the official International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) database. More detailed information about their careers is ...
* World Table Tennis Championships
The World Table Tennis Championships are table tennis competitions sanctioned by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF). The World Championships have been held since 1926, biennially since 1957. Five individual events, which include men ...
* Sport in China
Sport in China has been long associated with the martial arts. Today, China (including mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau) consists of a variety of competitive sports. Traditional Chinese culture regards physical fitness as an important chara ...
References
External links
Career profile of Wang Liqin
Table Tennis Master
Biography
at CCTV.com
Wang Liqin at Table Tennis Media
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Liqin
1978 births
Living people
Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Olympic bronze medalists for China
Olympic gold medalists for China
Olympic medalists in table tennis
Olympic table tennis players of China
Shanghai Jiao Tong University alumni
Table tennis players at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Asian Games medalists in table tennis
Table tennis players at the 1998 Asian Games
Table tennis players at the 2002 Asian Games
Table tennis players at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Table tennis players at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Table tennis players from Shanghai
Chinese male table tennis players
Chinese table tennis coaches
Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Asian Games gold medalists for China
Medalists at the 1998 Asian Games
Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games
Universiade medalists in table tennis
Asian Games bronze medalists for China
World Table Tennis Championships medalists
Universiade gold medalists for China