Having participated in 4 Olympic Games, her parents advised her to find a stable job
In the women's singles 1/16 final of the Paris Olympics table tennis tournament, Chinese American player Zhang An faced Brazilian player Takahashi Bruner.
The game was very intense, and Zhang An occasionally looked at American basketball player Anthony Edwards sitting in the audience, always cheering for her when she hit a good ball.
The two had only one acquaintance, and their connection stemmed from a playful argument.
On the boat at the opening ceremony, Zhang An and his teammates encountered the American basketball team by chance. When Stephen Curry learned about the projects being undertaken by the girls across from him, his eyes lit up and he immediately brought in his teammate Edwards.
When it comes to table tennis, the two sides quickly debated whether Edwards could score if he played a game of table tennis with an American female table tennis player? The girls' answer was straightforward - no.
Edwards dismissed this and said, 'I don't believe it, I can at least get one point!'
Curry didn't show any respect and said, "Don't even think about it
The camera faithfully recorded their conversation, and over 15 million people have seen this video online. Zhang An doesn't like to brag, but as an amateur enthusiast like Zero Seal Edwards, it's no big deal. Over the past decade, she has grown tired of such provocations.
Of course, "Zhang An said." If they really want to challenge, I'm willing to give them a little embarrassment. "Both sides bet that there will be a chance to spar. Although there was no agreed time, Edwards promised to take some time to watch their game. Song Jiayu thought these basketball stars were just talking, but he didn't expect them to actually come.
Under Edwards' witness, Zhang An made it to the round of 16 and achieved his personal best Olympic result. After winning the most important competition in life, Zhang An knelt on the ground and wept with joy.
In the past decade, Zhang An has hardly won any important championship titles, but she has been striving to break through the limits of American women's table tennis, and her journey in table tennis began in a laundry room.
Zhang An's father stayed at Stanford University as a professor after obtaining his doctoral degree, and his mother once played table tennis for the Shaanxi provincial team. When they were waiting to collect their clothes, they used to play a few games on the laundry table. In Zhang An's opinion, the little white ball that was played had a special magic. The drum and ping pong ball kept spinning, and Zhang An's life gears also began to rotate.
I really like table tennis, "Zhang An said." Whether it's a small change in rotation, force position, or angle, it can change the game. There are too many things to consider
For the sake of table tennis, Zhang An decisively gave up other hobbies such as violin, gymnastics, and dance. She began to look forward to the day of doing laundry, and later her parents even installed a table tennis table at home. In that cramped apartment, the ball table was replaced by a tablecloth and became a dining table. Every time they wanted to play, Zhang An's family had to move all the furniture until they moved in 2015 and finally had a real dining table.
At the age of 9, Zhang An's mother registered him for a local club, which quickly caught the attention of coaches. As the earliest coach to guide Zhang An, Dennis Davis keenly noticed the child's uniqueness, as she played fiercely like a wild beast.
Most children lack motivation and must be instilled with the urgency of competition by their coaches, "Davis said," but Zhang An doesn't need it at all. "Zhang An was determined to defeat her parents and the battle against them on the laundry table was her childhood Olympics. At the age of 10, Zhang An achieved her first goal in life - to defeat her older sister who was 10 years older than her.
At the age of 11, Zhang An was selected into the American Youth Team. Davis realized that she might be the future of American female table tennis. "You rarely see that Americans can do this, and she is only 11 years old." When Zhang An was selected into the national team for the first time, she was still a little overwhelmed, but as the youngest child in the team, she planted the seeds of the Olympic Games in her heart. At the age of 12, Zhang An made a name for herself at the World Youth Championships and embarked on an amazing career advancement. That year, she was selected for the senior team and became the youngest player in the history of the US women's team.
The first time she set foot on her mother's homeland, Zhang An, who was used to being a child prodigy, felt a huge gap - Chinese athletes started their training at the age of four or five, training for 9 hours a day, which was almost four times that of Zhang An - she could only sigh, "The foundation of the United States is so much worse
In 2010, Zhang An began to dominate the youth competition in the United States. In 2012, she defeated Xing Yanhua and won her first adult group championship in the United States. This championship gave her a faint hope of realizing her dream of the Olympics.
One month before the London Olympics selection, Zhang An suffered a right shoulder strain, and the doctor told her to rest for at least a few months. I can't rest, I have to keep playing, "Zhang An said." In the end, I still participated in the selection competition, wrapped my arm up, and finished the game with pain
At the London Olympics, as the third youngest member of the US delegation, the naive Zhang An went through two round trips. In the singles match, she lost 0-4 to Croatian player Cornelia Morna in the first round, and in the team match, she lost three straight sets to Japan's Sayaka Hirano.
I was only 16 years old at the time, and everything was so overwhelming, "Zhang An recalled." It was really unbelievable. I remember walking at the opening ceremony and seeing a sea of people and countless flashing lights. It was such a magical feeling
On her first Olympic trip, Zhang An did not win a single game, but she still gained a lot this year. At the World Youth Championships held at the end of the year, Zhang An entered the top eight in both individual and team competitions, and ranked in the top 100 for the first time in the world. Two years later at the Youth Olympic Games, Zhang An defeated Kato Miyu in the third and fourth place finals, marking the first time the United States won a table tennis medal at the Youth Olympic Games.
In 2014, Zhang An, who graduated from high school, faced the first crossroads of his life. Although she did not get into Stanford University as she hoped and became an alumnus of her father, she still received a letter of acceptance from the University of California, Berkeley. Just as Zhang An was looking forward to her next trip to the Olympics, her parents wanted her to stop. In their eyes, their daughter had already participated in the Olympics and entered university. It was time for her to put down table tennis and choose other more stable careers.
The head coach of the US national team, Gao Jun, is very helpless. This viewpoint has already ended the sports careers of many Asian athletes. Many Asian parents are like this, so you can see so many talented athletes, regardless of gender, saying goodbye after going to college
This is a generation gap that cannot be eliminated even by changing nationality. Young people want to pursue their dreams, while pragmatic parents hope they can work nine to five and have stability above everything else. What annoyed Zhang An even more was that his parents' advice was not entirely unreasonable.
Unlike business darlings like Phelps and Biles, American table tennis players have low incomes and no impressive records. They can only travel back and forth between various tours in economy class, competing for meager bonuses and sponsorships. Zhang An's income is actually no different from that of an ordinary fast food restaurant manager. One consecutive defeat or ligament rupture could ruin everything, "Zhang An said." There are many things that could be wiped out in an instant
Zhang Anzhun followed her parents' wishes and pressed the pause button on her ping pong career, but her compromise only lasted for a year.
During this period, Zhang An realized one thing: table tennis made her happy and brought passion to life. She didn't want to look back decades later and regret not seizing the opportunity. Zhang An confronted his parents and prepared to take a one-year leave of absence to prepare for Rio de Janeiro. Parents cannot resist Zhang An and can only support their daughter's decision and provide her with accommodation, meals, and plane tickets.
In the autumn of 2015, Zhang An went to Austria to train hard for three months, six days a week, 5-7 hours a day. He participated in the European League and only lost one game. This persistence enabled Zhang An to make a breakthrough in Rio and advance to the third round.
After graduating from university, Zhang An chose to become a professional player and went to Germany to train and compete. Without academic constraints, she trained for more than four hours every day, and her level began to improve rapidly. In the Pan American Championships in September 2019, Zhang An won four championships in women's team, women's singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles.
One month later in the World Cup, Zhang An, who participated with a wild card, became the "strongest dark horse" and successively eliminated Miyu Hirano and Polkanova. After entering the semifinals, Zhang An was so excited that he spoke incoherently: "When the last point landed, all I could think about was disbelief. I don't know what to say now, I'm really too excited
Although Zhang An lost to Liu Shiwen in the semi-finals and failed to defeat Feng Tianwei in the third and fourth place finals, the fourth place finish has already created the best result for American women's singles in the World Series Three. Thanks to his outstanding performance this year, Zhang Anrong was awarded the "Breakthrough Star of the Year" by the International Table Tennis Federation.
Zhang An's breakthrough is still ongoing. In 2021, she partnered with Lin Gaoyuan to win the bronze medal in mixed doubles at the World Table Tennis Championships. This is the first time an American player has stepped onto the podium at the World Table Tennis Championships since 1959. Combined with the background of the 50th anniversary of China US table tennis diplomacy, this medal is extremely precious.
This collaboration was initiated at the last minute, and according to the original plan, Lin Gaoyuan's mixed doubles partner was Wang Manyu. However, in order to make the 50th anniversary commemoration of table tennis diplomacy more meaningful, Liu Guoliang took the initiative to contact the United States Table Tennis Association, and the two sides hit it off immediately. At that time, there were only 10 minutes left before the deadline for submitting the application form.
Zhang An is undoubtedly a key figure in facilitating this cooperation, as she has expressed her willingness to team up with Chinese athletes multiple times during her training in China. In 2019, the Chinese table tennis team went to the United States for training. After less than a week of communication, Zhang An left a deep impression on Liu Shiwen: "She has a particularly outgoing personality, plays very seriously, and is very competitive
At the Tokyo Olympics, Zhang An advanced to the third round and achieved the same result as the previous one, feeling unprecedented pressure. I have reached the peak of my career and achieved the highest ranking, "Zhang An said." I started to evaluate myself based on my grades, and then table tennis wasn't fun anymore. I felt exhausted
This state continued into the Paris cycle, and throughout 2023, Zhang An experienced roller coaster like ups and downs. At the beginning of the year, her world ranking rose to a career high of 23rd place, but by November it had dropped to 46th place, even surpassed by her teammate Wang Aimi. In Zhang An's impression, this is the first time she has lost the top spot in the United States. I feel like everything has slipped away from me, "Zhang An said." Finding the original intention of the competition in this Olympic cycle is a long journey for me
Zhang An's internal strife did not last long. The little girl who was addicted to table tennis in the laundry room returned and became the first American female table tennis player to qualify for the Olympics. She also became the first American table tennis player to participate in the Olympics four times.
In this Olympic Games, Zhang An still hasn't achieved his goal of winning Olympic medals, but reaching the round of 16 has already created his personal best record. The parents witnessed Zhang An's glorious moment on site, but it doesn't mean they have changed their minds. The Olympics are not over yet, and the elderly couple are urging their daughter to switch to a stable job.
What the media is more interested in is whether America's top sister can hold on until the Los Angeles Olympics? Zhang An didn't think too far ahead, the only thing she was certain of was that her persistence was not to meet others' definition of success.
When I was a child, I discovered the true meaning of table tennis, "Zhang An said." For me, rediscovering the joy of playing is the most special journey, like falling in love for the second time
