Tokyo Olympics: Ma Long’s golds hailed as he hints at Paris 2024
- China star becomes first man to defend singles before team victory makes him most successful paddler in Olympic history
- ‘There are no words to describe him,’ says Chinese table tennis chief – ‘his spirit is different’
China’s Ma Long added to his legendary status by becoming the most successful Olympic table tennis player in history, with his two golds in Tokyo being hailed as “perfection”.
“There are no words to describe Ma Long,” Chinese Table Tennis Association president Liu Guoliang, a two-time Olympic champion himself, said after the 32-year-old’s feats in the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium took him to five Games golds.
“If people chase perfection, this is it. His spirit is different. He doesn’t just achieve what he sets out to do, he also does what everyone expects of him and dreams of. He has never disappointed anyone.”
Ma retained his singles gold by beating teammate Fan Zhendong, becoming the first player to achieve the feat of defending the men’s singles.
He then made sure that the paddling powerhouse picked up four of the five gold medals on offer at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium with victory in the men’s team event on Friday.
The 32-year-old was key to China’s 3-0 win over second seeds Germany, first combining with Xu Xin to beat Timo Boll and Patrick Franziska in the opening doubles rubber and then sealing the win by beating Boll in singles.