“My mentality towards winning and losing has changed”

Chen Meng: “Excited” to see other countries improve

While Chinese paddlers continue to dominate both men’s and women’s table tennis rankings, Chen is excited about what she’s seeing from elsewhere, which she believes can help keep her and her teammates on their toes.

“I think there are actually many players from some countries (to watch out for),” she says. “Some young athletes in particular from Japan and the Republic of Korea. And even Europe has some young athletes to pay attention to,” Chen adds.

“In fact, they have advanced their techniques and have a lot of energy while playing, and I’m quite excited watching this. In these young athletes, there are times when I recollect how I was in my younger days when I first began competition.”

Like many Chinese players, not too much is known of what Chen is like away from the court, as she prefers to let her play do the talking.

However, she gamely answers the question put to her: What is Chen Meng like when not competing?

“Away from court, well, I would say I’m quite vivacious,” she offers. “Honestly, during competitions, that’s the main focus. It requires total attention, and when you give your all, you will probably appear quite serious.

“But once I leave the court, I will smile more often. And I hope to smile more on court in future. Of course after winning there will be more smiles!” 

Win or lose, with her new mentality towards not obsessing over results, Chen has one new goal: “Hopefully I can help show the charm of sports more,” she smiles.