Team Singapore Women's Table Tennis Coach Quits

Team Singapore women’s table tennis coach Liu Guodong was reported to have rejected a new two-year contract by the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA).

His last day with the Olympic silver-medal winning women’s team will be on 31 December 2008.

With this turn of event, will his protégé and star player like Feng Tianwei leave as a result? Presently, all the women table tennis players were quoted to have said they would stay.

Presumably, they will be anxious to know who will take over the role as their new table tennis coach, before make any hasty decisions.

According to a report in Today newspaper, STTA chief executive officer Chew Soo Sheng allayed fears that Wang Yuegu, Feng Tianwei and Li will no longer play as a unit for Singapore.

Chew, who assumed the post on October 8, said: “They have all indicated that they will continue representing Singapore and, to the best of my knowledge, there has been no negative reaction to the news (of Liu rejecting a new deal).

“I spoke to Tianwei (on Monday), informing her of Liu’s decision to turn down the new deal. She said she understood and respected his decision.

Coach Liu Guodong was involved in an unpleasant turn of event at the Beijing Olympic Games when a mix-up left Singapore’s top male table tennis player, Gao Ning, without a courtside coach and his resultant collapse in 4 straight games.

The STTA are said to have drawn up a shortlist of six candidates to take over as the national women’s team coach and also looking for a men’s team coach. Local players like of Pang Xuejie and Zena Sim (both from the Singapore Sports School) may also be promoted to beef up the women’s table tennis team.

Let’s hope the core players stay on, supplemented with new talents and coaches who can bring Singapore’s table tennis to greater heights of success.

Read more in Singapore Youth Olympic Games:
1. Commonwealth Youth Games (CYG Pune 2008)
2. World's First Youth Olympic Games 2010