Chunli Represents NZ at World Championships – Women’s Team World Ranking Skyrockets

Chinese born Li Chunli, who has lived in New Zealand since 1986, was this year eligible and available to represent New Zealand at the World Championships for the first time. Her influence on the team’s performance was immediate.

The Championships were hosted by Japan in April/May and took place at the Nippon Convention Centre in Chiba. The stadium accommodates 200 tables.

New Zealand was represented by a team of only two women (Chunli and Maxine Goldie) and four men (Peter Jackson, Hagen Bower, Malcolm Darroch and Andrew Hubbard). The women won their group with decisive wins over Indonesia, Peru, Italy and Sri Lanka. They then faced a strong Indian team to play for a top 16 finish and were untroubled to win 3-1. Even mixing it with the world’s top teams, Chunli (ranked 50 in the world) was winning matches. The team’s only decisive loss was to Hong Kong (3-0). Losses against England, Finland and Denmark were all 2-3. The team finished in 16th place, up from 43rd in 1989.

The men finished third in their group after beating Macao and Kenya. Playing off against other third place-getters, they beat Malaysia and lost to Switzerland and Luxembourg. Their final placing was 42nd.

Interest immediately turned to Chunli in the individual events. Her world ranking put her straight into the main draw of the women’s singles but she just failed to progress beyond the first round, losing to HJ Park (Korea) 16-21, 21-16, 21-13, 17-21, 13-21. She and Maxine Goldie qualified for the main doubles draw by beating pairs from Sri Lanka and Brazil but they then lost to a German pair 16-21, 19-21. Partnered by NZ’s top male player (Peter Jackson), Chunli again had direct entry into the main draw in the mixed doubles where they worried No 4 seeds (Chen and Gao of China) before losing 16-21, 23-25.

Hagen Bower and Maxine Goldie had one win in the mixed doubles qualifying tournament but all four NZ men failed to win a match in either the singles or doubles. Peter Jackson had direct entry to the main draw and lost to A Mazunov (USSR) 14-21, 21-18, 16-21, 13-21.

Peter Hirst managed the NZ team.

Sweden won the men’s team title and Korea the women’s. Jorgen Persson (Sweden) was the men’s world champion and Deng Yaping (China) the women’s.

---

Funding For Coaching Boosted by $20,000

An important step was taken this year towards increasing table tennis’s player base by training teachers, trainee teachers and club coaches in the basics of Kiwi Table Tennis. This version of the sport specially adapted for children was poised for a major push in 1992 and 1993. A special grant of $20,000 from the Hillary Commission was received enabling NZTTA to appoint regional coaches and launch a major coach education programme. 560 teacher trainees at Waikato Teachers College, 140 at Palmerston North and smaller numbers in other centres underwent a basic course in Kiwi Table Tennis, as well as 160 club coaches.

After such an intense programme the need for individual associations to provide follow-up support in schools was an issue which had to be addressed.

---

Three Qualify For 1992 Barcelona Olympics; Could Have Been Four

Following a decision by Oceania TT Federation, the format for the singles section of the Olympic Qualifying Tournament was for the top three men and women from Australia and the top three from New Zealand to play three successive round robins (5 matches each) on successive days. The top two of each gender would win the two Olympic singles places reserved for Oceania. There was also a place available for one doubles pair of each gender, with the allocation of this place dependent on the singles results. In both singles tournaments a New Zealander finished first and an Australian second. This qualified those four players for the singles places but, because the individuals of each pair were from different countries, a doubles tournament was required to determine the qualifying doubles pairs. Peter Jackson (the men’s singles winner) was paired with Hagen Bower and Li Chunli (the women’s winner) with Maxine Goldie. Both pairs had to play a nominated Australian pair three times. Peter and Hagen won the first match, narrowly lost the second and, amid enthusiastic support from the local Palmerston North crowd, won the deciding third match 22-20, 21-15. This gave New Zealand three Olympic qualifiers - Peter, Hagen and Chunli. The NZ Olympic Selectors confirmed their selection later in the year.

There was still a chance for a fourth qualifier. In the women’s doubles the excitement was equally intense. Maxine Goldie was in top form and a worthy partner for her much higher ranked partner. But in the event it was Chunli that buckled under pressure. In the deciding third match a huge lead was squandered and the Australian pair scraped home 15-21, 21-18, 23-21. Had Chunli played true to form Maxine Goldie would have been a fourth table tennis player in the New Zealand Olympic team.

The qualifying tournament, held in August, was a huge event for host city Palmerston North. Chunli was living there at the time and former Manawatu star Malcolm Darroch was also participating as the third NZ male player. The third woman was Kadia Keller-Rice.

Peter Hirst and David Jackson were the team captains. The Manawatu Association secured a string of sponsors, locals Michael McAvinue and Jim Jarmin were among the umpires, and there was excellent media coverage in both press and radio.

---

Top World Honour For New Zealand’s Ken Wilkinson

After retiring as Oceania TT Federation’s President, Ken Wilkinson was made a Personal Honorary Member of the International Table Tennis Federation – the equivalent of Life Membership. No New Zealander before or since has ever achieved this distinction.

The opportunity for New Zealand players to compete in the Olympics can be traced directly back to Ken Wilkinson’s initiative. In 1978, in collaboration with Australian Keith Bowler, he set up the Oceania TT Federation and was elected its founding President. The existence of Oceania as a continental federation led to the ITTF reserving specific singles and doubles places for players from this region when Table Tennis was introduced to the Olympics in 1988. Without it we would be competing against Asian players for Olympic places.

---

Full Strength New Zealand Team Dominates International Field at Noumea Tournament

Even a team from European power-house France was no match for New Zealand’s top team when they faced each other at the International Tournament of Noumea in July. Peaking for the Olympic Qualifying Tournament due to take place three weeks later, Li Chunli, Peter Jackson and Hagen Bower were unstoppable against teams from France and New Caledonia and two from Australia. The three New Zealanders played as a single team and contests comprised two men’s singles, one women’s singles, one men’s doubles and one mixed doubles.

In the individual events the NZ players continued to dominate. Peter and Chunli won their respective singles gold medals and also took gold in the mixed doubles playing together. With a French partner (L Saunot), Chunli won the women’s doubles. Peter and Hagen were bronze medalists in the men’s doubles.

Martin Duffy was team manager.

---

World Cup

After winning the Oceania Men’s Singles in 1990 without even dropping a game, Peter Jackson was the region’s undisputed top player and automatic choice as Oceania representative at the Men’s World Cup, held in Kuala Lumpur in September.

Despite the event being held in Asia, all four semi-finalists were from Europe: Jean-Philippe Gatien (France), Jean-Michel Saive (Belgium), Jorgen Persson (Sweden) and Jan-Ove Waldner (Sweden). Persson beat Gatien in the final.

Only group winners proceeded to the quarter-finals – the rest were eliminated. Not surprisingly, Peter failed to win his group. His opponents included eventual winner (and reigning world champion) Persson, and former world champion Kim Taek Soo of Korea.

---

New Zealand Invited To Two Age-group Championships In Australia

For the third time in four years New Zealand was privileged to attend Australia’s two age-group tournaments: the Junior Championships for Under 15 and Under 17, and Youth Championships for Under 19 and Under 21. Both tournaments comprised team and individual events.

Queensland and Victoria were the stumbling blocks for all our junior teams. All four lost to both of them but to no other team. Our final placings varied due to other teams’ results – the Under 15 boys finished 2nd, both girls teams finished 3rd and the Under 17 boys 4th. New Zealand players or pairs reached the quarter or semi-finals in every individual event.

The championships were held in Hobart, Tasmania in early June. The NZ teams were: (Under 17 boys) Daniel Hempstead, Jeremy Hickling, Shane Laugesen, Jared Smith; (Under 17 girls) Barbara Dickey, Samantha Palmer, Tracey Phillips, Nikki Schollum; (Under 15 boys) Russell Dickey, Stuart Jones, Conrad Lee, Craig McLauchlan; (Under 15 girls) Vicki Garrett, Jenny Hartley, Kirsty-Anne Giles, Rachael Hooper. The officials were Hilary Finch, David Jackson, Barry Butler and Andrew Marr.

New Zealand was equally successful in the Youth Championships – with at least one player or pair reaching the quarter or semi-finals in every event in the individuals. The star team was the Under 21 Men who, despite a narrow 4-5 loss to Victoria, finished first on a count-back. Both Under 19 teams finished second and the Under 21 women 3rd.

These Championships were in Geelong, Victoria in August. The teams were: (Under 21 men) Hagen Bower, Aaron Winborn, David Allardyce, Brendon Pearson; (Under 21 women) Lisa Astle, Tracey Epps, Kirsten Pitcher, Michelle White; (Under 19 boys) Paul Bowman, Wayne Gear, Chris Hickling, Shane Laugesen; (Under 19 girls) Debbie Garrett, Melanie Low, Louise McFarlane, Lisa Palmer. The officials were Murray Finch, Peter Jackson, Zhu Hui and Barry Butler.

Barry Butler, the only official at both events, noted in a report that Table Tennis in Victoria had improved significantly since the opening of the Academy of Sport in that state. Table Tennis is one of many sports catered for at the Academy, which places great emphasis on training, both physical and mental. He stressed the need for New Zealand to have a top stratum of players training to the same level as in Victoria, which would influence other young players to train with the same intensity.

---

Plans For Elite League Short-lived

With an increasing number of New Zealand players now playing in Europe from October to May each year and often not returning home for the northern off-season, a study was carried out on the feasibility of a setting up a five-week national league in New Zealand in the middle of the year and bringing back the European-based players to compete in it. This would give New Zealanders a chance to see our best players in action and should attract more media interest than any of our present major tournaments.

The plan was to set up an eight-team elite league and to launch it in June, 1993. The venture was dependent on a major sponsor being found and difficulties with this caused the plan to be put on hold, and in due course, abandoned altogether.

---

Hutt Valley Fights For Refund

The New Zealand President pleaded with them, the National Council ruled against them, NZTTA’s Management Committee re-heard their case in a less formal setting and again rejected it, but through all this the Hutt Valley Association remained resolute that an illegitimate charge had been levied against them in relation to their hosting of the 1990 NZ Championships. At an early stage in the negotiations the Association signalled its intent to pursue the matter all the way to the Disputes Tribunal if necessary.

In the absence of an agreement a Disputes Tribunal hearing indeed went ahead. Each party was represented by a single spokesperson. The hearing encouraged a compromise but again there was the absence of a mutual agreement. Because the Hutt Valley association were aware of the conditions of hosting the championships well before they were held the referee ruled in favour of NZTTA.

---

Name Change for Hamilton Association

The Hamilton Association was officially renamed Waikato Table Tennis Association.

---