This video and article about Ma Long's comeback from knee injury may be of interest to some of you.
Press conference after men's singles final
Ma Long: I think every athlete has pains and struggles. Only the winner has the opportunity to talk about the stories behind the success. I believe every athlete will go through this process. Yesterday I burst into tears when I saw Liu Shiwen winning the title. I understand what difficulties she has been through. I hope people can pay more attention and care to the athletes.
Tecent Sports interview during Marvelous 12 trial
Ma Long: I know I worked hard previously but I want people to see my talent other than hard work. But in recent two years, I have realized how important hard work means to me. In addition to training as hard as other players on the court, I remain passionate for table tennis and I make great efforts off the court for table tennis. After a long break, when I start to play, I find table tennis extremely interesting. I really want to play for more time. I find true love in table tennis. I once was negative because the rehabilitation did not go well. Now things are on the right track and I am quite positive and eager to play. I've thought about even if I cannot go to Olympic Games, I will still continue to play table tennis. I will still stay in this sport. I just love table tennis too much! No matter I can go to Olympic Games or not, I will keep playing.
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From almost being written off to completing hat-trick of World Champion singles titles, Ma Long realized that hard work but not talent is the key.
by Wang Yiwei from Budapest
https://new.qq.com/cmsn/20190429/20190429001553.html
When Ma Long lifted St. Bride Vase in Budapest, I still felt unreal. Ma Long was kept away from international tournaments for eight months due to knee injury. Two months ago, he was not yet able to play on the table. It was the darkest night of his career. He once thought that he would never return to the court.
Beating Sweden's Mattias Falck by 4-1, Ma Long became World Championships singles champion once again after 2015 and 2017. The 30-year-old matches legendary Zhuang Zedong, another Chinese player to win singles title on three consecutive World Championships.
What we can learn from Ma Long's story is that if you tell yourself in face of difficulty, "It is not over. I cannot leave like this.", your fate can be changed.
The worst time in his career: knee aspiration four times in two months
"One of the most terrifying dreams for me was a dream of me being on a basketball court, stadium's full, and I'm attacking the basket, and I can't get off the ground. I can't jump. Like, I'm stuck. Like, I'm cemented to the floor."
"I was conscious of the fact that I was dreaming. And so now, I'm trying to control my dream. You can jump through it, you can push through it. You can get to that basket. And no matter how hard I tried, my legs were too heavy. Can't jump."
This is the opening of Kobe Bryant's auto documentary "Muse", which includes what he experienced and learnt during 2012-2013 season with his ankle sprain. In the past four months, Ma Long watched it again and again.
"These several months are the most difficult and darkest moments of my career." Ma Long said. Since he started to play table tennis at 5, he had never been away from the table for such a long time.
Last August, Ma Long lost to England's Liam Pitchford in the first round of men's singles at Bulgaria Open. Compared to the upset, the knee injury was more surprising to Ma Long and all. Eight months until this March, Ma Long was absent from international tournaments because his knee was not healing.
During that time, CTTA president Liu Guoliang, head coach of men's team Qin Zhijian and the medical staff brought Ma Long to visit all the knee experts national wide. His knee was worn out due to years of intense training and competitions. Acupuncture and physical therapy were alternating, leaving bruises on his knee. Ma Long was not able to play on the table and just maintained the basic fitness training. However, if the amount of fitness training was increased, the knee was swollen with severe pain. The muscles on his left leg wasted away. In the worst point, his left thigh was almost as small as his left calf, much smaller than the right thigh. In the first two months of 2019, he went to hospital four times for knee aspiration to remove fluid.
The full recovery kept postponing. He entered Swedish Open, Austrian Open and Grand Finals and then withdrew. "Every time I gave hope to people when my name showed on the list. But then I withdrew. I really did not want to disappoint them." He almost broke down on the day to announce another withdrawal from Marvelous 12 trial. World Championships were no more than two months away but he was not able to do intense training on the table.
Over 30, injured, the killing shots no longer devastating due to the bigger ball..."Ma Long was defeated by injury." "He is too old." "Ma Long's time is over." These were the topics on the self media.
At the opening ceremony of Marvelous 12 trial, when his teammates lined up in the cheers of fans, Ma Long was standing on the back stage, looking up at the ceiling, listening to the names of players called by the host.
Ma Long asked himself, "Can I come back at all?"
He once beat the whole world and he would not give in.
By the end of last year, Liu Guoliang returned to Team China and became the president of CTTA. To prepare for Tokyo Olympic Games and to better support the players, Liu Guoliang led a support team for physical therapy and rehabilitation. Physical therapist Rafal joined the team by then. He and team physician Wang Duchun accompanied Ma Long all the time in addition to the coaches.
"Not playing for so long may make you realize how much you love the sport. When you get fully recovered, your desire for victory will be greater than anyone else." In those hard days, Rafal encouraged Ma Long.
Head coach of men's team Qin Zhijian had the same thoughts.
On the return flight from Rio to Beijing in 2016, when Ma Long completed his dream as a Grand Slam winner, Qin Zhijian asked Ma Long two questions, "Can we continue for Tokyo Olympic Games? Why do you want to play Tokyo Olympic Games?" He gave Ma Long half a year to think thoroughly for the answers.
On New Year Eve, the group of Qin Zhijian had dinner together. Ma Long answered, "I want to go to Tokyo Olympic Games because I am still competitive." Qin Zhijian laughed, "That's not enough for us to get to Tokyo". Qin Zhijian knew that the key was how to keep the hunger for victory for the next four years when Ma Long had won everything, if not considering age and injuries.
When Ma Long could not play on the table, he stayed in the gym to work out his arms with fitness coach Tommy. Sometimes, his teammates came to the gym after technical training and complaint to Ma Long, "Too tired after so much training." Ma Long smiled, "You should feel lucky that you can play. I want to play now even if I cannot win." Occasionally he played a few balls with Cui Qinglei who grows up with him. He could not move his left leg but he enjoyed himself a lot.
"I have challenged the rest of the world and I won all. Now my opponent is injury, I cannot easily give up." Ma Long told himself.
Ma Long played both men's singles and men's doubles in Budapest. As he proceeded, his pair met Liang Jingkun's pair in men's doubles semifinal and one day later he would meet Liang Jingkun in men's singles semifinal after whoever played men's doubles final. People thought Ma Long would save energy in men's doubles semifinal for a better chance in men's singles.
"Of course not. When Ma Long goes on to the court, he wants nothing but victory. This is a man who never thinks he gets enough training. How will he give up easily?" Rafal said.
Ma Long's partner is 19-year-old Wang Chuqin, a newcomer at World Championships. Before men's doubles semifinal and final, Ma Long put all the pressure on his own shoulder and told Wang Chuqin, "Relax. You just put the ball on the table. Count on me."
Give it all and fight till the end. Eight years later, Ma Long won World Championships men's doubles title again.
"Hard work and persistence are precious virtues. I will keep going without regrets."
This year there was a 6-day vacation for Chinese New Year for the players to visit family and take a break from the table. Ma Long did not take a single day off. Every morning, he went to Yizhuang Rehabilitation Center in the southern suburb of Beijing with Wang Chundu, then came back to the gym.
"Please let me train more. I am not afraid of pain." He told the physical therapist at Yizhuang Rehabilitation Center on his first visit last winner.
In the closed training for Budapest World Championships, Ma Long finally got back to the table to take two to three intense training sessions a day. Without systematic training for four months, he could not stand the load. Rafal tried to talk with him and joked with him during the physical therapy. "But I was just too tired to reply a word." Ma Long said. Every day after training, he had to ice his knee for half an hour.
People who have trained as a pro may know that it is not always a compliment when someone says "Look, he is so hardworking." "He is so genius." sounds better. It applies to other fields. The stories of genius are more appealing.
For a very long time, Ma Long refused the tag of hardworking. He thought every one in Team China is not lack of talent and hard work, which are the foundations of success. He never agreed that he succeeded because he worked harder.
"While I have realized that I am really hardworking during these days because it is so boring to work out everyday but I keep up. If I have a chance to share my career experience, I want to tell people, hard work and persistence are precious virtues. No matter what the result will be, keep going without regrets." Ma Long said.
If you tell yourself: it is not over and I cannot leave like this, your fate can be changed. Ma Long came back and won men's singles title at Qatar Open.
When he got to the closed training camp in Shenzhen from Doha, it was early morning. No time to adjust jet lag, he showed up in the gym with Tommy that afternoon. The next morning, he was on his way to Yokohama for Asian Cup.
When he won Qatar Open, Team China player Xu Chenhao shared a moment to his friends, "Brother Long is back, the same as before! He is the role model. Team China so formidable!"
CTTA president Liu Guoliang said, "Ma Long made a miracle. He is a great athlete." His greatness is not only about the achievements and records, is about in face of injuries and hardships, the efforts to struggle through and to be reborn.
No one in Team China gets qualified for Olympic Games after 30. Ma Long has won two World Championships men's singles title in Tokyo Olympic cycle. He has the best chance for Tokyo among Team China.
"Table tennis is something that cannot be replaced and taken away from my life. I am working on the qualification for Olympic Games. But if I cannot go, I will still continue to play table tennis, because I love table tennis so much." Fight for passion. Ma Long said Tokyo is not the full stop.
