Germany in Decline? Rosskopf: Working to Revert It

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Playing Career: Atlanta Olympics and WTTC Dortmund Most Memorable

TTW: How was the daily routine of the German team back in your time as a player? Did European associations organize joint training camp before the competition?

Rosskopf: Back then, the German national team rarely invited players from other associations to train together, but most of my time in the club was spent with players from many countries, such as Primorac, Saive, Liang Geliang, and He Zhiwen et al. By training with players of different styles, we could improve our abilities to deal with various tactics.

TTW: When did coach Li Xianjue start coaching you? How'd you rate this him?

Rosskopf: In 1986, I enrolled at the German Table Tennis Association's sports school in Duisburg. At that time, Li Xianjue was there as a technical and multi-ball coach. We all called him Mr. Li. But as early as 1983, I had contact with him when I participated in the training of the German national team. He was a member of the coaching team of the German national team at that time. Then in 1988, I left the sports school to join the Düsseldorf club. We were together almost every day during that time. His multi-ball training was a brand new method, which is very important to improve my technical level, especially in correcting our strokes. Coach Li was very kind. His German was not very fluent at first, but it posed no problem with the communication in table tennis, which surprised me.

TTW: In 1998, you won the Men's World Cup in China. What kind of feeling was that?

Rosskopf: The level between the European players and the Chinese players who participated in that edition was very close. I had a good draw, meeting Primorac and Kim Taeksoo early on, and I was more comfortable with their style of play. As the tournament progressed, I found that everyone was very nervous. Everyone had a chance to win. I was just more lucky, getting the only World Cup title in my life. I didn't have a coach([don't know his German name] was away because of JOOLA's job), didn't have a masseur, and had to take an interview with a German reporter back home over the phone before the semi-final and final. It's incredible to think about it now. Ever since the Chinese team regained the WTTC titles in 1995, the atmosphere of table tennis in China has improved greatly. The spectators were very enthusiastic and the stadium was filled almost every match.

TTW: What is the most memorable match in your career?

Rosskopf: The most memorable singles match was the quarter-final of the Atlanta Olympics 1996. I played against Kim Taeksoo. That match was related to the Olympic medal, so it was very intense and ecstatic, and fortunately I defeated him. Another unforgettable doubles match was the men's doubles final at the WTTC Dortmund 1989. Playing on home soil, the audience gave me and Fetzner the courage to win.

Coaching career: Hard at work to change the generation gap of the team

TTW: Is it a natural process when transitioning from player to coach? Or is it a well thought-out decision?

Rosskopf: This was decided after careful considerations. During my player career, I had met many excellent coaches. I got a lot of help and inspiration in working and speaking with them. So for a long time, I have always had the idea of taking up ​​coaching after retiring.

TTW: In China, many excellent players strive to become coaches of the national team after retiring. But in Europe, it's rare to take over the national team coach directly after retiring like you. Why do you think this is the case?

Rosskopf: This situation is indeed a very regrettable for European table tennis. Many excellent players have accumulated a lot of valuable experience in their careers, but they have not been able to continue to pass it on. This is a huge loss. I think there are many reasons for this. In Asia, for example, a team can consist of a bunch of experienced coaches working together, which is incomparable for European teams. In addition, European coaches are not well-paid. Players generally have relatively longer careers, normally playing well into their 30s. Once they retire, they want a different life, because coaching may be more tiring than playing.

TTW: The German team is still recognized as the most powerful team in Europe. What is the current status in terms of the echelon?

Rosskopf: We have Boll and Ovtcharov on the team for the time being, so we are still a strong team in Europe and in the world, but beyond them, the German team actually has a generation gap. Due to the reform of the educational system, the enlightenment period and growth period of German teenagers are now postponed, so the younger generation of players generally lack sufficient training time. Most people start their careers after graduating at 18 years old. Boll and I both joined the Bundesliga when we were 14 years old. The training of the reserve echelon is not only a problem for the German team, but also a problem for the entire European table tennis. Nowadays, young players have a lot of hobbies, and they all hope to get early results, but they have neglected hard training and techniques. We are actively working in hopes of changing this situation.

TTW: There are a lot of newcomers in Asia now. Is there anyone who has left you an impression?

Rosskopf: Other than the Chinese players, Harimoto is outstanding. He is very talented and hardworking; Jang Woojin is also a fantastic player. Asian players in general start out very early, and the financial investment is also very large. European players cannot compare with them in this respect.

Excerpt from Table Tennis World, Volume 5, 2019

http://sports.sina.com.cn/others/pingpang/2019-05-15/doc-ihvhiqax8779048.shtml
波尔奥恰后德国继无人? 罗斯科夫:正努力改变

2019年05月15日 07:36 新浪体育综合

  2019年布达佩斯世乒赛,德国组合弗朗西斯科/索尔佳在混双比赛中配合默契,接连淘汰了两对亚洲劲敌林昀儒/郑怡静、森园政崇/伊藤美诚,闯入四强。收获一枚宝贵的铜牌,这也是德国队在本次世乒赛中收获的唯一一枚奖牌。

  赛前备战时,德国男队主教练罗斯科夫在采访中就表达了球队对于混双奖牌的渴望,“我们知道要得到这个项目的奖牌非常不易,亚洲选手们的实力非常强大,但我们会尽一切努力去争取这块奖牌。”虽然拿到了期待的混双奖牌,但是德国队在强项男单上却只有波尔一人晋级16强,罗斯科夫坦言,球队已经出现了断层情况。

  运动员生涯:最难忘亚特兰大奥运会和多特蒙德世乒赛

  TTW:你当运动员时期,德国队的日常训练是如何进行的?欧洲各协会之间会在大赛之前组织联合集训吗?

  罗斯科夫:当时德国国家队的训练很少邀请其他协会的运动员一起进行,但是我所在俱乐部的大部分时间会和很多国家的运动员一起打球,比如普里莫拉茨、塞弗,还有来自中国的梁戈亮、何志文等。通过与不同打法的球员进行训练,可以提高我们应对各种技战术的能力。

  TTW:李先觉教练从哪年开始带你训练?如何评价这位中国教练?

  罗斯科夫:1986年我进入德国乒协设在杜伊斯堡的体校,当时李先觉教练在那里担任技术和多球教练,我们都称他为Mr。 Li。但早在1983年,我参加德国国家队的集训时就和他有过接触,那个时期他是德国国家队的教练组成员之一,后来直到1988年我离开体校加入了杜塞尔多夫俱乐部。那段时间我们几乎每天都在一起,他的多球训练是一种全新的方法,对我技术水平的提高至关重要,尤其是在发多球时还能纠正我们的技术动作。李教练很和善,刚开始时他的德语还不太流利,但在乒乓球方面的沟通没有一点问题,这让我很惊讶。

  TTW:1998年,您在中国获得了世界杯男单冠军,那是一种什么样的感觉?

  罗斯科夫:参加那届比赛的欧洲球员和中国选手之间的水平非常接近,我抽签比较幸运,前面碰到了普里莫拉茨和金择洙,我对他们的打法比较适应。随着比赛进行,我发现大家都很紧张,谁都有机会取胜,只是我运气比较好,爆冷得到了我一生中唯一一次世界杯冠军。那次比赛我没有教练员(当时的教练乔尔达斯因为JOOLA的工作无法脱身)、没有按摩师,在半决赛和决赛之前还要接受德国记者的越洋电话采访,现在想想真是不可思议。自从中国队在1995年重新夺得世乒赛冠军后,乒乓球在中国的氛围有了很大的提升,那次比赛的观众非常热情,几乎场场爆满。

  TTW:在你的运动员生涯中,最难忘的比赛是哪一场?

  罗斯科夫:最难忘的单打比赛是1996年亚特兰大奥运会的1/4决赛,我对阵金择洙,因为那场比赛关系到奥运会奖牌。我们打得非常激烈,也很精彩,很幸运我战胜了他。还有一场最难忘的双打比赛是1989年多特蒙德世乒赛的男双决赛,我们在主场,观众们给了我和费茨纳尔夺冠的勇气。

  教练员生涯:正在努力改变球队断层的现状

  TTW:从运动员转型做教练员,是自然而然的过程还是经过了深思熟虑的决定?

  罗斯科夫:这是经过深思熟虑后决定的。在我的运动生涯中,遇到了许多优秀的教练员,在与他们共事和交谈中,我得到了很多帮助和启发,所以在很长时间里,我一直就有退役后做教练的想法。

  TTW:在中国,很多优秀运动员退役后都会争取成为国家队的教练员,但是在欧洲,像你这样退役后直接接手国家队教练的情况并不多见,你觉得这是为什么?

  罗斯科夫:这种情况对于欧洲乒坛来说确实是件非常遗憾的事,许多优秀运动员在职业生涯中积累了很多宝贵经验,但没能继续传承下去,这是一种巨大的损失。我认为造成这种情况有很多原因:比如在亚洲,一支球队可以有一批经验丰富的教练员一起工作,这是欧洲球队无法相比的;此外欧洲教练员的待遇也不高,而且球员的运动寿命一般都比较长,打到30多岁也很正常,一旦退役,他们更想过另外一种生活,因为做教练员可能比做运动员还累。

  TTW:德国队现在仍然被公认为欧洲整体实力最强的球队,在后备梯队的建设方面,德国队的现状是怎样的?

  罗斯科夫:现在我们队中有波尔和奥恰洛夫两个人,所以还是欧洲和世界强队,但在他们之后,德国队实际上已经出现了断层。由于教育体制的改革,现在德国青少年的启蒙期和成长期都延后了,所以年轻一代的运动员普遍都缺乏足够的训练时间,大多数人都是在18岁高中毕业后才开始职业生涯,而我和波尔都是在14岁时就已经加入德甲俱乐部了。后备梯队的培养不仅是德国队的难题,也是整个欧洲乒坛的难题,现在的年轻运动员爱好很多,而且都希望早早出成绩,却忽略了刻苦训练,技术上的钻研也不够,我们正在积极努力,希望可以改变这种局面。

  TTW:现在的亚洲乒坛涌现出了很多新人,有哪些新秀给你的印象比较深刻?

  罗斯科夫:除了中国队的运动员以外,日本队的张本智和表现很突出,他很有天赋,也很刻苦;韩国的张禹珍也是一名很棒的球员。亚洲球员普遍运动启蒙很早,而且财力投入也很大,欧洲球员在这方面是无法与他们相比的。

  节选自2019《乒乓世界》第5期
 
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Turning pro at 18 when it used to be 14. There goes 1 Olympic cycle.
 
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Rosskopf: Only I Dare Say Beating China among European Players; Liu Guoliang a Role Model

http://sports.sina.com.cn September 22, 2010 10:50 Sports Weekly

After the World Table Tennis Championships in Moscow at the end of May this year, there was a personnel change in the German men’s table tennis. The former head coach Richard Prause accepted the invitation of Austrian star Schlager to coach at his table tennis academy. In turn, German veteran Rosskopf picked up the baton of the men's team. In his first show as the head coach of the men’s team, the German team swept the 3 men’s titles in the European Table Tennis Championships and ushered in a good start. Rosskopf also opened up in an interview with the "Sports Weekly" and talked about table tennis in both countries, China and Germany.

   Football>F1>Table tennis

   Sports: Your father and brother are also table tennis players, and family is an important reason for you to choose this sport?

   Roskopf: Yes, my brother and father are still playing in the club. Of course, they are all in the low-level team(s). The influence of the family has helped me a lot, so I also want to engage in this sport, which is the key factor. However, my children are not engaged in this sport, and they are not very interested in table tennis. Instead, they are interested in volleyball and handball.

   Sports: We all know that table tennis is China's national sport, so how is the sport going on in Germany?

   Rosskopf: Not so easy. We have many clubs, the level of German table tennis club and the leagues are already very high in Europe, and we also have a high-level national team with first-class players like Boll. But in Germany, the media and fans always focus on football and F1 - not only table tennis, but other sports also face difficulties pushing forward. Table tennis has encountered a crisis in Germany, we hope to continue to move forward, but it is very difficult.

   Sports: But compared to other countries, the situation of German table tennis is not bad?

   Rosskopf: Yeah, it's pretty good, relatively speaking. Only the French league can compare with the level of German table tennis league and number of spectators, but compared to 10 years or 15 years ago, it is much worse.

   Sports: Your silver medal in the men’s doubles at the Barcelona Olympics and the bronze medal in the men’s singles at the Atlanta Olympics are already very difficult for European players today...

   Rosskopf: That is true. Now that the Olympics have a team event, other countries can only compete for silver and bronze medals. After the singles event was changed to 2 players per country, the hope of other countries to win a medal is also greater. But it is really difficult to pose a threat to China, and China will find it boring to continue. Chinese table tennis spectators are also declining, and their interest is also dwindling. The most ideal situation is to have competition. To do this, we must reduce the number of competitions and increase the time of training, instead of now, where many players totally disregard the training before major tournaments. In China, if Wang Hao does not perform well, Liu Guoliang can bench him and train for four weeks, but this is not realistic in Europe. Actually we have good talents, but their matches are too frequent.

   Liu for Asia and Waldner for Europe

   Sports: As of 2008, you have participated in 16 World Table Tennis Championships. You have experienced the whole process of the Chinese team from peak to trough, and then rise again. What do you think of this?

   Rosskopf: The Chinese team had a very difficult time from 1989 to 1995, unable to achieve good results in the World Table Tennis Championships. The times back then were actually very interesting. Asians hoped to regain their glory, while Europe ushered in the golden generation, including Waldner, Persson, Primorac, Saive and me, et al. At that time, it was a real Asia-Europe confrontation, but now there is no competition, the Chinese team is standing alone, and sometimes the game becomes so boring. The Chinese team has won almost all the honors. This is certainly well-deserved. You have a very good system and the athletes train the hardest. The Europeans must catch up. The German team is trying to narrow the gap with the Chinese team, Boll included. There are many excellent young players in China, and the German team is not bad, but unfortunately this is not the case in other European countries. Now European players do not dare to challenge Chinese players, and their self-confidence no longer exists. In the past, I dared say beating Liu Guoliang and Kong Linghui. Despite losing more often than not, I could win sometimes. This is what the young players need to learn now.

   Sports: In your opinion, how did Chinese table tennis regain its majesty?

   Rosskopf: Concentrated hard training is very important. China can independently choose the time when the league starts, targeted training before the World Championships, and can do a month of training camp, whereas we can only do so 6 days in advance, because the schedule is too dense. I think the Chinese system is perfect. Players can make targeted preparations and focus their attention completely on the major competitions.

   Sports: Who is the best player of your time?

   Rosskopf: Waldner and Liu Guoliang have won too many honors. Just like Liu Guoliang is a role model for many Asian players, Waldner has the same meaning for European players.

   Sports: Have you ever exchanged coaching experience with Liu Guoliang and others?

   Rosskopf: Yes, I have spoken to Liu Guoliang and Kong Linghui, and the female team coach Shi Zhihao can also speak good German. Although we do not go into any specifics, they all wish me a good job.

   Sports: For the final question, there is a Chinese saying that "At 40, I have no doubts." Is this applicable to you who just turned 41?

   Rosskopf: No, my new job requires me to learn a lot. Every day I have problems to solve. At 40, I still have a lot of doubts.

http://sports.sina.com.cn/o/2010-09-22/10505213994.shtml
罗斯科普夫:欧洲球员仅我敢说赢中国 刘国梁是榜样
http://sports.sina.com.cn 2010年09月22日10:50 体坛周报

  今年5月底莫斯科世乒赛后,德国男乒发生人事变动,原主教练普劳泽接受奥地利名将施拉格的邀请,前往其名下的乒乓球学院任教,德国乒球名宿罗斯科普夫走马上任,接过男队教鞭。在作为男队主帅的首秀中,德国队包揽欧乒赛男子三个项目冠军,迎来开门红,而罗斯科普夫素最近在接受《体坛周报》采访时也摊开心扉,聊起了中德两国的乒球状况。

  足球>F1>乒乓球

  体坛:你父亲和哥哥也是乒乓球运动员,家庭是你选择这项运动的重要原因?

  罗斯科普夫(以下简称罗):是的,我哥哥和父亲现在还在俱乐部打球,当然现在都是在低级别球队中。家庭的熏陶对我起到了很大帮助,因此我也想从事这项运动,这是关键因素。不过我的孩子没有从事这项运动,而且对乒乓球的兴趣也不大,倒是对排球和手球感兴趣。

  体坛:我们都知道乒乓球是中国国球,那么这项运动在德国开展的情况如何?

  罗:不那么容易。我们拥有很多俱乐部,德国乒乓球俱乐部和联赛水平,在欧洲已经是很高,而且我们还拥有高水平的国家队,有波尔这样的一流球员。但在德国,媒体和球迷关注的永远首先是足球和F1——不仅是乒乓球,其他项目开展都会遇到困难。乒乓球在德国遇到过危机,我们希望能够不断向前推进,但难度很大。

  体坛:但和其他国家相比,德国乒乓球的情况还算不错?

  罗:是啊,已经算相当好了。能和德国乒乓球联赛水平和观众人数相比的,只有法国联赛,但是相比起10年或是15年之前,要差了很多。

  体坛:你在巴塞罗那奥运会的男双银牌,以及亚特兰大奥运会的男单铜牌,对现在的欧洲球员来说已非常困难……

  罗:是这样的,现在奥运会有了团体赛,其他国家只能去争夺银牌和铜牌,单打比赛改成每个国家两名球员后,其他国家夺牌的希望也大一些。但的确很难给中国制造威胁,中国自己也会觉得这样下去没意思。中国的乒乓球观众也在减少,兴趣也在降低,最理想的状态还是要有竞争存在。做到这一点,我们必须减少比赛增加训练和集中训练的时间长度,而不是像现在,很多球员对于大赛前的训练根本就不重视。在中国,如果王皓表现不好的话,刘国梁可以让他不要去比赛,好好训练四周,但这在欧洲不现实。其实我们有好苗子,但他们的比赛过于频繁。

  亚洲挺刘欧洲顶瓦

  体坛:到2008年为止,你一共参加了16届世乒赛,经历了中国队从辉煌到低谷,再重新崛起的全过程,对此怎么看?

  罗:中国队在1989年到1995年这段时间很困难,无法在世乒赛取得好成绩。当时那段时间其实很有意思,亚洲人希望重振雄风,欧洲则迎来了黄金一代,包括瓦尔德内尔、佩尔森、普里莫拉茨、赛弗和我等人。那时候是真正的亚欧对抗,可现在就没有对抗了,中国队一枝独秀,有时候比赛都变得太无聊。中国队几乎赢得了所有荣誉,这当然是当之无愧的,你们有很好的体制,而且运动员训练也最刻苦,欧洲人必须迎头赶上来。德国队正在努力缩小和中国队的差距,包括波尔也是这样。中国有很多优秀的年轻球员,德国队也不差,但可惜欧洲其他国家的情况并非如此。现在欧洲球员不敢去赢中国球员,自信心不复存在,而在过去我敢说赢刘国梁、孔令辉,虽然经常输,但有时候可以取胜,这是现在年轻球员需要学习的。

  体坛:在你看来,中国乒乓球是如何重振雄风的?

  罗:集中刻苦训练很重要,中国可以自主选择联赛开始的时间,进行世锦赛前有针对性的训练,而且可以进行一个月的集中训练,而我们只能提前六天,因为赛程实在太密集。我觉得中国的体制很完美,球员可以进行有针对性的准备,将注意力完全集中到大赛。

  体坛:你们这一代球员,谁是最出色的?

  罗:瓦尔德内尔和刘国梁赢得了太多荣誉,就像刘国梁是很多亚洲球员的榜样,瓦尔德内尔则对于欧洲球员有同样意义。

  体坛:和刘国梁等人交流过执教经验吗?

  罗:是的,我和刘国梁、孔令辉都聊过,女队教练施之皓还可以说很好的德语。虽然我们彼此都不会说太多具体的内容,但是他们都祝我工作顺利。

  体坛:最后一个问题,中国有一句话是四十不惑,这适用于刚刚41岁的你么?

  罗:不不,新工作需要我去学习很多,每一天我都会有问题要去解决,四十岁的我还有很多疑惑。
 
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Kind of old interview but probably still applicable. The take that Europeans train not enough and play too many matches is interesting. The European players need to play both in a team league and tournaments to make a decent living and that means lots of travel and limited time for practice.

Generally Chinese probably train a lot more, in Germany most youth club players tend to train like 4-5 hours a week unless they are absolute elite youth players or their parents make them train at home if their parents are club players themselves.
 
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I should be clarified weak European era because this is the strongest chinese era of all time. Euro titles are easier but world titles almost impossible for non chinese.
 
says Shoo...nothing to see here. - zeio
says Shoo...nothing to see here. - zeio
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Contrary to popular opinions, I'd argue the era of WLQ, MLin and WH, collectively known as 二王一馬(2W1M), was the strongest. Those 3 peaked and overlapped each other close to a decade. If we go by the WTTC, WLQ and MLin spanned from 1997 to 2013, 16 years in total.

ML, ZJK and XX and now ML, XX, FZD only appeared more dominant because the rest of the world was so far behind. They never faced the same level of threat and competitions that their seniors had to go through, from the legendary relics from the 90s, to the then new blood such as Samsonov, CCY(no joke b/w 2002-2004), Boll, RSM... Actually, they faced the same set of players, as Duan Xiang pointed out after WTTC 2013. The new blood such as Ovtcharov, Mizutani, Matsudaira, Kishikawa, Jeoung Youngsik, Lee Sangsu, Kim Minseok et al. only posed limited threat in the early 2010s and that's it. Despite all that, ML and ZJK met just twice in the majors, with the latter already on the way down, and XX never reached the heights of MLin and WH as a penholder.

For the record, Wang Hao, Chen Qi, Qiu Yike, Hao Shuai, Zhang Chao, and Shan Mingjie were known as "6 Little Dragons" in 2003. Yan An, Fang Bo, Zhou Yu, and now LGY, LJK pale in comparison.

http://sports.sina.com.cn/r/2013-05-24/05366585104.shtml
…而除了法国、德国、瑞典、奥地利等几个乒乓环境相对完善的国家,欧洲其他国家人才老化严重,“10年前那批打奥运会、世乒赛的人,现在还在打,没有新面孔。”
...Other than those countries with a relatively comprehensive table tennis environment such as France, Germany, Sweden, Austria etc., there is serious aging for other European countries, "The batch who played the Olympic Games and the WTTC from 10 years ago are still playing now and there are no new faces."
 
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