Zhang Jike's Tattoo

[Siegler]

It's very interesting seeing how many fans of table tennis dissaprove celebrations from many new table tennis professionals, such as Zhang Jike or Mattenet. I think it is great for the sport. If you compare table tennis to other sports like tennis, or team sports like football or baseball; those sports a lot of celebrating goes on, and it thrills the crowd. After watching the match between Mattenet and Samsonov, I feel these celebrations get the crowd excited and enthusiastic about the sport.

These celebrations are not about being unsportsmanlike. If you are playing amazing table tennis in front of a large crowd, it's such an overwhelming feeling, and I can't imagine how these guys feel.

 

[Matt Hetherington]

I have a body like that, it's just hiding under a few winter layers hahaha

 

[azlan]

That's Jean Michel Saive not Kreanga. It even says JMS on the back of his shirt.

On a different note. Did anyone notice the extreme and outrageous difference in arm size for Zhang Jike.

Hahahaha yup, Saive it was. I am short sighted.....hhehehehe

 

[YosuaYosan]

I have a body like that, it's just hiding under a few winter layers hahaha

So do I !!

 

[scylla24]

I feel like a lot of table tennis players don't really put in the necessary effort to also be very athletically fit along with being good at table tennis. If you look at the Chinese national team training in videos on youtube, in addition to doing some really unique exercises in order to improve reaction speed, they also do a lot of your basic exercises to improve strength. WLQ in particular looks like a taller version of bruce lee, when he doesn't have a shirt on.

I find that being physically fit really helps my game. Even when I am playing players whose all around game is more advanced than me, I find that my loops tend to be a lot more spinny and have a lot more pop on them than what these players are used to, and more often than not, even when they try to do a simple block, the ball goes off the table. I think the reason for that more than anything is probably the fact that I tend to be in a lot better shape than the average table tennis player. It actually doesn't take that much work to get a back like ZJK, half of it is simply integrating pull ups into your workout routine.

I would say that I get just about the same amount of definition in my upper body muscles, including arms, as ma long or zjk. My legs are pretty good also, its just that ZJK has ridiculously large cut thighs.... haha

 

[Dan]

I feel like a lot of table tennis players don't really put in the necessary effort to also be very athletically fit along with being good at table tennis. If you look at the Chinese national team training in videos on youtube, in addition to doing some really unique exercises in order to improve reaction speed, they also do a lot of your basic exercises to improve strength. WLQ in particular looks like a taller version of bruce lee, when he doesn't have a shirt on.

I find that being physically fit really helps my game. Even when I am playing players whose all around game is more advanced than me, I find that my loops tend to be a lot more spinny and have a lot more pop on them than what these players are used to, and more often than not, even when they try to do a simple block, the ball goes off the table. I think the reason for that more than anything is probably the fact that I tend to be in a lot better shape than the average table tennis player. It actually doesn't take that much work to get a back like ZJK, half of it is simply integrating pull ups into your workout routine.

I would say that I get just about the same amount of definition in my upper body muscles, including arms, as ma long or zjk. My legs are pretty good also, its just that ZJK has ridiculously large cut thighs.... haha

Wow you must be very athletic Syclla! Physical attributes are essiential in todays game... Esp due to the fact we dont have speed glue and you have to be in the correct position at all times.

Since doing my back rehab program i have been doing a lot of work on my feet patterns and focusing on legs a lot more (to get in better position to avoid bad movements in back). Since this i have noticed a huge increase in spin and powee in my shots. So for sure i can say, if you want to improve in TT its vital you focus on physical fitness to.

You can see in the World Junior Championships the Chinese boys look and play so much more stronger then their opponents. A lot of this is due to their strength, speed and explosive power.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S2 using tapatalk

 

[PlasmaLight]

i think its not about being trained. its just the body definition for table tennis player. zhang jike is very gifted. but of course he trains a lot for this. when i look at myself i think, i'm trained, too. but i never did situps and have a sixpack or quite a good trained arm und back. but its just from playing table tennis

 

[Dan]

i think its not about being trained. its just the body definition for table tennis player. zhang jike is very gifted. but of course he trains a lot for this. when i look at myself i think, i'm trained, too. but i never did situps and have a sixpack or quite a good trained arm und back. but its just from playing table tennis

Hehe yeah I know what you mean, but I can honestly say these guys train gruesomely! Zhang Jike may have some natural genetic body type and shape which allows him to develop faster and train easier in the gym due to his height. However, he is like that due to thousands of hours of multi ball and strength and conditioning training since a very young age. I read an interview once, Zhang Jike can run 100m in 11 seconds and can bench press 110k. Overall they are super fit!

 

[scylla24]

Wow you must be very athletic Syclla! Physical attributes are essiential in todays game... Esp due to the fact we dont have speed glue and you have to be in the correct position at all times.

Since doing my back rehab program i have been doing a lot of work on my feet patterns and focusing on legs a lot more (to get in better position to avoid bad movements in back). Since this i have noticed a huge increase in spin and powee in my shots. So for sure i can say, if you want to improve in TT its vital you focus on physical fitness to.

You can see in the World Junior Championships the Chinese boys look and play so much more stronger then their opponents. A lot of this is due to their strength, speed and explosive power.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S2 using tapatalk

Yeah, doing a lot of lower back, legs, and general spinal stability exercises are absolutely crucial for all around fitness and athletic ability.
http://sports.yahoo.com/elite-athlete-workouts/chris-paul?vid=26562025

various exercises like what Chris Paul does in this video for his abs and spinal stability really help a lot after doing them for a while.

 

[scylla24]

i think its not about being trained. its just the body definition for table tennis player. zhang jike is very gifted. but of course he trains a lot for this. when i look at myself i think, i'm trained, too. but i never did situps and have a sixpack or quite a good trained arm und back. but its just from playing table tennis

I think they go hand in hand. A lot of athletes, and I think Chinese table tennis players in general, actually train and eat less to the point that they are actually potentially below a normal healthy weight. In exchange their movement and reaction speeds increase a great deal. Chinese coaches are always telling their players to lose some weight, and I think in a recent video with ZJK the Chinese commentators were talking about how much work he has put in to lose more weight recently or something. So when you combine the effects of grueling training, and also not eating as much as you otherwise would, it allows you to have some really impressive muscle definition, and you start looking really cut.

I definitely try to work out quite a lot. Last year in college, I went to the gym like almost everyday except for maybe 3-4 the entire school year. I don't do it for table tennis or anything, though it definitely helps, instead I do it just to be all around fit and healthy, which is important and good just for life in general.

 

[blahness]

I think they go hand in hand. A lot of athletes, and I think Chinese table tennis players in general, actually train and eat less to the point that they are actually potentially below a normal healthy weight. In exchange their movement and reaction speeds increase a great deal. Chinese coaches are always telling their players to lose some weight, and I think in a recent video with ZJK the Chinese commentators were talking about how much work he has put in to lose more weight recently or something. So when you combine the effects of grueling training, and also not eating as much as you otherwise would, it allows you to have some really impressive muscle definition, and you start looking really cut.

I definitely try to work out quite a lot. Last year in college, I went to the gym like almost everyday except for maybe 3-4 the entire school year. I don't do it for table tennis or anything, though it definitely helps, instead I do it just to be all around fit and healthy, which is important and good just for life in general.

I totally agree. The more you play the more you find that physical fitness is more and more important, especially for a double inverted player. The legs and core muscles are the ones which can dramatically push your shot quality up by quite a bit. Table tennis is a much more physical game thanks to the outlawing of speedglue. I think I need to head for the gym too...

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

The size of the two arms is hard to gage from that picture because the two arms are at different angles. You can see his bicep on his right arm but on his left arm you are looking straight at the tricep. Right forearm and hand verticle, left forearm and hand parallel to the ground and pointing towards the crowd. Also the right arm is engaged and the left arm is relaxed. I am sure they are bigger but the difference in size would seem exaggerated if you are comparing the two arms here.

 

[zookato]

Yes - totally agree and its exciting and great for our sport!

 

[PlasmaLight]

so the latest post of liu guoliang was, that he isnt very happy about the tattoo and the celebration. but he also said, that zjk told him, about the tattoo and about the celebration he said, that zjk is a player of the new generation. and they have to handle with it

 

[WiWa]

so the latest post of liu guoliang was, that he isnt very happy about the tattoo and the celebration. but he also said, that zjk told him, about the tattoo and about the celebration he said, that zjk is a player of the new generation. and they have to handle with it

Yea I just read it xD He said we can't do the same practise as we did with the previous generation. That's interesting. In the end it was like ZJK placed the tattoo because he didn't perform very well after the WTTC and wanted to remind himself to stay persistent all the time.

 

[PlasmaLight]

Yea I just read it xD He said we can't do the same practise as we did with the previous generation. That's interesting. In the end it was like ZJK placed the tattoo because he didn't perform very well after the WTTC and wanted to remind himself to stay persistent all the time.

yep. and i think guoliang noticed it. and maybe he knows, that zjk style of winning and celebrating is something new in the scene. and maybe he will let it roll for the time and will see what happens

 

[WiWa]

yep. and i think guoliang noticed it. and maybe he knows, that zjk style of winning and celebrating is something new in the scene. and maybe he will let it roll for the time and will see what happens

Yeah probably. He doesn't like it but since ZJK took the WTTC and World Cup he kinda has to get him a prominent place on the team along with Ma Long. But I hope he will realize that it is not a bad thing that ZJK is doing. It is different from most other Chinese players, but many people like it.

 

[crutcher]

It will be fine if somebody can find a video of strenght conditioning for table tennis, many people says that table tennis players should not make strenghtening because they will lose "feeling" in hand, but in some video I saw some of chinese players had made a bench press....

 

[YosuaYosan]

It will be fine if somebody can find a video of strenght conditioning for table tennis, many people says that table tennis players should not make strenghtening because they will lose "feeling" in hand, but in some video I saw some of chinese players had made a bench press....

Strength and 'feel' has little connection imo.
The more one's hand is trained, the better the the 'feel'.
Feel in a nutshell lol

 

[azlan]

Here is the answer for the tattoo from the man himself, :



Last November 13, Zhang Jike raised his hands in the air as he nailed the championship title in the Men's World Cup in Paris. Almost similar to his celebration in Rotterdam, Zhang Jike took his shirt off exposing something that attracted the attention of a lot of people - a tattoo showing a "wing" image with the word "persistence."

Talking about what his new charm means, Zhang Jike explained very briefly: "I just want to remind myself always to fly even more and that I have the ability to do it just like an eagle. No other meaning." As for the English word, Zhang Jike added: "the word speaks for itself."

Zhang Jike's tattoo actually led many fans to guess whether the wings were of a phoenix while some of an angel. After winning, his coach Xiao Zhan wrote on his Weibo account: "Originally, it is an eagle but it can also be an angel. Perfect."

Although he won the championship title, Zhang Jike did not consider his performance to be at its peak in Paris. "It was may be because of luck. In addition, Wang Hao was also tired recently. He played in the Swedish Open then in the World Team Cup. I did not play in the Team events so Wang Hao may not have shown his true level," Zhang Jike explained.

In line with this, a lot of fans speculate that Zhang Jike's waist injury was the reason for his poor performance. Zhang Jike acknowledged: "It was really very difficult for me. Because of the injury, my training was not in sync. In fact, the group stage was already very tough for me. But what is commendable that I was able to improve and scored. I invested good," Zhang Jike concluded.

Zhang Jike indeed showed some instability in his performance but no matter how rough the road was, Zhang Jike still stood victorious at the end and managed to make a mark in the history of table tennis.

Aside from the victory of Zhang Jike in Paris, his tattoo also made a dramatic appearance in the public. Some might find this inappropriate while some find it nice. Either way, it was still Zhang Jike's way of reminding himself to keep flying. It just shows that Zhang Jike is indeed unique among the current players. As of now, we will just have to wait for his upcoming performance if he will be able to make good use of his new charm.

And this is the reactions from the Sifu, Liu Guoliang :

After the finals in the Men's World Cup against Wang Hao, Zhang Jike, in celebration, took off his shirt and threw away to the audience, exposing his well defined muscles. As he turned around, an image appeared in front of the eyes of the spectators. For some time, his tattoo attracted much controversy.

"I feel that it has a good meaning and reason - to remind oneself of your goals. But I don't agree on how it is expressed as a member of the National Team, especially in the Chinese National Team." Liu Guoliang said frankly.

"Later on, he told me that after finishing the Rotterdam World Championships, his performance in the few Open matches was poor. He really knew himself very well. And then he told me that he just wanted to remind himself to stay persistent at all times," Liu Guoliang added. After hearing Zhang Jike's explanation, Liu Guoliang somehow understood his disciple's actions.

In this year's world championships and world cup, Zhang Jike in both occasions had a rather unique style of expressing his victory. As a coach of the men's team, Liu Guoliang also witnessed the distinct personalities of his equally influential and powerful players.

"This is actually a dilemma for the coaching staff. Our players have different age brackets so as coaches, we really need to change on how we deal with every generation," Liu Guoliang said that he can't just re-use the old practices for today's players.