Ma Long
| Place of birth: | Liaoning, China |
| Nationality: | Chinese |
| Birth: | October 20, 1988 |
| Size: | 1,75 m |
| Olympic Champion : | 2016 and 2021 |
| World Champion: | 2015, 2017 and 2019 |
| World Cup Champion: | 2015 |
| Chinese Open Champion: | 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2018 |
The Table Tennis Dragon
Ma Long is known in the world of table tennis as “The Dragon”, it is not because of his thirst for victory but because Long in Chinese means Dragon.
First of all, Ma Long is undoubtedly one of the best table tennis players in the history of the sport. Indeed, its impressive results confirm it. For example, during his career, which is still ongoing, he is the longest player ranked number one in the world. Thus, The Dragon, managed to stay in this place for 5 years, including almost 3 without interruption.
In addition, he was a three-time world champion, twice in the Olympics and once in the World Cup. He is also the fifth player in table tennis history to win the Grand Slam. Thus, Long managed to win all available titles. He had a spectacular five-game winning streak in international ITTF-sanctioned tournaments, so it’s not for nothing that they call him “The Dictator” too.
Finally, his mastery of table tennis has made him a national hero in China, where table tennis is considered a national sport.
Ma Long’s Arsenal
Why is Ma Long such an exceptional table tennis player? In reality, the answer is simple: he has one of the most “deadly” forehands in history. Indeed, Ma Long performs impressive spin variations and speed changes. He thus seeks to complicate the game of his opponent at every opportunity.
In recent years, The “Dictator” has added an equally offensive backhand to his arsenal of shots.
In the same way, he also dominates the “back spin block” but his main weapon is reflection. As a result, this makes him a very dangerous player since he executes very precise game strategies.
An uncertain future?
While Ma Long currently holds all major titles, he has struggled with injuries in his last appearances and we have seen his rankings fluctuate.
Thus, it is his own compatriots who push him to the limit of his abilities.
New talents such as Fan Zhendong (2023 world champion), Wang Chuqin, Xu Xin and Harimoto Tomokazu (Japan), will undoubtedly complicate the future of one of the greatest players in table tennis history.
“Winning a gold medal at the Olympic Games has been my dream for a long time”
Ma Long, Rio 2016
Featured image: Pierre-Yves Beaudouin Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
