This 58-Year-Old Mom Table Tennis Player Made Her Debut At The Olympics, Fulfilling Her Lifelong Dream
Zhiying Zeng’s journey to the Olympics has spanned decades.
Zhiying Zeng, a 58-year-old mom table tennis player, has made her Olympic debut in Paris, gaining the praise of many.
Zeng, who was born in Guangzhou, China, played in the Women’s Singles event on Saturday, July 27.
Zeng’s journey to the Olympics has spanned decades.
Zeng was a national junior champion who went pro at 12 years old and joined China’s national team at 16.
However her playing suffered in 1986, when a rule change required the two sides of the paddle to be different colors.
Zeng’s style of play had involved swapping sides to confuse her opponents, but suddenly became more predictable with the rule change.
“The rule killed my game. I felt weak, psychologically and technically” Zeng said.
She eventually quit the sport and moved to Chile in 1989 to become a table tennis coach.
Though she competed a few times at the national levels in the early 2000s, it was not until the COVID-19 pandemic that Zeng took up the sport again.
“I got the bug and, once we were able to leave, I immediately wanted to play against someone to see what level I was at – and see if I could I still run or not,” she said.
Zeng ended up qualifying for the Olympics during the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, where she helped the Chilean women’s team win bronze.
She then became an overnight sensation in Chile after a four-set comeback in the first round of the Women’s singles event.b
She has been dubbed “Tia Tania” – or Auntie Tania in Chile.
Though Zeng was defeated in Paris 4-1 in her preliminary round against Lebanese player Mariana Sahakian, Zeng said she doesn’t feel sad about the loss.
“This is sport,” she said. “My husband, my sons, everyone I love and care about were there shouting my name. I feel so content.”
Zeng also enjoyed a Parisian reunion with a former Chinese national teammate, 61-year-old Ni Xialian, who is also at the Games representing Luxembourg.
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