Professors in colleges and universities in Hangzhou, relying on a ping-pong stunt, ＂kicked off＂ German semi-professional clubs and gained Sino-German friendship spanning 30 years.
Qianjiang evening news Hour Journalist Yang Jian
At 10 o’clock last Sunday night, Ling Ping, director of the International Sports and Leisure Research Center of Hangzhou Normal University, was wide awake. He tuned the TV to CCTV4 Chinese International Channel and waited for a TV program to be broadcast. In the next half an hour, this column of "China Yuan" will tell a story related to him.
This story is called Xia and His "China House". The protagonist Christian Sommer, whose Chinese name is Xia Jian ‘an, is the chairman of Jiangsu Taicang Deutschland Industrial and Commercial Center Co., Ltd.. In the past 27 years, he has made outstanding contributions to Sino-German economic and cultural exchanges. During this period, he organized a number of Sino-German exchange brand projects, and in 2017, he was named "Honorary Citizen of Suzhou".
Xia Jian ‘an and China became attached to each other, which originated from their acquaintance with Ling Ping 30 years ago, and this time-span Sino-German friendship started from a small table tennis ball.
Go to the semi-professional club in Germany to "kick the pavilion"
Also in the local sports newspaper.
Looking at the old photos on TV, Ling Ping’s memory surged and she couldn’t calm down for a long time. After the Spring Festival in 1991, Ling Ping came to Kiel City in northern Germany as an exchange scholar of Zhejiang University (formerly Hangzhou University). "At that time, Laohangda and the local Kiel University had cooperation and exchange programs, and I went to study sports management, industrialization, marketization and club development."
When she first arrived in Germany, Ling Ping got acquainted with Xia Jian ‘an by virtue of her excellent table tennis skills. "At the beginning, I played with German college students. They couldn’t beat me, so I found several masters from schools. When I found that I still couldn’t beat them, I took me to the local KTB table tennis club to try."
Ling Ping said that Xia Jian ‘an was three years younger than himself and was a member of the first team of the club. "They just started looking for players from the second team to play with me, and the players from the first team behind also came to play with me." After several games, Ling Ping’s skill conquered his opponent, and they invited Ling Ping to join the club to play together. "KTB Club was mainly playing the fourth level competition in Germany at that time, which was regarded as a semi-professional team."
Although she is not a professional table tennis player, Ling Ping is confident in her skills. "I practiced table tennis in Hangzhou Junior Sports School. In college, I won the second place in the table tennis competition of the National Institute of Physical Education on behalf of Shanghai Institute of Physical Education, and I was still a first-class athlete." Ling Ping said that on the one hand, he likes playing table tennis, on the other hand, he also wants to experience the sports events and club operation in Germany.
In this way, Ling Ping and Xia Jian ‘an became teammates and played games together every week. "At that time, the place where I lived was about an hour and a half drive from the competition venue, and I basically took his car." After a year and a half of competition, Ling Ping helped KTB club successfully advance to the third-level league, and attracted the favor of other clubs. "The local newspaper also reported that’ the arrival of Ling has greatly increased the strength of KTB Club’. After the upgrade, other clubs contacted me to play in the past." However, considering that she was about to return to China, Ling Pingwan refused these invitations.
It is worth mentioning that KTB Club has been registering Ling Ping for many years after he left Germany. "I went to Kiel, Germany again in 1999, and the teammates of the club said that you are still a member of our club and they will help me register players every year." Now, every time she goes to Germany, Ling Ping always takes time to go to KTB Club to see her old friends.
30 years of ping-pong friendship
Evolved into a special Sino-German friendship.
Outside the stadium, Ling Ping also established a profound friendship with Xia Jian ‘an. "We have the same hobbies and our personalities are quite in tune. Although I don’t speak German very well, his English is very good, and there is no obstacle for us to communicate together. " During his one and a half years in Germany, whenever he has free time, Xia Jian ‘an will take Ling Ping to local museums or famous scenic spots, introduce him to the local history and culture of Germany, and often invite him to parties.
Similarly, Ling Ping kept talking about China’s history, culture, scenery, food, etc. in front of Xia Jian ‘an. "In that year, we also went to the local Asian supermarket to buy ingredients and cooked China food for German friends." In the contact with Ling Ping, Xia Jian ‘an also took a keen interest in China. In the summer of 1992, before Ling Ping returned to China, Xia Jian ‘an vowed to him that I would definitely visit you in China in the future. Ling Ping also said that he will come to Germany again in the future.
After returning home, Ling Ping and Xia Jian ‘an kept in touch, writing letters and talking on the phone from time to time, and Xia Jian ‘an was always looking for an opportunity to go to China. At the end of December 1994, Ling Ping received a phone call from Xia Jian ‘an. He excitedly said that he would go to China in a week. "At that time, many German companies came to China to develop, and he won an internship in China."
At that time, there was only a flight to Beijing in Munich, Germany. Xia Jian ‘an wandered all the way and finally arrived in Shanghai, and Ling Ping also specially went to Shanghai to bring Xia Jian ‘an to Hangzhou. "Before he officially joined the job, he lived in my house for five days. I took him to the West Lake and Lingyin Temple to play. He especially liked to eat the big row made by my wife."
At the age of 31, Xia Jian ‘an fell in love with China. After that, he got a job in the German center in Shanghai, and soon gained his love and became a "son-in-law of China". Xia Jian’ an, who has taken root in China, has been committed to promoting economic and cultural exchanges between China and Germany, and his friendship with Ling Ping continues to precipitate. "He always invites me to the German Embassy for activities, and he will also come out to get together when I go to Shanghai, once or twice a year." Speaking of this, Ling Ping also remembered a special fate between them: "In 2006, I took my family to Kiel, Germany, and I happened to meet them on the street. It turned out that he also took his family back to Germany. What a coincidence."
Ling Ping said that table tennis is the most talked-about topic in the past 30 years. "He has been promoting the exchange of table tennis between the two countries. He once brokered the trip of German athlete Bohr to China, and took this opportunity to organize the’ Sino-German Friendship Cup’ table tennis international invitational tournament in 2016. This competition, which has been held for four consecutive years, has become the normalization of cultural and sports exchanges between China and Germany, and has become the only brand event in China with the table tennis match between China and Germany as the carrier."
In October this year, Xia Jian ‘an invited Ling Ping to participate in the latest "Sino-German Friendship Cup" table tennis international invitational tournament. "Unfortunately, due to repeated domestic epidemics, the event is currently suspended." Although the game failed to participate, it did not affect the two men’s skills. "In that month, he would bring German players to Hangzhou to play every weekend, and we also played against each other several times." What makes Ling Ping quite complacent is that after 30 years, his technology is still better. "We joked that he couldn’t beat me when he was young, but now he is almost 60 years old and still can’t beat me."
Last month, Xia Jian ‘an came to Hangzhou to shoot again with CCTV’s "China Edge" column, and gave Ling Ping a special gift-a racket with the signatures of many German table tennis players such as Bohr and Ochalov. "Our friendship is due to table tennis, and this racket is also the best testimony of our friendship."
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