After losing the men’s singles title at the World Cup, there have been changes in the leadership of the Chinese Table Tennis Association. Today, on April 23rd, Liu Guoliang suddenly stepped down as the chairman of the Chinese Table Tennis Association, with Wang Liqin taking over and Ma Long becoming the vice chairman. This change makes Liu Guoliang the chairman with the shortest tenure in the history of the association.
The official Chinese state media Xinhua reported that on April 23rd, the 10th National Congress of the Chinese Table Tennis Association was held in Beijing. The congress approved Liu Guoliang’s resignation as the chairman of the Chinese Table Tennis Association; Wang Liqin was appointed as the new chairman, and Gao Yuanyi and Ma Long as vice chairmen.
Liu Guoqiang, the Deputy Director of the Chinese State Sports Administration, stated during the meeting that Liu Guoliang voluntarily resigned from the position of the chairman of the Chinese Table Tennis Association.
Liu Guoliang, 49 years old this year, is the first Chinese male table tennis player to achieve the “Grand Slam” in the Olympic Games, World Championships, and World Cup men’s singles. After retiring in 2002, he transitioned to coaching, serving as the head coach of the Chinese men’s table tennis team and the overall coach of the Chinese table tennis team. At the end of 2018, Liu Guoliang was elected as the chairman of the Chinese Table Tennis Association.
In 2020, Liu Guoliang became the chairman of the World Table Tennis Professional League (WTT). In 2021, he was elected as the Vice President of the International Table Tennis Federation, later promoted to First Vice President. In April 2023, he was re-elected as the Chairman of the 10th Chinese Table Tennis Association. According to regulations, the chairman of the Table Tennis Association changes every four years and can serve a maximum of two consecutive terms. Currently, Liu Guoliang has not completed two terms, resigning midway through his second term.
The sudden resignation of Liu Guoliang has surged to the top of the hot search list, sparking discussions.
Many netizens expressed their views, “Liu Guoliang is wise! The Chinese table tennis team is showing signs of decline, lacking dominance from athletes, and the overall atmosphere is not up to par.” “If the Chinese table tennis team continues on this path, they will not be able to escape blame in the future. The fan base started with him.” “If he doesn’t leave now, he won’t have the chance later, it’s about maintaining dignity.”
On the evening of April 20th, the 2025 International Table Tennis Federation World Cup concluded in Macao. In the men’s singles final, Brazilian player Hugo Calderano defeated Chinese player Lin Shidong with a score of 4-1, marking the first time the Chinese men’s table tennis team lost the singles championship at the ‘Big Three’ events since the 2017 World Cup, causing a stir in public opinion.
Many netizens lamented, “If they can’t succeed in football, that’s fine, but can’t they even win at table tennis?” “Is Brazil, the football powerhouse, now rising in table tennis as well?” Some netizens criticized the management of the Chinese Table Tennis Association, stating, “The Chinese table tennis team, like all state-owned enterprises in China, suffers from regionalism and exclusion of dissenters… This competition only reveals the tip of the iceberg, and if changes are not made, the losses will be even more severe.”
Some netizens also indicated a prediction made a year ago, “In less than five years, it is possible that table tennis from the West will no longer allow China to sweep all the medals! The reason is: Westerners are tall and strong, with large strides, powerful strength, and most importantly, they have innovative thinking and playing styles! China, on the other hand, tends towards the system…”
Regarding the reason for Liu Guoliang’s voluntary resignation, on January 29th, renowned mainland sports media figure He Xiaolong had previously disclosed that Liu Guoliang had lost control over the Chinese Table Tennis Association and the International Table Tennis Federation and was now in a situation where he couldn’t leave the country. Before this, Liu Guoliang had consecutively missed four important events, including the Asian Championships.
At that time, Sina.com speculated that if Liu Guoliang was to step down, there were three potential successors, including Wang Liqin, the vice president of the Chinese Table Tennis Association.