Chinese Table Tennis Team visits Maldives on an Exchange Programme.

The visiting Chinese Table Tennis Team from HENAN Province that arrived in the Maldives on Wednesday on a four-day visit began their matches last night at the Male’ Sports Centre Table Tennis Hall. The first match was an Exhibition match by the Chinese players, who demonstrated outstanding skill and finesse and was a real treat from the young Maldivian players and spectators alike.

This was followed by Friendly matches between players from China and Maldives.  As expected the Maldivian players proved no match to the talented and experienced Chinese players. Nonetheless it was a valuable learning experience for all of them.

This morning a joint training session was held with the participation of junior and senior players.  The Chinese players helped our young players to learn new techniques and skills.

The Chinese team, which incidentally is the first table tennis team from China to visit the Maldives, is here at the invitation of the Table Tennis Association of Maldives and with the support of the Chinese Embassy in the Maldives.  The visit is part of the celebrations to mark the 40^th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Maldives and China.

The team comprising of 2 women and 2 men players and two officials is from the HENAN Provincial Sports Bureau.