Table tennis

By Michelle Kaufman | The Miami Herald

BEIJING — Track and field and baseball aren't the only sports with performance-enhancing issues. Try heading over to Olympic table tennis. Yes, table tennis. Just outside the Peking University Gymnasium is a white tent labeled "Gluing Room,'' and that is where the world's best table tennis players can be found juicing their paddles and sniffing glue between matches.

Unlike the rest of us, who call the sport Ping Pong and dig dented balls out from under our water heaters, Olympic table tennis players take their equipment very seriously. They like to strip the rubber padding off their paddles between matches and affix fresh rubber on with "speed glue.'' Therein lies the controversy.

It is perfectly legal to re-glue rubber onto blades between matches. Players come prepared with glue bottles, brushes, scissors, rolling pins (to flatten the rubber) and hair dryers (to dry the paddles). The glue seeps into the spongy surface beneath the rubber and gives the paddle more speed and bounce. But the glue also contains toxic fumes, and prolonged exposure could be harmful to players.

One Japanese player collapsed while gluing his paddle during a tournament last year. It has become such a concern that as of Sept. 1, the International Table Tennis Federation will ban glues containing "volatile compounds'' and allow only water-based glues. Paddles will be tested in a special glue-sniffing contraption before matches, essentially going through doping control just like Olympic athletes.

Players don't like the new rule because they think it will slow down the game. The water-based glues apparently don't give the paddles the same kick as the toxic ones. But many of the sport's officials believe the ball travels too fast – it sometimes reaches speeds of 65 mph - and is difficult for the average fan to follow, so the new rule might enhance the spectator experience.

They already tried to slow down the game by increasing the size of the ball from 38 millimeters in diameter to 40 millimeters. Elite table tennis players are so keen on speed that many of them choose to use "short pips'' paddles with short rubber nubs, rather than the "long pips,'' which offer more control but less speed.

"The new rule will make the rackets slower, so players don't like it,'' U.S. coach Doru Gheorghe said. "They like it as fast as possible. But for spectators it will be better. I think the players will adjust and do whatever they have to do to add speed to the racket. They'll start using carbon blades, find new glues. They will find ways.''

U.S. player Chen Wang, who on Thursday became the first American ever to reach the quarterfinals, agreed the new glue rule will alter the sport.

"They want the game to look better on TV for the spectators,'' said Wang, who lost her quarterfinal match to Li Jia Wei of Singapore, 4-1. "The ball can be hard to see, especially for people who don't watch the sport a lot, so they want to try to do something to make it easier. But the players will feel less power off the racket, so it will be a little different.''

One place fans have little trouble following the ball is China, where table tennis is a national sport. Since the sport was introduced to the Olympics in 1988, Chinese women have won all five gold medals. The top five ranked women in the world are Chinese. The men's teams have also excelled, with four of the world's top players in 2008.

The Olympic table tennis matches have been nearly sold out, and fans are clearly knowledgeable, roaring at just the right times. Unlike tennis, during which fans must stay silent, table tennis fans are allowed to make noise. And they do.

That is one reason it was so special for Wang to be playing here. She grew up in Beijing and was selected in first grade to join a table tennis team. All the children were asked to throw a ping pong ball into a small basket, and the best three were chosen. By 9, she was living in a junior training center, and by 12, she was playing in major tournaments.

Wang was China's No. 4 player, but was passed over twice for the Olympic team. In 1999, she quit the sport and moved to the United States to help her sister run her store. Before long, she was giving table tennis lessons in New York City and working at a local club. With the help of Jerry Wartski, a Holocaust survivor and table tennis club owner, she made a comeback.

And, as luck would have it, she was able to finally fulfill her Olympic dream in her hometown.

"This is very special for me,'' she said. "I was famous here 10 years ago, but no so many people remember me anymore. Still, when they see my name, they cheer for me. When I was playing for China, there was a lot of pressure on me. Chinese athletes can't lose. They have to win the gold medal. Now, there is not so much pressure, but still I was nervous. Before my first-round singles match I couldn't breathe. But I had a massage, relaxed, and by (Thursday) I was totally into it.''

Wang says she'll retire now. Just in time before they slow down those paddles.