Zhengding National Table Tennis Training Base

Zhengding National Table Tennis Training Base

The Zhengding National Table Tennis Training Base serves as a patriotic education base.

The Hebei Zhengding National Table Tennis Training Base and the China Table Tennis Association (CTTA) Zhengding International Training Center are located in the renowned historic and cultural city of Zhengding County.

The area is abundant in cultural relics, rich in cultural ambiance, blessed with scenic beauty, and enjoys a pleasant climate. It is famously known as the home of "nine towers, four pagodas, eight great temples, and twenty-four golden memorial archways." The legendary Three Kingdoms general Zhao Zilong of Changshan, hailed as the “Ever Victorious General,” hails from this region and remains a source of pride for the people of Zhengding. Zhengding is 260 kilometers north of Beijing, adjacent to the urban area of Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital of Hebei. It is conveniently connected via the Beijing-Guangzhou and Shijiazhuang-Dezhou railways, the Beijing-Shijiazhuang Expressway, and National Highway 107. The Shijiazhuang International Civil Airport is just 10 kilometers away from the training base, making transportation seamless and accessible in all directions.

The Hebei Zhengding National Table Tennis Training Base covers an area of 79,920 square meters, with a construction area of 24,181 square meters. It features high-standard training halls, a table tennis sports exhibition hall, dormitory buildings, multi-functional buildings, dining halls, and office buildings. There are three training halls totaling 5,000 square meters, capable of accommodating 120 table tennis tables for simultaneous training. There are four dormitory buildings, including 160 standard rooms and 16 luxury suites. The cafeteria can serve over 300 people. There is one large meeting room that accommodates 200 people and three smaller meeting rooms, each seating 20. There are also two reception rooms. The facility includes four international-standard tennis courts—two indoor and two outdoor—as well as an international-standard athletics field. The comprehensive fitness building houses a gym, sauna, physiotherapy room, billiards hall, dance hall, and other well-equipped facilities, making it a modern table tennis training venue that meets international standards.

The base originated from the table tennis team of Liucun Primary School in Zhengding in the early 1970s. Its founder, Director Wang Qingguang, was warmly received by the Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and was referred to by the Chairman as "the person who walks ahead of world champions."

In 1992, the base first hosted the Chinese women’s table tennis team, led by Zhang Xuelin, in preparation for the Barcelona Olympics. In 1995, it was officially named the “China Table Tennis Association (CTTA) Zhengding International Training Center” by the State Physical Culture and Sports Commission. The base primarily undertakes the closed training tasks of the national table tennis team before major world competitions. Since its establishment in 1992, the base has successfully completed 23 closed training sessions for the national team prior to major competitions, laying a solid foundation for the team’s outstanding achievements on the international stage. The athletes have embodied the “Chinese Table Tennis Spirit” of “boosting morale, fighting tenaciously, striving for excellence, and bringing glory to the country.” They have trained rigorously, improved their skills, and continuously innovated, establishing a strong foundation for success in international competitions. From here, athletes have gone on to compete in four Olympic Games, seven World Table Tennis Championships, and numerous other global events, winning 52 world championships (multiple times), 18 Olympic gold medals, and multiple silver and bronze medals. Renowned players such as Deng Yaping, Kong Linghui, Liu Guoliang, Wang Tao, Wang Nan, Zhang Yining, Li Ju, Qiao Hong, Yang Ying, Wang Liqin, Ma Lin, and Liu Guozheng all trained here before winning world titles. As a result, the Zhengding base is known as the “cradle” of world champions and is hailed by the national table tennis team as a “lucky land.”

As an international training center, the base undertakes the external exchange and training missions of the CTTA. It actively hosts intercontinental and global training exchanges such as the Asian Junior Summer Camp and the International Youth Training Camp. It has welcomed training teams from dozens of countries and regions, including the United States, Sweden, Russia, Canada, Italy, Malaysia, India, New Zealand, France, South Korea, Japan, as well as Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan Province of China. The base has organized four editions of the Asian Junior and International Youth Table Tennis Training Camps and has also hosted numerous national championships and large-scale table tennis competitions across various industries. It has contributed to the development and exchange of table tennis in China and around the world, as well as to peace and friendship.

To promote the noble spirit of patriotism demonstrated in the development of table tennis in China, the base was designated as a “Patriotic Education Base” by both Shijiazhuang City and Zhengding County in 2000. In early 1999, we established the “China Table Tennis Sports Exhibition Hall,” with a preface personally written by Xu Yinsheng, then Vice Chairman of the State Physical Culture and Sports Commission. This is the only exhibition in China dedicated to table tennis, showcasing the “table tennis spirit” of Chinese athletes who strive bravely and bring glory to the nation. Since its completion, the exhibition has attracted numerous young visitors, and the indomitable spirit of the Chinese table tennis team has deeply inspired them. The exhibition hall fully leverages its role as a patriotic education base to motivate and educate.

Currently, the base continues to develop and refine the content of the “China Table Tennis Sports Achievement Exhibition Hall,” one of the top ten initiatives in Zhengding County in 2004. Preparations are underway to apply for recognition as a patriotic education base in Hebei Province, adding new dimensions to patriotic education. This ensures that the evolving spirit of Chinese table tennis becomes widely known, contributing even more to the development of both material and spiritual civilization.

With the reform, opening-up, and development of China’s sports industry, the base will evolve into a sports industry and cultural hub that serves domestic and international table tennis clubs. It will integrate training, competition, teaching, research, training, and international exchange.