July 7, 2011
Adoni Responds
In my July 5 blog entry, I linked to several pictures of actor and table tennis player Adoni Maropis. In one, he was wearing rather prominent kneepads, so I jokingly wrote, "Yes, he has knee problems." Adoni responded via email, saying that he wears kneepads to dive for balls - and as someone who has battled with him on the table a number of times, I can verify that he is constantly diving for balls. He's sort of like the mountain goat of table tennis. (Oh boy, am I going to hear from him now!) He also wrote how he hates the photo I linked to about him "terrorizing the hardbat community," saying "I hate that pic...it looks like I have bad everything and either a huge beer gut or pregnant... or a woman... and oh so old." I'd comment on this, but when dealing with a guy who's blown up half the west coast and (when he's not diving on elephant-sized kneepads) kills every chance he can (at the table), I'll shut my mouth.
40th Anniversary Ping-Pong Diplomacy Celebration - SF Edition
Here's an article on the San Francisco ceremony, with lots of pictures. Pictured are former Chinese stars Cai Zhenhua and Liang Geliang, San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee, former Secretary of State George Schultz, and former USA star Judy Hoarfrost.
Tutoring and Table Tennis
I've been discussing with club members the idea of starting a tutoring service at the Maryland Table Tennis Center. We have so many kids coming in for lessons each day, so why not turn MDTTC into an all-service table tennis and tutoring center? They could bring their homework, and we'd find someone at the club who could be available for tutoring. Oh, that latter would be me!!! (I'm qualified to tutor math, English, and a few other subjects.) While I've tutored before, I've never done it in a formal setting, so I'm not sure of the best setup. Do I do it one-on-one on a case-by-case basis? In a group setting at scheduled times, such as Mon-Thu 4-6PM? How much to charge? If anyone has experience in these matters, let me know, either by commenting below or emailing me. Thanks!
Calories burned in table tennis
You thought you were just having fun, and it turns out you've been out for a walk!
Celebrities with USATT Ratings
Did I miss anyone? I'm sure there's someone obvious I left out. (See the Celebrities Playing Table Tennis page for pictures of over 700 celebrities playing table tennis, including the below.)
The Celebrity Rankings! |
|||||
|
Ranking |
Celebrity |
Occupation |
Current Rating |
Highest Rating |
Last Played |
|
1 |
|
Calligrapher |
1898 |
2067 |
June, 2011 (Played in U.S. Open in July) |
|
2 |
|
Actor |
1881 (Has a 2110 hardbat rating) |
1881 |
March, 2011 (played in U.S. Open in July) |
|
3 |
|
Puzzlist |
1799 |
1845 |
Feb, 2011 |
|
4 |
1983 World Series of Poker Champion |
1711 |
? |
Pre-1994 |
|
|
5 |
|
Comedian |
1670 |
1670 |
March, 2011 (Played in U.S. Open in July) |
| 6 | Judah Friedlander | Actor, Comedian | 1509 | 1510 | Oct., 2010 |
|
7 |
Governor of Delaware |
1223 |
1223 |
Apr, 2010 |
|
|
8? |
Actress |
Why isn't she rated? She plays at and co-owns the Spin Club in NY! |
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