OLYMPICS /
Other Teams
Old classmates meet in Beijing
China Daily
Updated: 2008-08-23 09:05
Li Jiawei was reunited with her childhood playmate at the Games Friday.
Li, representing Singapore, lost to Chinese counterpart Zhang Yining in the women's table tennis single semifinals.
The two are well acquainted with each other, being admitted at the same time to Beijing's Shichahai Sports School at the tender age of seven.
Li, who also lost to China's Guo Yue in the fight for a bronze, still felt relieved as the Singapore team had already bagged a silver in the group discipline.
Despite China's dominance in the event, Li and her teammates finally made it to the group final and made history, bagging the city-state's first medal in 48 years.
In an interview with Channel News Asia, the 27-year-old Beijing girl who went to Singapore 12 years ago, said anxiety led to her defeat.
"Today I thought I performed well. I felt I had a chance, but in the crucial third game I didn't hold on, I was a little too anxious," Li said. As Singapore's No 1 paddler, Li's aggressive style, and perhaps her passionate yell during competition, made her the No 1 opponent of her Chinese counterparts.