Ping-Pong diplomatic offensive had its roots in Nagoya
04/01/2008
BY TOMOYOSHI ISOGAWA
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
For 27 years after the end of World War II, Japan and China remained hostile to each other on the Cold War front. But in 1972, they changed their respective diplomatic policies and normalized their relations. To learn the background to this, I went to Beijing to speak with witnesses to this turning point in history.
The historic decision to send a U.S. table tennis team to Beijing was The Asahi Shimbun's top story in its April 8, 1971, edition.
Wang Xiaoxian (LI JIANHUA)
Lin Liyun (LI JIANHUA)
I walked in sub-zero temperatures to the offices of the General Administration of Sport of China, located south of the heart of Beijing. There, I met Xu Yinsheng, a Ping-Pong star of the 1960s who is now president of the Chinese Table Tennis Association. In the conference room I was led to, various table tennis memorabilia, including the trophy of the 31st World Table Tennis Championships held in Nagoya in spring 1971, were on display.
It was during this Nagoya event at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium that the historic U.S.-China Ping-Pong diplomatic offensive was set in motion.
The eyes of the world were on Nagoya even before the championships began, as China was participating for the first time after a six-year absence because of the Cultural Revolution. (219 words)
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