Ready to seize their golden opportunity

Fan fired up

Considering his already bulging trophy cabinet, it also seems strange to think that top-ranked Fan is making his Olympic debut. However, he has not been showing any sign of nerves.

"Everyone has the desire to succeed, and the Olympics are the biggest platform for us to show the best of ourselves. So I hope I can produce good performances to display my skills. However, we cannot let the pressure affect us and make us scared. We should show our desire and prove ourselves," said the 24-year-old world champion.

"I have never competed at any Olympics, and I think there are two sides to this coin. Because I have never been there, and I don't know what it's like, I might be fearless. But, on the other hand, because I'm not that experienced, there could be details at the Olympics that I don't know about. So I need to maintain good communication with the team leader and coaches, who all have Olympic experience."

For veteran Ma, Tokyo will very likely be his last Olympics. The three-time Olympic gold medalist and reigning men's singles champion admitted that the postponement of the Tokyo Games made his preparations extra tough.

"In the first half of 2020, we just kept training behind closed doors at the same place, and at that time we did not know how the pandemic would pan out, and all the matches were canceled," said the 32-year-old.

"When competitions returned, we had new targets. As long as there are chances, we will try our best. It's not about just testing our previous training, it's also about being more focused on the matches."