Players from across cultures gathered on Friday at a Manhattan table tennis club to mark the 55th anniversary of Ping-Pong Diplomacy, in a reminder of the people-to-people exchanges that once reshaped China-US relations.

Players, including former US national champions, a Swedish national team member, professional competitors, collegiate athletes, and community players, joined diplomats, legal and financial professionals at SPIN New York Flatiron.



Chen Li, China's consul general in New York, speaks at an event marking the 55th anniversary of China-US Ping-Pong Diplomacy at SPIN New York Flatiron on Friday. Photo by Minlu Zhang/chinadaily.com.cnChen Li, China's consul general in New York, opened the celebration by recalling the "accident" that set history in motion. Fifty-five years ago, an American table tennis player mistakenly boarded the Chinese team's bus that turned into a friendly exchange, launched Ping-Pong Diplomacy, and paved the way for the first American team visit to China.

Chen recalled a motto well-known in China, "Friendship first, competition second," and said that American players at the time noticed that Chinese spectators cheered every fine shot, regardless of who won the point.

"They realized that rivals had become friends overnight. Few could have imagined that a friendly paddle volley would help turn the wheel of China-US relations," Chen said.

"The foundation of our relations was built by the people, and its future rests with our youth," Chen added. "You are all ambassadors of friendship."

Inside the club, regular customers from diverse cultural backgrounds played side by side. Among the event attendees was Rory Hayden. In 1972, at just 20 years old, she served as interpreter for the Chinese table tennis team during their first visit to the United States.



Daniel Desiato, 14, of Peach Blossom Haven Community in Boston, plays table tennis at an event marking the 55th anniversary of China-US Ping-Pong Diplomacy at SPIN New York Flatiron on Friday. Photo by Minlu Zhang/chinadaily.com.cnRecalling her experience with the young Chinese players at the time, Hayden said many of them had never traveled abroad before. Observing their curiosity, she said, "I was seeing what they were seeing," adding that they asked her many questions and that she quickly realized "they were just like me."

"I think that between people to people, there's always communication, because we're all the same. People have the same needs," Hayden said.

"If you have good relations, if you have friendship, then I think there is going to be very little conflict between two people. It's misunderstandings, if you don't know another people. So if you go and visit another country...you start to see, oh, we're all the same," she said.

She said younger generations should stay open-minded, and they should "keep their eyes and their hearts open to accept and understand the culture of the other people."

Among the youngest attendees was Daniel Desiato, a 14-year-old from the Peach Blossom Haven Community, a community center in Bosheton, Massachusetts.

On the table, he was all business: fast, focused, no-nonsense, sending balls across the net with a speed that belies his age. Daniel's connection to this anniversary ran deeper than his game. For a school project, he produced a documentary on China-US Ping-Pong Diplomacy researching, gathering archival photos and footage, and editing it together with a soundtrack. Reflecting on his research, he said, "Sports can really promote peace."

Brian Moran, 65, is the chief of staff at USA Table Tennis, the non-profit governing body for the sport in the United States. He has spent much of his career growing the game at the grassroots level, encouraging more clubs to open and getting more people to pick up a paddle. Moran said the commemorative event carries special meaning.

"I remember ping-pong previously as a kid, and it's just been a wonderful thing to have our countries be able to share this every five years and to make a celebration of it. It's a big deal," Moran said.

"We are all people, and whatever is going on in the countries and in the world, eventually it all settles down to getting along and everybody being part of a real community," he said.

Reporter: Minlu Zhang

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