Table tennis is a good way to bridge cultures and deepen people-to-people exchanges between Germany and China, said German veteran paddler Timo Boll.
Boll is in China accompanying German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier who is on his state visit to China from Tuesday to Saturday.
On Thursday, the Steinmeier couple and Boll played table tennis with faculty members of Peking University.
Boll said sports is more than just competition but a way to promote cultural and people-to-people exchanges.
"Be welcomed here in this awesome place, it's a big honor for me and I'm very thankful to have sport and to build bridges between countries, between cultures. It's always nice to have good memories with my Chinese colleagues. I learned from them. I hope I gave something back to them as well. It's not only competition, it's more than that," said Boll.
He said he has close friendships with many Chinese players.
"Ma Long, I play doubles in World Championships. I build a huge friendship with Fan Zhendong, also privately. He's playing right now in Dusseldorf. I just want him to feel comfortable in Germany. For me, it's good that he's there. We have more time to spend together and I just want him a good life. [I] try to build bridges between the cultures and the countries of China and Germany," he said.
Boll is the most successful German table tennis player of all time, having won several medals at Olympic Games, world cups, and world championships.
Table tennis good way to bridge cultures between Germany, China: Timo Boll
