Zhang Yining facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Zhang Yining
Full name	Zhang Yining
Born	(1981-10-05) 5 October 1981 (age 43) Beijing, China
Playing style	Shake hands grip
Highest ranking	1
Height	168 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Weight	54 kg (119 lb)
Medal record Women's table tennis Representing  China Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 4 0 0 World Championships 10 2 4 World Cup 4 2 1 Olympics Games Gold 2004 Athens Singles Gold 2004 Athens Doubles Gold 2008 Beijing Singles Gold 2008 Beijing Team World Championships Gold 2000 Kuala Lumpur Team Gold 2001 Osaka Team Gold 2003 Paris Doubles Gold 2004 Doha Team Gold 2005 Shanghai Singles Gold 2005 Shanghai Doubles Gold 2006 Bremen Team Gold 2007 Zagreb Doubles Gold 2008 Guangzhou Team Gold 2009 Yokohama Singles Silver 1999 Eindhoven Singles Silver 2003 Paris Singles Bronze 1999 Eindhoven Doubles Bronze 2001 Osaka Singles Bronze 2001 Osaka Doubles Bronze 2007 Zagreb Singles World Cup Gold 2001 Wuhu Singles Gold 2002 Singapore Singles Gold 2004 Hangzhou Singles Gold 2005 Guangzhou Singles Silver 2006 Urumqi Singles Silver 2007 Chengdu Singles Bronze 2003 Hong Kong Singles Asian Games Gold 1998 Bangkok Team Gold 2002 Busan Singles Silver 2002 Busan Doubles Silver 2002 Busan Team

Zhang Yining (Chinese: 张怡宁; pinyin: Zhāng Yíníng) is a famous Chinese table tennis player. She was born on October 5, 1981. Many people think she is one of the best female table tennis players ever. She stopped playing professionally in 2009.

Zhang Yining has won gold medals in all the major table tennis events. These include the Table Tennis World Cup, the World Table Tennis Championships, and the Olympic Games. She is also the first female player to achieve a "Double Grand Slam." This means she won the singles title at the Olympics, World Championships, and World Cup twice!

Her Amazing Career

Zhang Yining was ranked the number one player in the world by the ITTF. She held this top spot almost continuously from 2003 to 2009. She was a very strong player in women's table tennis.

She won four Olympic gold medals. She also won ten World Table Tennis Championships and four Table Tennis World Cup titles. During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, people often called her "The Yellow Beast." This nickname showed how dominant she was in the sport.

Zhang used special equipment for her games. Her paddle blade was a "Zhang Yining ZLC" made by Butterfly. For her forehand, she used "Tenergy 05," and for her backhand, she used "Tenergy 64."

Zhang Yining studied at the Beijing Shichahai Sports School. This is the same school where another famous player, Li Jiawei from Singapore, also trained.

Life After Table Tennis

Zhang Yining got married in October 2009. After that, she stopped playing in table tennis tournaments. In 2011, she officially announced her retirement from international play.

She then moved to the United States to study. She went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Her goal was to learn to speak English better. This made her one of the few players to retire while still holding both World and Olympic titles. Zhang also said she wanted to help introduce table tennis to people in America.

Since 2010, Zhang Yining has been working. She is the assistant president of the China Table Tennis College in Shanghai.

Her Many Wins

Zhang Yining has won many important competitions. Here are some of her biggest successes:

• 1999: Silver medal in Women's Singles at the 45th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2000: Gold medal in Women's Team at the 45th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2001: Gold medal in Women's Singles at the 5th Table Tennis World Cup.
• 2001: Gold medal in Women's Team at the 46th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2002: Gold medal in Women's Singles at the 6th Table Tennis World Cup.
• 2003: Gold medal in Women's Doubles at the 47th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2004: Gold medal in Women's Singles and Women's Doubles at the 28th Olympiad (Athens).
• 2004: Gold medal in Women's Singles at the 8th Table Tennis World Cup.
• 2005: Gold medal in Women's Singles and Women's Doubles at the 48th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2005: Gold medal in Women's Singles at the 9th Table Tennis World Cup.
• 2006: Gold medal in Women's Team at the 48th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2007: Gold medal in Women's Doubles at the 49th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2008: Gold medal in Women's Team at the 49th World Table Tennis Championships.
• 2008: Gold medal in Women's Singles and Women's Team at the 29th Olympiad (Beijing).
• 2009: Gold medal in Women's Singles at the 50th World Table Tennis Championships.

Olympic Highlights

2008 Beijing Olympics

Zhang Yining competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics held in Beijing, China. She won two gold medals there. She won gold in both the women's singles and the women's team events.

In the women's singles final, she played against her teammate, Wang Nan. Zhang Yining won the match, keeping her Olympic gold medal in singles. The final score was 8-11, 13–11, 11–8, 11–8, 11–3.

She had also won the women's doubles gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.

Click here to see more details about the 2008 Summer Olympics Table Tennis competition results.

Olympic Oath

At the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Zhang Yining had a very special role. She took the Olympic Oath on behalf of all the athletes competing in the Games. This is a great honor for an athlete.

See also

In Spanish: Zhang Yining para niños

• List of multiple Olympic gold medalists