Before the 100th anniversary of the 2026 London World Championships, recalling the legend of the English table tennis world

As the 2026 World Table Tennis Championships is about to return to the sport's origins in 1926, we go back to the glorious years of the English table tennis world. Today's protagonist Denis Neale - one of England's last World Championships individual medalists, a legendary player wearing the national team's jersey for nearly 500 times, still continues his indissoluble bond with table tennis with passion.

Some players have made their name in history with their talents, while others have created legends with their persistence. And Dennis Neal has both, and it's more than that.

When you are one of the last pair of England to win individual medals at the World Championships, when you compete in the national team robe nearly 500 times, when you lead the club to dominate Europe, when decades later, your love for this sport still drives you to devote yourself to your coaching career - you are worthy of being the "Great Man in the English Table Tennis World".

This is the true portrayal of Dennis, who has also become the core figure in the latest interviews in the "Road to London 2026" series of Table Tennis Association.

At the 1969 Munich World Championships, he and Mary Wright won the third place in the mixed doubles. This cooperation still makes him cherish it: "Mary is a world-class player, and we have won more than ten domestic and foreign championships together. The key to doubles is chemistry, and we happen to be perfect. "

This bronze medal is hard-won: "Every game is a tough battle. After winning the semi-finals, we advanced to the semi-finals, and finally lost to the championship combination of that year. " Behind the understatement is a brilliant achievement that the English table tennis world has never surpassed in decades. Although the World Championship medal is a career champion, the six national men's singles championships also demonstrate its dominance. He has defeated top players of the same era such as Ian Harrison and Chester Barnes: "It feels like a dream when he first won the national championship, and once he tastes the taste of victory, he will desire more. "

This desire will be difficult to calm once it is awakened.

Like all great sports stories, Dennis' legend begins with an accidental encounter. At the age of 13, at the Newport Boys Club in Middlesbrough, he met the fate-changing Alan Lansem: "I beat him! This inspired me to keep improving. At that time, I trained at least six hours a day, seven days a week, and I enjoyed it. "

This persistence eventually led to an unprecedented achievement in the English table tennis world. In 1972, he and Olmsby club teammates won the only European Club Cup in England's history. Even half a century later, he still said emotionally: "I choked up when I gave a speech during the fiftieth anniversary, and my teammate Nicky Jarvis burst into tears. Some moments always linger in my heart. But Dennis's career is not only a pile of medals, but also created by countless legends in an instant. The famous leap of the Crystal Palace diving platform is eternally fixed by the camera, and it is still talked about: "I have trained there hundreds of times and vowed to jump off the jump if I lose to Chester Barnes. I really lost! The media gathered at that time, and I cheered when I jumped down - no one knew that it was a common move. "

The visit to No. 10 Downing Street confirmed that table tennis had received the attention of the top British society.

The most touching thing throughout the interview is his unswerving love for table tennis. It is this love that supports him to complete six hours of hard training every day, driving him to fight for the country for nearly 500 times, and making him still stick to his coaching position: "This sport has given me a decent life, but the most important thing is that I really love table tennis. "

As the 100th anniversary celebration of the 2026 London World Championships approaches, Dennis Neal's story once again reminds us: how this sport can capture people's hearts and change destiny. The journey from Middlesbrough teenagers to world medal winners is a microcosm of every shooter’s dream.

Table Tennis Network Hu Qingyuan