World Champion Forced Out of China’s Table Tennis Team After a Remark by Gou Zhongwen—Returns After 8 Years, But Can Only Compete for Another Country

On April 20 (Beijing time), world table tennis champion Fang Bo announced that he will compete internationally under Kazakhstan, while retaining his Chinese nationality. The decision has reignited public attention toward the turning points in his career.

Looking back, Fang Bo was once considered a strong contender to become a core member of China’s national team. In 2009, at just 17 years old, he made history by winning four gold medals (team, doubles, mixed doubles, and singles) at the World Junior Championships—the first male player to achieve this feat. At the 2015 World Table Tennis Championships Suzhou 2015, he defeated Zhang Jike 4–1 in the semifinals to reach the final, where he finished as runner-up after losing 2–4 to Ma Long. Despite the loss, his future remained highly promising.

However, recurring wrist injuries significantly impacted his performance. He often had to rely on pain-relief injections to continue competing, which further strained his physical condition.

Beyond injuries, structural and policy changes within the national team also played a role. According to Fang Bo, during the 2017–2018 period, certain athletes gradually lost opportunities to compete at the highest level, leading to uncertainty about their futures.

Two of his peers from the same “1992 generation”—Zhou Yu and Yan An—also announced their departure from the national team on October 13, 2021. Since then, they have transitioned into livestreaming and business ventures, while Fang Bo has chosen to return to professional competition.

Now competing under Kazakhstan, he embarks on a new chapter—yet, as he emphasized, he will always take pride in having represented China.