Emotional Milestone! Sun Yingsha Marks 10 Years with China’s National Table Tennis Team—16 Characters Reveal Her Ambitious Goal: A Grand Slam in Sight?

On September 1, Beijing time, Olympic table tennis champion Sun Yingsha shared a heartwarming photo of herself holding a cake. Atop the cake, a card read: “A decade of glory, a brighter future ahead!”

Ten years ago to the day, Sun Yingsha had just joined China’s national table tennis team. Over the past decade, she has risen through the ranks—from the second team to the first, from an ordinary player to a core member, and now to the top-ranked women’s singles player in the world. Her journey has been marked by relentless effort, unwavering determination, and countless hours of hard work.

Following last year’s Paris Olympics, Sun admitted to going through a period of emotional strain and pressure. However, her confidence was reignited this year after capturing back-to-back titles in the Women’s Singles at both the World Cup and the Doha World Championships.

To mark her 10th anniversary with the national team—and coinciding with the start of the new school term—Sun captioned her celebratory post:
“Ten years! It’s been wonderful. Keep the passion alive—there are still many peaks to climb and many dreams worth chasing! A new term begins, let’s keep moving forward!”

So far, Sun Yingsha has achieved two consecutive World Championship women’s singles titles, two consecutive World Cup women’s singles titles, three straight mixed doubles World Championship crowns, and two women’s doubles titles. Yet, one prize still eludes her—the Olympic singles gold medal, the final piece needed to complete a career Grand Slam.

Fans were quick to pick up on her message. The 16 words she shared—“more peaks to climb, more dreams to chase”—hint strongly at her ultimate goal: winning the women’s singles gold at the Los Angeles Olympics and securing her place among the sport’s Grand Slam greats.