根據(jù)國際乒聯(lián)消息，中國乒乓球協(xié)會(huì)聯(lián)合美國乒乓球協(xié)會(huì)向國際乒聯(lián)提交了允許中美混雙配隊(duì)參賽的申請。國際乒聯(lián)執(zhí)行委員會(huì)11月21日召開會(huì)議并批準(zhǔn)了該請求。

Chinese and US players will team up in the mixed doubles competition at the 2021 Houston World Table Tennis Championships, said the International Table Tennis Federation.Chinese player Lin Gaoyuan will partner with US player Lily Zhang, and US player Kanak Jha will partner with Chinese player Wang Manyu.
國際乒聯(lián)宣布，中美選手將跨國配對出戰(zhàn)2021年休斯敦世乒賽混雙比賽。中國選手林高遠(yuǎn)將搭檔美國選手張安，美國選手卡納克將搭檔中國選手王曼昱。

林高遠(yuǎn)表示：

I’m really happy to be partnering with Lily Zhang for the Mixed Doubles event. She’s the top table tennis player in the US, our goal is to come out on top for this event. The biggest advantage about pairing with her is that she speaks Mandarin. I hope we can get into the groove soon, develop good chemistry and work hard towards a great performance. And I hope fans from both China and the US will cheer on the China-US Mixed Doubles pairs.
很高興能夠與張安配對參加世乒賽的混雙比賽，張安是美國隊(duì)一號， 我們的目標(biāo)是爭第一。我們配合最大的優(yōu)勢是她也會(huì)說中文，希望我們能夠迅速進(jìn)入狀態(tài)，配合默契，通過努力取得好的成績。希望兩支球隊(duì)的球迷都能為我們這兩對混雙組合加油。

張安表示：

It’s going to be amazing; it is so cool to be able to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ping-Pong Diplomacy here in the US where the World championships will be held for the first time. I think it will be a historical moment, and I am really glad that our two countries are able to work together through sport. I am very excited to play with Lin Gaoyuan, it’s so cool to pair with a Chinese national team player. They’re the best in the world, so I will do my best and hopefully we can work well together and get a good result.
世乒賽首次在美國舉行，同時(shí)慶?！捌古彝饨弧?0周年，真是太棒了！我認(rèn)為這將是一個(gè)歷史性的時(shí)刻，我很高興我們兩國能夠通過體育進(jìn)行良好的合作。能和林高遠(yuǎn)一起打球我很興奮，和中國國家隊(duì)球員搭檔真是太棒了。他們是世界上最棒的，所以我會(huì)盡我所能，希望我們能很好地合作并取得好成績。

國際乒聯(lián)集團(tuán)首席執(zhí)行官史蒂夫·丹頓表示：

Once again, we are all witnessing the unique power of sport and how table tennis can create dialogues and foster mutual understanding. This will inspire us to deliver an extraordinary and historical Championships and to encourage the dreams, hopes and aspirations of not only the entire table tennis community but also the next generation worldwide.
我們要在休斯敦再次見證體育獨(dú)特的力量，以及乒乓球在創(chuàng)建對話、促進(jìn)相互理解方面發(fā)揮的作用。這將激勵(lì)我們展示一場精彩又深具歷史意義的世乒賽，激發(fā)整個(gè)乒乓球界乃至下一代追求夢想、希望和抱負(fù)。

世界乒乓球職業(yè)大聯(lián)盟（WTT）理事會(huì)主席、中國乒協(xié)主席劉國梁是促成本次中美混雙配對的關(guān)鍵人物，他表示：

A few days ago, when the Chinese team arrived in Houston, I was deeply moved by the efforts ITTF, USA Table Tennis and Houston Sports Authority put into organizing a sports event during a pandemic. We have been thinking about how we can build on the China-US friendship kickstarted by our predecessors 50 years ago, and further enhance this relationship through sports events, sports activities and community events. On this basis, the CTTA alongside USA Table Tennis proposed to ITTF to have Chinese and American players paired up for Mixed Doubles – so that these athletes, who are friends with each other, can work together in the competition; so that fans from both countries can cheer them on, opening a new chapter of Ping-Pong Diplomacy in this new era.
幾天之前，當(dāng)中國隊(duì)到達(dá)休斯敦，看到疫情期間國際乒聯(lián)、美國乒協(xié)、休斯敦體育局在組織賽事方面的努力，備受感動(dòng)。我們一直在思考，“乒乓外交”50年后的今天，我們?nèi)绾卧谇拜吅粚?shí)的中美友誼的基礎(chǔ)上，再深一步地通過體育賽事、體育活動(dòng)、民間活動(dòng)來增進(jìn)兩國的友誼?；诖?，中國乒協(xié)聯(lián)合美國乒協(xié)向國際乒聯(lián)提出混雙中美跨國配對的建議，讓這幾位原本就是朋友的運(yùn)動(dòng)員并肩上場，兩個(gè)國家的球迷們共同為他們歡呼和吶喊，奏響新時(shí)期“乒乓外交”新篇章。

【知識(shí)點(diǎn)】

“乒乓外交”（Ping-Pong Diplomacy）始于1971年在日本名古屋舉行的第31屆世界乒乓球錦標(biāo)賽（World Table Tennis Championships）期間美國選手科恩誤上了中國隊(duì)的大巴車，該事件促成了中華人民共和國與美國兩國乒乓球隊(duì)互訪的一系列事件（the series of history-making reciprocal visits by the US and Chinese national table tennis teams），從此結(jié)束了中美兩國20多年來人員交往隔絕的局面。中美兩國乒乓球隊(duì)的友好往來，不僅推動(dòng)了中美兩國關(guān)系正常化（normalizing the countries' strained relations）的進(jìn)程，也加速了新中國走向世界的步伐。

這并非世乒賽首次出現(xiàn)跨國配對。2015年蘇州世乒賽，在中國乒協(xié)的提議和推動(dòng)下，國際乒聯(lián)重新允許跨國組合參加世乒賽。

China's Ma Long and Germany's Timo Boll played doubles together at the Qoros 2015 World Table Tennis Championships held in Suzhou, China.
中國選手馬龍搭檔德國選手波爾參加蘇州世乒賽的男子雙打比賽。

Xu Xin paired with Yang Hae-un of South Korea to win the World Championships mixed doubles title in 2015.
許昕和韓國選手梁夏銀搭檔，拿到了2015年蘇州世乒賽的混雙冠軍。

兩年后的杜塞爾多夫世乒賽，方博搭檔德國選手索爾佳獲得了混雙季軍，也實(shí)現(xiàn)了德國隊(duì)的一大突破。

【相關(guān)詞匯】

友誼賽 friendship match

小組賽 group match

半決賽 semi-final

種子選手 seed/seeded player

男子單打 men's singles

女子單打 women's singles

男子雙打 men's doubles

女子雙打 women's doubles

衛(wèi)冕冠軍 defending champion

參考來源：新華網(wǎng)、中國日報(bào)、國際乒聯(lián)官網(wǎng)
編輯：Helen