Logan Goes to the Junior Olympics

Logan practiced hard before going to the Junior Olympics. Although he did not win any medals, he competed valiantly, and enjoyed playing and watching the best juniors in the country. His report from the 2005 Junior Olympics follows. Read on!

My Experience at the 2005 Junior Olympics by Logan Rudemiller

I am in awe. Towards the end of last summer, when I first started playing at the Baton Rouge Table Tennis Club, I never thought that less than a year later I would be participating in the Junior Olympics! I have never seen so many top-notch players in action at the same time. Needless to say, most of them cleaned my clock. The good news is that I received some valid tips and met some real cool people. This tournament inspired me more than anything else.

The table tennis events for the 2005 Junior Olympics were held in Mandeville, LA. When I first walked into The Castine Center, the table tennis building for the weekend, I saw twelve Butterfly tables just waiting for people play on them. It was beautiful. The atmosphere was awesome. If someone didn't know any better, after spending the weekend at The Castine Center they might think that table tennis is America's main sport. I have never been around so many people who are devoted to learning the game of table tennis. Anyway, I quickly claimed a table and started practicing with my buddy Karl. This day was just for practice and familiarizing oneself with the playing area, though. The next day is when the tournament kicked off.

Even though the Junior Olympics were held in LA, kids came from all over the nation. One of the coolest things about the tournament was the variety of states represented and the variety of people in general. My first four opponents were all from different states! Luckily for me, the junior Olympics were held within an hour and a half of where I live. Can you imagine what an experience it would be to come from somewhere up north? The west coast? New England?

It seems like for the u-16 and u-18 boys divisions, the best representation was given by New Jersey, Minnesota, and Colorado. David Zhuang, one of the top U.S. players, headed the New Jersey group as the coach. Eric Finkelstein, an accomplished student of his, won the u-18 Junior Nationals. Ming Curran and Anders Truelson, champions of the u-16 Junior Olympics doubles event, put Minnesota on the table tennis map. Last but certainly not least, perhaps the most impressive younger junior in my eyes was Yahao Zhang of Colorado. Even though he is still eligible for the u-14 division, he was the u-16 Junior Nationals champion and u-18 Junior Nationals finalist. Keep in mind that those are just a few of the states represented. I can't count all of them!