Meeting Marks Publication of Memoirs on Ping-Pong Diplomacy

The year 2011 marked the 40th anniversary of the “Ping-Pong Diplomacy” that was a symbolic turning point in Sino-American relations. The late Chairman Mao Zedong， Premier Zhou Enlai and other Chinese leaders of the older generation showed great foresight when making the decision to invite the US table tennis team—then competing in the World Table Tennis Championships in Nagoya， Japan in 1971—to visit China. This small step has gone down in history as “Ping-Pong Diplomacy” that has been referred to on occasions as “the small white balls turning the globe”. It added a brilliant chapter to the annals of diplomacy of New China and marked a significant step in its emergence onto the world stage.

The whole thing began by accident with an American player getting onto the wrong bus and finding himself confronted with members of the Chinese team. A friendly conversation ensued that led to the idea of inviting the Americans to play on the mainland. Nobody could have imagined that from this small step would come， first， the visit to China in 1972 by American President Richard Nixon and， finally， to the reopening of relations between China and the U.S. after 22 years of estrangement that stunned the world. It also played an important role in the normalization of relations between China and Japan.

In 1971， non-governmental Japanese friendly personages such as Koji Koto， President of the Japan Table Tennis Association (JTTA)， having no thought of their own safety， overcame various difficulties and interference to take what was a politically risky step in inviting the Chinese table tennis delegation to attend the 31st World Table Tennis Championship in Nagoya. This， in itself， was enough to generate much excitement and heightened public interest in this sporting event. The championships proved a great triumph for the Chinese team， returning after a long absence to re-establish dominance in the sport—dwarfed， however， by the political events that gradually unfolded.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the event and review the history of that period， as well as to pass on the spirit of friendship and openness embodied in the Ping-Pong Diplomacy to the younger generation for long-lasting Sino-Japanese friendship， the CPAFFC， the Aichi Prefecture Japan-China Friendship Association (APJCFA) and the Chinese Consulate General in Nagoya worked together and publish the book， Memoirs on Ping-Pong Diplomacy. Former State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan wrote the preface. Included in the book are articles by more than 20 Chinese and Japanese witnesses. They unveiled many unknown historical details and anecdotes and their articles are rich in content， well written and worth being taken as valuable records of that history. The Chinese version of the memoirs was published by the Central Party Literature Press in May 2011， and the Japanese version was due to appear in 2012. The book is the fruit of the joint efforts by relevant Chinese and Japanese personages and the latest product of bilateral friendly cooperation.

On December 21， 2011， the CPAFFC， the Chinese Table Tennis Association (CTTA)， the China- Japan Friendship Association (CJFA)， and the JTTA jointly held a meeting to mark the publication of the book. Tang Jiaxuan， former State Councilor and Honorary Advisor to the CJFA， Liu Deyou， former Deputy Cultural Minister， Wang Xiaoxian and Chen Yongchang， Vice Presidents of the CJFA， Jing Dunquan， Vice President of the CPAFFC and the CJFA， Liu Fengyan， Secretary General of the CTTA， Wang Taiping， the book’s Chief Editor and former Chinese Consul General in Osaka， Atsushi Goto， former President of the Asia Table Tennis Union and President of the APJCFA， Kyuhei Muraoka， Director General of the JCFA， Koji Kimura， Vice President of the JTTA， Shigeo Yamada， Minister of the Japanese Embassy in China， retired table tennis players who were part of the events， personages from relevant organizations of China and Japan and media representatives， totaling about 100 people， attended the meeting.

This included the book presentation ceremony and the signing ceremony for the Sino-Japanese Friendship-City Middle School Students Table Tennis Friendship Competition. The Middle School Students Table Tennis Friendship Competition， a large-scale friendly exchange project planned and organized by the CJFA， the CTTA， the JCFA and the JTTA to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan， will be held in Beijing in mid-August 2012.

Anecdote by Geoffrey Murray

I was among those present in Nagoya in 1971， then the Tokyo news editor of the famous Reuters news agency. The return of China to the highest level of table tennis competition was a good story in itself and I spent two weeks in Nagoya reporting all the matches and the steady progress of the Chinese team to various triumphs. But my greatest moment as a journalist was being the first to report the invitation to the Americans to visit the mainland. While watching the matches from the grandstand each day， I had got into conversation with an American lady who had traveled to Japan to support her national team and had close contact with players. It was she who revealed the invitation to me and I immediately rushed off to find the American team manager to get confirmation. With that， I sent off my story to Reuters in London and the report quickly flashed around the world. I then had the great satisfaction of watching the Japanese journalists present answering their telephones to be rebuked by their editors for having this “scoop” stolen from under their noses by a foreigner. Ping pong diplomacy showed just what could be done by for individuals rather than governments， in promoting global friendship.

Geoffrey Murray， now a long-time resident of Beijing， works for the Editorial Board of Voice of Friendship.