Adam Bobrow, who has acted in several movies and TV shows, is a superb Table Tennis player and has predicted that India will have their best show in Tokyo Olympics 2020.
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There is a question on every Indian fans about the country’s prospects in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics 2020. Many are cautious, some are having low-key expectations. But, one individual had a three-word answer. ‘The best yet’. These are the words of Adam Bobrow, a popular TV actor and Table Tennis commentator. Bobrow is well-known in Table Tennis circles. His unique way of presentation, his funny quirks on TT players and his programs have all yielded him 523,000 subscribers. There is a video on ‘A Year of Ping Pong‘ that has fetched him 1.6 crore views.
Bobrow is brilliant as an actor as well, acting in several TV series in the USA. The Mullets, Lucky Louie, Ping Pong Playa and Quarterlife are some of the TV shows that he has come on. But, he has lent his voices to plenty of video-games, especially Scooby Doo, Marvel and Samurai.
In an exclusive chat with sportslumo.com, Bobrow opened up on what made him so multi-talented. Curiosity was the key. “I think generally, staying curious, pursuing what I find interesting and being honest with myself about what I want and how I can improve. These have helped me in my goals so far. It seems that all things are connected in some way. So learning, in general, can turn out to be helpful in ways that we might have never predicted. Recognising there is always more to learn keeps the imagination working and can be quite inspiring as well. I would say I am a very curious person and plan to continue learning and improving,” Bobrow told sportslumo.
The coronavirus pandemic has cast a pall on the Tokyo Olympics 2020. After being postponed by a year due to the pandemic, Japan is in the midst of another deadly surge with close to 4000 cases a day. Fans are not being allowed inside the stadium which will present a different challenge. However, Bobrow believes this will put the Japanese players at a less advantage.
“In my experience, most TT players (and pro athletes in general) thrive and really use the energy of the fans in the crowd to fuel their performance. So, this might be a bit surreal for many athletes. Although for the last year and 4 months or so, many TT players have had some experience in a similarly vacuous environment. There will be a less home-court advantage for the Japanese athletes and there will be more of a spotlight on the play itself. Athletes will have less clutter to overcome in their focus. But everyone is an individual and I expect athletes to have all sorts of different reactions to the unique environment at this Olympics. In short, it will make things quieter. We’ll see how different athletes are affected by this,” Bobrow said.
But, when one talks about the world of Table Tennis, China has dominated the Olympics and world championships, unlike any other nation. Out of the 100 medals in the sport since 1988, China has won 53. Their gold tally is 28. Consider this, only two nations in the history of the Olympics have won the gold and that is South Korea and Sweden. China’s dominance of the sport is so thorough that the Olympics had to organize quotas so that they would not sweep all the medals.
Bobrow stated that to talk about China’s dominance, it would need a whole new book to describe how they are so good at it. “In short, support from the government and excellent training of large numbers of children from the age of 5 or 6 years old. Attention to detail, top-level coaches, incredible work ethic, competition, high salaries, and ‘hero status’ within the eyes of fellow citizens. These are all strong factors in continuing to motivate champions and build the next generation to fill the shoes of their predecessors. Regarding their dominance: Sure! Lots of things are possible. Will it happen overnight? I don’t imagine so. But if it does happen, it will take great effort and intention,” Bobrow said.
India has great players like Sharath Kamal, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Manika Batra. In the 2018 Commonwealth Games, the Indian Table Tennis team won three gold medals. Their tally of eight medals highlighted their brilliance. In the 2018 Asian Games, India had two bronze medals as China continued to dominate. But, Bobrow believes that the next generation of players in India is being moulded primarily because of the Ultimate Table Tennis League (UTT).
“It creates dreams for upcoming players and motivation for players of all ages. To be on national TV, playing against top players from around the world, is the dream of many athletes. Now, it’s available for Indians right in their home country. There is a great financial incentive, new opportunities to compete against a broad range of styles in an exciting atmosphere where not only your teammates but thousands of screaming fans are cheering and many millions more are watching on screens. UTT has clearly raised the level of Indian players on the global stage. I think UTT is the best thing to happen to table tennis in India. I think it can play a massive role in continuing to produce stronger players along with growing the sport,” Bobrow signed off.
