By Margaret Carroll-Bergman – Correspondent
“Dylan Yang is the heart behind pingpong,” says Rachel Berger, faculty adviser to the Concord-Carlisle High School Ping Pong Club. “He brought everyone together.”
If Yang is the heart, the rhythmic sound of the small, plastic ball being struck by a paddle before hitting the table is the beat.
On a recent Wednesday afternoon, there were about 15 teenagers earnestly playing pingpong after school in the cafeteria. The noise was deafening. The scene could only be described as controlled chaos. Everyone was having fun.
“Generally, there would be about 20 to 40 kids,” said Berger. “But today is tryouts for many of the spring sports.”
A national pastime
Yang’s parents are from China, where pingpong is the national sport. His mother played for her city team; his father played recreationally.
“I really like pingpong,” said Yang. “I thought it would be nice to introduce pingpong [to Concord-Carlisle]. It’s not a sport that’s played a lot in the U.S.”
Yang’s mother played the game in China with celluloid balls — now considered highly flammable, but Yang said that plastic balls are the standard today.
“I think a lot of people liked them better; they go way faster,” he said of celluloid balls. “It’s a very different game entirely.”
While almost all of the players on that afternoon were boys, Sallie Wu, a sophomore, was representing the girls.
Wu’s parents are also from China. “We play pingpong at home,” she said.
A member of the student senate, Wu said, “Dylan is in my class and always talked about it.”
Yang, and the club’s other two co-founders, Kevin Li and Brendan Leonardo, presented their idea for the Ping Pong Club last year to the student senate.
“It’s fun,” said Wu of the club. “It’s mostly Dylan’s friends. I am trying to get my friends to come and join.”
Yang and Wu are not the only young people who have pingpong tables in their homes, where playing the game is part of the family culture.
For sophomore Rowan Liazos-Coffui, it’s an intergenerational game.
“My grandfather comes over every Monday to play pingpong at our house,” he said. “I joined the club because I love to play.”
[Table] tennis, anyone?
Pedro Nachbin moved to Concord in 2023 from Brazil. While many might know Nachbin from the CCHS tennis program, where he played second doubles in varsity tennis last year and made it to the state finals, Nachbin has respect for pingpong.
“Movement-wise it’s similar,” said Nachbin of the game played on a table top. “It [pingpong] helps because of racquet control and ball control and also the spins are similar. The main difference is the serve. It has to bounce once before you hit it. I move a lot. You get better shots when you move, but you can also play standing still.”
Nachbin played pingpong with his friends during lunch breaks in Brazil, where pingpong tables were set up in the school yard.
“We had a 30-minute break,” he said. “I would hold my sandwich in one hand and the racquet [paddle] in the other.”
The Zen of pingpong
While speed, good technique, and footwork are important for pingpong, there is also a Zen aspect to the sport.
“Never give up,” said Yang. “Even when you are losing, you should not give up inside. Try to solve whatever problems you’re facing. Try to figure out how to cope.”
Yang says he doesn’t play video games anymore.
“Pingpong is more fun because it engages the mind,” he said. “I get to spend more time with friends. It’s fun to play sports and just exercise a little bit, and takes stress out of a normal school day.”
