Table Tennis Transforms Quiet Miss to Fearsome Competitor

Publicado en: Julio 30, 2010

 By: Ian Marshall, ITTF Publications Editor

07/29/2010        2010 The Central American and Caribbean Games

She sits quietly, sent by her mother to assist in the table tennis events at the Central American and Caribbean Games in the Puerto Rican town of San German.

Quiet not a word is uttered from the mouth of the petite nine year old, as she obediently follows maternal orders.

She sits placidly pressing the buttons that magically produce the players’ names and scores on the state-of-the art ultra modern electronic scoreboard.

However, when the matches are over, there is a total change; Adriana Diaz undergoes a total metamorphosis.

A Chance to Play
The pained expression on her face with button pressing duty over is suddenly transformed into a bright smile of delight and anticipation; there’s a chance to play table tennis!

Close Your Ears
Furthermore, there is always someone ready to play Adriana and I suggest she might soon run out of partners.

On the one hand they’ll be fed up of losing to the supremely talented young lady and secondly they’ll be deaf!

Win a point she shouts so loudly that she wakes everybody up in the athletes’ village 30 minutes away!

I’m absolutely convinced that she’s the reason my headphones have stopped working and I’ve had to spend $50 buying a new set!

Family
Adriana is the daughter of Bladimir and Maragely Diaz; she has two elder sisters, Melanie and Gabriela, one younger, Fabiola; all play table tennis, it the family rule.

I’m sure all the furniture in their house measures 2.74 metres in length is 1.525 metres wide and stands 76cm above the floor!

Revolution
In the small town of Utuado, they have completed a table tennis revolution.

They have set an example not only to Puerto Rico, the Caribbean and Latin America but also to the world. They give their time freely, they give their time to help young people, they give their time for table tennis and nothing is too much trouble.

Incredibly, from desperately seeking a corner in any hall to put a table, they have now progressed to owing a training hall with some 18 tables and a synthetic floor.

Boring!
The metamorphosis is the same as that which engulfs Adriana when moving from scorer to player.

“It’s boring, I nearly fall asleep”, said Adriana when asked about her new rule in officialdom at being an electronic scoreboard professional button presser.

“Table Tennis; everything is good about Table Tennis”, she added. “I just want to play; it’s good beating people who are older than me; that’s a challenge!”

Yes, everything is good about the way Adriana plays; she is outstanding, she is competitive and she loves every minute of the sport.

China
“In 2008 and 2009 I went to train in China, I’ve been to Chengdu and to Hebei”, said a smiling Adriana. “I’m going back there with my dad in August this year; it’s hard training in China but I enjoy being there and you learn a lot.”

Adriana Diaz is learning fast and in the future is surely a candidate for the ITTF World Hopes Team; the only problem is she is still too young!

Beware Marangely
Meanwhile, for the Diaz family, they make everyone so welcome in Puerto Rico, they are a credit to their country but beware Marangely!

Leticia Castelado, the Assistant Competition Director for the table tennis events at the Central American and Caribbean Games, kindly provided a very elegant cup for my coffee; perfect, Ming Dynasty worth millions.

Now, the delightful Marangely has been to the local shops and returned with another cup, Puerto Rican Dynasty 2010.

Whoops!
The reason: on the morning of Thursday 29th July I broke the shackles from my desk, moved away a few metres to speak to John Rojas who very ably records the results, and heard the crashing of pottery.

I turned to see a very embarrassed Marangely with pieces of pottery in one hand and a tube of glue in the other.

Of course the glue was VOC free!