64-year-old Li Chunli Breaks Record Again

On March 30 (Beijing time), the group stage of the 2026 Table Tennis World Cup, held in Macao, China, officially got underway. Chunli Li, a 64-year-old player from New Zealand, lost 1–3 to 41-year-old French player Jia Nan Yuan in her debut match, missing out on a winning start. However, for Chunli Li, simply standing on this stage is already a success. 

Chunli Li was born in 1962 in Guiping, Guangxi. She was selected for the Chinese national team in 1981. In 1987, at the age of 24, she retired from the Chinese national team and later represented New Zealand at four Olympic Games in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004. 

In 2005, Chunli Li became the head coach of the New Zealand national team, but she did not step away from competition. Unfortunately, she missed the Beijing Olympics due to injury. Despite getting older, she has remained active as a player in the world of table tennis. Last year, at the age of 63, she qualified for the Table Tennis World Cup, setting the record as the oldest participant in the tournament’s history. This year, she once again secured qualification through strong performances, returning to the World Cup at the age of 64 and breaking her own record.