Road from China talent factory to pickleball glory paved with tears and cheers for Kong

Kong Lingwei wanted to be a tennis star, but somewhere in Wichita she swapped her racquet for a paddle and has never looked back

A natural gift for tennis felt more of a curse than a blessing for Kong Lingwei when, at the age of 10, she was sent away to Guangdong Ersha Sports Training Centre.

“It was pretty sad, and I cried a lot,” Kong said. “But I knew I wanted to be a professional tennis player, so I had to hide my emotions and be strong.”

Christened the “cradle of champions”, Guangdong Ersha’s alumni, including diving star Quan Hongchan, delivered eight gold, two silver and two bronze from the 2024 Olympics.

Since opening 72 years ago, the talent factory has produced more than 120 world champions. In Kong, it nurtured the first individual from mainland China to earn a full-time living from pickleball.

The singles world No 16, and ranked third in Asia, Kong is poised for an assault on three titles from the US$1.1 million Hang Seng Bank Hong Kong Slam in October.

“Really good at running and other sports, and very athletic”, as a child in Hunan province, Kong zeroed in on tennis after a coach alerted her parents to their daughter’s potential following a school event.