When Chinese paddler Chen Meng won the women's singles table tennis gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics, she was 27 years old, which was not the youngest age compared with those who did before her.

For an athlete who began practicing table tennis at five, joined the provincial team at 10 and was recruited by the national team at 13, this was truly a long-waited title for Chen.

You could barely find enough words to praise Chen's skills and that's why she remained world's No. 1 player for two years. Coaches always trust her for her consistent performance and leave her a spot in the national team.

However, Chen was always one step away from winning the ultimate honor in singles competitions in major international events. She came so close changing that at the World Table Tennis Championships in 2019 in Budapest before losing to her teammate Liu Shiwen in the final.

As one of the most-trusted players of her generation, Chen won no titles at all in the ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation)-ATTU (Asian Table Tennis Union) Asian Cup, World Championships, Table Tennis World Cup or the Olympics in September 2020.

The turning point happened in the Chinese National Championship in October 2020 for Chen. She swept both Wang Manyu and Sun Yingsha 4-0 in the semifinal and final, winning her first national title. The victory made Chen feel like she was "20 years old again." "I have waited so long for this breakthrough and I finally grasped the opportunity. It's a new start for me," said Chen.

In the following November 2020, Chen made her debut in the Women's singles World Cup and won the final championship beating Sun 4-1. When Chen was holding the trophy in her hands, she shed tears in happiness. "There have been a lot of questioning voices about me for a long time. All of my titles were won in team events and I'm not happy with that. I really need a singles title to prove myself," said Chen.

"My Olympic resume has been blank but it's not necessarily a bad thing because it will drive me to work harder and do better," said Chen before departing for the Tokyo Olympics. "My ultimate goal is to win the Olympic goal and I will make solid steps toward it."

Chen realized that ultimate goal in Tokyo after defeating her teammate Sun 4-2 in women's singles final on July 29. But that's not the end game – on the contrary, that's the beginning of a new era.