Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers may be hearing the cheers of legions of Cheeseheads, but these days, a growing number of sports fans in the dairy state are also cheering the winning ways of a talented University of Wisconsin Table Tennis Club.

It’s been a rapid ascent for the 3-year old Wisconsin program; the Badgers coed team is ranked No. 4 in the NCTTA's 2009-2019 pre-season rankings. Just a notch above is No. 3 Lindenwood University of Missouri, while the perennial top 10 team from Virginia Tech holds the No. 5 spot. Not bad company for the still nascent Wisconsin team.

On a Madison campus with a popular creamery that's among the best in America, the Badgers started out as a club in 2006 with three antique wooden tables in a small room in the student union. During the summer before their freshmen year as Wisconsin students, Richard Qian and Brian Hibler hatched the idea for a club in Brian's home basement. Both were Brookfield, Wis. residents and longtime players in their hometown. Qian later met fellow student Andrew Knips and went to work to build the team.
 
Fast-forward to the fall of 2009, and they play in a full gym with eight tables on a nice wooden floor. When much attention on campus was being paid to Wisconsin star quarterback Scott Tolzien’s four-touchdown, Big Ten's Offensive Player of the Week performance in the football team’s 38-30 win over Michigan State on Sept. 26, members of the Wisconsin table tennis team quietly went about their business on their gym floor.
 
After all, there are usually only a handful of weeks in September and October for college teams to get ready for the 2009-2010 Competition Season across the U.S, Canada and Puerto Rico.
 
"We have a group of very dedicated players who really enjoy playing table tennis,'' says Qian, a leader on the team from the beginning. “Our practice starts at 8:30 pm and many people don't leave until 1 a.m.'' Get there early. Stay late. It's a way of life for practice sessions on a Big Ten campus that's the academic and cultural heart of Wisconsin's capital city.
 
The practice sessions, he says, prove to be "really valuable and precious when you see that many people love to play. It's not only advanced players, but beginner players as well.'' The best players on the Wisconsin team are from Europe and Asia. The top player is from Croatia and there are a couple of stellar players from China. Go to a club meeting on the Madison campus, and listen to the different languages spoken. "Clearly, we encourage diversity,'' Qian said. "Club members get to know more friends from different backgrounds.''
 
During the club's first semester, there were less than 20 members playing on three old tables. The second year, there were 150 Wisconsin-Madison students flocking to tryouts! Several Badger standouts brought the team to national prominence in a short time. Andrew Knips of St. Paul, Minn. who graduated in the spring of 2009, was the club's first head coach. He brought national table tennis experience from Minnesota with him as he assisted players. Today, although the Wisconsin club lacks an official head coach, all of its top players pitch in to serve as coaches. Players videotape one another and try to improve their skills - from wicked serves to ferocious slams.
 
A graduate student from Croatia, Matija Kazalicki was considered the "giant killer'' in tournaments and the leader who carried the Badgers to a No. 6 ranking in the NCTTA Nationals during the team's first year. Richard Huang, the 3rd or 4th best player on the team, is serving as club president this year. He's a steady player who often came up with victories in many close matches.
 
Qian, who is busy hitting the books as a senior this fall, is also taking time out of his busy schedule to serve on the NCTTA's Media Relations Committee. It's a way for him to give back to the sport he loves. The 21-year-old has also has penned a 27-page guide for future club leaders at Wisconsin. In his judgement, you don't need to be a tall or super muscular person to play this fast-moving game, an Olympic sport since 1988. There's a feeling, he says, that "normal people can be extraordinary players, too.''


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