Lily Yip is not one to rest on her laurels. If she were so inclined to recline, however, there would be plenty of broad, leafy accolades available. A two-time Olympian representing the United States, she is also a six-time national doubles champion and Pan Am Games gold medalist. The list goes on and on. In recognition of her many honors, she was conferred the supreme honor of induction into the USATT Hall of Fame in 2004. Her journey began in Guangzhou, China in 1963. Picking up the traditional Chinese penhold paddle at age seven, she blocked and smashed her way onto the Guangdong team by age 15. The next decade saw Yip emigrate to the United States, where she became a citizen in 1991. Her pips-out attacking style proved highly effective against the prevalent topspin-oriented offense, leading to Olympic appearances in 1992 and 1996, as well as four straight national doubles titles from 1992 to 1995. Transitioning to a career as a coach, now runs the Lily Yip Table Tennis Center in Dunellen, New Jersey. She has thrice been named the USATT National Coach of the Year. Yip is clearly not one to gather moss. To the contrary, she is still keen on gathering more laurels. Thus, she is the ideal candidate for the newly launched ITTF World Veterans Tour (WVT). Open to any player 40 or better, the tour offers competition in multiple age divisions, plus an exciting "Champion of Champions" playoff for all the division winners. The inaugural WVT event was held August 8-11 in Shenzhen, China, which neighbors her native Guangdong. Competing in the Women's 55-59 category, Yip finished second in her group, qualifying her for the knockout stage. There, Yip beat China's Hongli Yuan 3-1 in the round of 16. This earned her a matchup with top seed Aimin Li, also of China, in the quarterfinals. Unintimidated, Yip proceeded to systematically dismantle Li, (11-8, 11-7, 11-2). Suddenly, Yip found herself in the semifinals of a major international tournament. There, she faced Hui Gao, also of China. Unfortunately for Yip, Gao was too much, winning the match 3-1. Hui Gao would go on to win not only the 55-59 division, but also the overall "Champion of Champions" championship. While it is likely little consolation to a competitor like Lily Yip, she should certainly be proud of her remarkable run and valiant fight against the champion-elect Gao, winner not only of her age group but of the entire event. With such an auspicious debut, the future for both the World Veterans Tour and its distinguished participants such as Lily Yip certainly looks rosy. With four more stops on the WVT this year, there will certainly be more fireworks in store. October 17-20 will see the tour make its debut in Yip's adoptive homeland, touching down in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Odds are, she will be looking to improve upon her already impressive results. After all, you can never have too many laurels.

More at ITTF