by Wade Townsend

With contracts expiring, the Chinese national table tennis team are looking to fill all twenty one positions on their coaching staff.

National Sports Bureau officials will meet in Anshan, Liaoning Province in the coming days to decide which applicants will get the jobs on offer.

The top roles of men’s and women’s coaches require applicants to be a previous Olympic gold medallist and/or World Champion. A bachelor’s degree is also necessary. That is an impressive resume, leaving only a handful of possible candidates.

Wang Hao and Ma Lin are two names that have been thrown around to possibly fill the vacancies, with reports suggesting one will  take the position of men’s team coach.

Rumours of a promotion to another role for Liu Guoliang are circulating, while others speculate he will remain as general manager over both men’s and women’s teams.