Mark Hazinski: Newest and Youngest U.S. Team Member

By Dan Seemiller

Photo by John Oros copyright 2001

The first time I saw Mark Hazinski was in the summer of 1993. Brad Balmer, one of the club officers, had asked me to come take a look at the South Bend junior players and give a weekend clinic. Mark was playing on table five, he was eight years old. I was struck by how effortless and technically correct his strokes were.

That September, Brad called me again and asked if I knew anyone who would be qualified and interested in coming to South Bend to coach the junior program. I told him my assistant, Victor Tolkachev, would be perfect for the job. The club hired Victor and he coached Mark for the next 2-1/2 years. Victor was from Latvia and a stern disciplinarian who worked very hard on the fundamentals. Victor laid a great foundation for Mark and the other juniors. Unfortunately, Victor had to return to his homeland in the winter of 1995. I was then offered and accepted the South Bend coaching position in 1996. Mark was 11 years old and rated about 1500.

I believe to be a great player one must have a track record of amazing or astonishing accomplishments. Mark certainly has that. In the summer of 1997 Mark played in the Hoosier State Games – his rating was about 1650. This was the first Open event he ever entered. In the 2nd round, Mark faced the #1 seed Norman Yeh (rated 2350). I had about five students who were participating in close matches at the same time. I figured Mark would gain some experience. Shortly after, one of my students came up to me and said, "Coach, Mark won the 1st game." My reaction was, "No way." I moved over to Mark’s table and all I could think of was "that’s great, he won a game, but he has no real chance." Mark quickly goes up 9-4 in the second and I’m beginning to believe that, "Yes, he CAN win," and he does, 21-18. Mark had just turned twelve and he had defeated a 2350 player 2-0! To Norman’s credit he handled the loss with class and came back through the loser’s bracket to win the tournament. But everyone was stunned at Mark’s maturity and shot selection.

At the 1999 U.S. Nationals, Mark jumped up a couple of levels. He won the Under 2200 and 2400 rated events and the Under 16 Singles and Doubles events at the age of 14. It’s very hard to win one event at the Nationals – and Mark won four of them. He also made it to the final 16 in Men’s Singles. In the round of 32 he drew Brian Masters, a tough veteran player rated about 2500. Mark played brilliantly and was up 2-1 in games and led 18-16 in the 4th. He faltered and Brian drew even, 2-2. In the 5th it started bad and got worse – Mark was down 9-1. One of Mark’s greatest assets is his ability to focus and not worry about the score. You would think a 14-year-old, down 9-1 in the final game, would be finished. You’d think wrong. Mark scored 16 of the next 17 points to lead 17-10, and went on to win the match 3-2.

At the 2000 St. Joseph Valley Open in South Bend, Mark drew Cheng Yinghua in the round of 16. I was a little disappointed. I was hoping Mark would draw someone other than the #1 seed. Cheng won the first game but it was close. Hazinski, who had just turned 15 the month before, won the 2nd game at 18 as the hometown crowd grew excited. In the 3rd, Cheng put his foot down and won easily to lead 2-1. At this point I was just glad Mark won a game and the match was competitive. In the 4th game Mark started playing great and he held a 3-point lead throughout. Cheng finally caught him at 18-all. They then had a great rally, with Mark nailing a backhand loop down the line to lead by one. Cheng rallies to deuce. Mark gets the ad, 21-20 and 22-21, and he has the serve but Cheng holds strong and wins, 24-22.

In this issue you will read about Mark’s play and finish in the USA team trials. He finished in a three-way tie for 1st (in the tie-breaking procedure that went to games, he came in second to David Zhuang, with Eric Owens third) and will represent the U.S. at the World Championships in Osaka, Japan. Mark is a very quiet and unassuming young man. All of us in South Bend are proud of his accomplishments. Mark has worked hard in the 4-1/2 years that I have been coach here at the South Bend Club. He has almost never missed a practice and we train four times per week.

Mark’s parents, Matt and Pam, have supported his table tennis career and they attend several tournaments each year. His two sisters, Janelle and Katie, have played table tennis for 4 years but have recently cut back to participate in other sports.

Many people have helped to build our program into what it is today. Brad Balmer had the vision and the plan to open a club and hire a full-time coach. There have been many individuals who have contributed to our program and I thank them all. We couldn’t and Mark wouldn’t have come so far without your help. Special thanks must go to Virgil and Sarah Miller and Newmar Corporation for their continued support of our juniors. Also, my volunteer coaches, Paul George, Barry Chan and Gang Li. Finally, a very special thank you to my assistant coach, Mark Nordby, who has spent countless volunteer hours coaching and practicing with Mark and the rest of the South Bend Junior Team. Mark Nordby is an excellent coach with great verbal skills and helped Mark to play his best in the U.S. Team Trials.

I’ll leave you with one last story about Mark. At tournaments I sometimes have several juniors playing at the same time. I just look at their faces and I can usually tell how they are doing and who needs help. Mark had a tough match at the Detroit teams three years ago and I didn’t make it to his match. He was sitting there, emotionless as always. I had no idea if he won or lost. I sat next to him and said, "How’d it go?" Mark says, "I lost." "Was it close?" I asked. "Yeah, deuce in the 3rd." He just lost a tough match deuce in the 3rd, yet he’s still calm and composed. I knew right then and there, this kid has a real chance to be a very special player.