Training in Romania

By Olena Sowers, member, U.S. Cadet Girls' Team

Reach for the moon, even if you miss you will land among the stars

This summer I went to Romania for training with some of the best in the world juniors. The training was amazing and I was very impressed with the coaches and practice partners.

The city where I spent three weeks, Constanta, is very much like my hometown, Odessa. I trained at the sport school which includes other sports such as tennis, swimming, and weightlifting. If I had the chance, I would love to go back and train more in Romania, not just because the place itself is so great, but because the table tennis training is outstanding.

The club where I trained has a serious attitude toward table tennis and juniors who play there know what they are doing and are amazing at it. Everybody practices very hard and the results show when juniors like Elizabetha Samara win at the Junior Circuits.

My daily training started with stretching, followed by a thirty-minute warm-up on the table at eight in the morning. I worked on improving my game closer to the table, looping, and short game. The morning practice lasted about two hours and twenty minutes. After morning practice we ran about ten laps and did some physical training. During the break, I spent my time hanging around with the girls and at the beach. Afternoon practice started much alike the morning practice, but we worked more on footwork and serving. The second Sunday in Romania we ran four kilometers for experience and physical training. Everybody from the club ran and many others. Afterwards we spent the rest of the day on the beach together.

The training center has many amazing players and coaches. People are very kind and friendly and always ready to help. The players speak English, and help out if they see any mistakes one is making.

Overall, the training in Romania was a wonderful experience, and if given the chance there is no doubt I will do it again. The coaching is great, practice partners are some of the best in the world, and the food is tasty. I am very thankful to Butterfly, Emilia Gheorghe, and in general everybody who made this trip happen as well the coaches who spent their time working with me.