Who believes that? Have those people never seen a professional table tennis match? Even playing against someone just “pretty good”, let’s say at a local sports club, is insane.
Trying to follow a serve from a player at an Olympic level… the hubris, I can’t imagine what’s going on in their heads. Well, unfortunately, I probably can.
I bet that I can beat usain bolt in a race, at least once, he can’t be that good!
Then again… Even knowing that I’d be demolished, I’d love to try it, just to experience it for myself! Part of it is probably the pure accessibility of the thing. How many Olympic sports are there where you could start a game in 30 secs with no prep, spend 5 minutes or less, and come out of it with a story to tell?
Hey, absolutely. In fact, I’d love to personally learn just how unfathomable and mind blowing the difference is, to feel humbled and to celebrate what humans can achieve. But the attitude with which the athletes were approached is a whole other topic.