STORY: Iranian fans eagerly awaiting table tennis at Hangzhou Asian Games
DATELINE: Sept. 12, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:21
LOCATION: Tehran
CATEGORY: SPORTS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of people playing table tennis in Tehran

STORYLINE:

With less than half a month until the start of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, Iranian table tennis fans said they were eagerly looking forward to watching the high-level matches and their favorite players during the multi-sport event.
   
On a hot summer's afternoon, soon after the trees' shadows had become tall enough to shield passersby against the scorching rays, enthusiasts began to show up at a partially enclosed area of the Mellat (Nation) Park in northern Tehran dotted with several table tennis tables.
   
They were from different walks of life and of diverse ages, ranging from children to the elderly, and brought with them special vivacity and joy and great energy as they entered the area, which was a good place of solitude allowing one to easily focus on losing themselves in a book a few hours earlier.
   
Minutes later, all the tables, which had been beds for cats' midday slumber earlier in the afternoon, became occupied by groups of two and four, who started warming up for their upcoming table tennis games.
   
In a country where people are mostly fans of football or wrestling, it was surprising to see so many people being interested in table tennis.

The opening ceremony of the Hangzhou Games will be held on Sept. 23, with the table tennis matches starting at Gongshu Canal Sports Park Gymnasium the previous day.
      
Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Tehran.
(XHTV)