Wuxi sports show table tennis love

Participants of the 2017 Wuxi Cyber Table Tennis Game wait their turn courtside of Wuxi New Sports Center Gym on May 20. [Photo/wxrb.com]

The past weekend was an unconventionally romantic occasion for thousands of Chinese couples who proclaimed their love for each other to mark May 20th, a date whose romantic symbolism stems from 520 sounding similar to "I love you" in Chinese.

Another group of sports lovers in Wuxi, however, got a chance to say '520' to table tennis.

Following the success and popularity of the 2017 Asian Table Tennis Championship, which was held in the Jiangsu province city this April, the authorities launched the 2017 Wuxi Cyber Table Tennis Game, an amateur competition, in Wuxi New Sports Center Gym on May 20 and 21.

Only a month ago the downtown Wuxi venue hosted the world's 300 best players and it was certainly a thrill for the 12 to 65 year-olds to compete and showcase their skills in such a grand setting.