Meet Australian table tennis legend Jian Fang Lay appearing at a record sixth Commonwealth Games

Table tennis legend Jian Fang Lay has achieved everything possible in her sport serving ping pong balls on the greatest stages across the world and making Australian teams with metronomic consistency.

But in a career spanning more than two decades, including a record six Olympic and five Commonwealth Games appearances, Lay is yet to taste gold.

The 49-year-old Lay is throwing everything but the kitchen sink at changing this statistic at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games where she will be competing in the women’s team, women’s singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles events.

A gold medal will certainly cement Lay’s incredible legacy but she is already considered a cult hero since making her debut in 2002 at the Friendly Games in Manchester.

Lay is set for another major milestone in Birmingham after becoming the first Australian woman to reach six Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020.

The mother of two will join an exclusive club when she makes her sixth appearance at the Commonwealth Games, a record for an Australian woman and only the sixth Australian athlete to achieve this feat.

“It is exciting to attend my sixth Commonwealth Games, I always love representing Australia on the world stage,” Lay told Commonwealth Games Australia.

“It is a great group who will be competing with me and I know we will all be working hard between now and the Games to do our best in Birmingham.”

What makes the feat even more remarkable is the fact that Lay has been in action at every table tennis tournament at the Commonwealth Games since the sport made its debut in 2002.

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A mainstay of Australian table tennis

Lay has been a mainstay of Team Australia’s efforts at the Commonwealth Games boasting a total haul of seven medals – four silver and three bronze – from Manchester 2002, Melbourne 2006 and Glasgow 2014. She has contributed more than half of Australia’s table tennis medals at the Commonwealth Games.

Born in Wenzhou, China, Lay first picked up a paddle when she was six years old and earned her first provincial title when she was 11. Lay emigrated to Australia in 1994 with her husband, training partner and coach Jorge Lay. Shortly after her arrival in Australia, Lay retired from the sport.

Fortunately, Lay made an about turn and went on to make her Olympic debut for her adopted country on home soil at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games where she competed in the doubles alongside Stella Zhou. She claimed her victory four years later in Athens 2004 to advance into the second round of the singles event.

Lay also won her singles opening rounds in Beijing 2008 and London 2012 before producing her best singles results in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 (in 2021). She reached the third round in both tournaments after winning the opening two matches.

Seventh Olympics on the cards?

Her selection for Tokyo 2020 alone marked a significant milestone joining equestrian athlete Mary Hanna as the first women to represent the nation in six Olympic Games.

"I never would’ve imagined that I’d be the first woman to represent Australia at six Olympics. I hope this will inspire more girls to play table tennis. As long as you have a dream, anything is possible,” Lay said at the time.

"I need to thank my family – my husband and two boys – my friends, Warren and Jane, who support me and keep me going. Without their support, without their strength, it would’ve been impossible for me to continue playing table tennis.”

Winning gold in Birmingham would be the cherry on top of a remarkable career and could lay the groundwork for a historic seventh Olympic Games bid.

A seventh appearance would see Lay become only the second female table tennis player after Nigerian ace Funke Oshonaike to reach as many Olympic Games.

“Six Olympics is a big achievement for myself and my team as well,” Lay told The Guardian. “I think it’s a long time to go [to Paris] – three years is a long time. I have a one year plan – not thinking too much [about the longer-term]."

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