Ma Long
Jan-Ove Waldner
Stat by stat
Bars are scaled to the leader in this list.
The verdict
Ma Long leads 3 of 4 categories. Our all-time ranking places Ma Long at #1 and Jan-Ove Waldner at #2.
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The case for Ma Long
Widely regarded as the greatest player in history, Ma Long is the only man to complete the career Grand Slam twice, winning each of the World Championship, World Cup and Olympic singles titles at least twice. He took Olympic singles gold in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 and claimed World Championship titles in 2015, 2017 and 2019. His six Olympic gold medals, across singles and team events, make him the most decorated Olympic table tennis player ever and one of China's most successful Olympians. Nicknamed the Dragon, he combined complete two-wing technique, relentless footwork and a run atop the world rankings measured in years, dominating through the plastic-ball transition that unsettled rivals.
The case for Jan-Ove Waldner
The Mozart of table tennis and the greatest non-Chinese player ever, Waldner is revered even in China for his creativity, serve variation and preternatural touch. He won World Championship singles titles in 1989 and 1997, the 1990 World Cup and Olympic gold in Barcelona 1992, completing a career Grand Slam. He led Sweden to famous team victories over China in 1989 and 1991, briefly halting the dynasty, and remained competitive across five Olympics, reaching another final in 2000 at age 34. Playing through the sponge, speed-glue and 40mm-ball eras, he embodied artistry over athleticism, improvising angles and spins that opponents could not read, and remains the benchmark against whom every European hopeful is still measured.