The 2024 Paris Olympics is about to kick off, and the five gold medal-winning moments of national table tennis have been set, and CCTV will broadcast these games live throughout the process. And can the performance of commentators Gao Han and Liu Guozheng meet the audience's expectations?
The final dates for these five events have been confirmed: Mixed Doubles, Women's Singles, Men's Singles, Men's Team and Women's Team. The timing of these matches is based on Beijing time, which means that sports fans in Chinese mainland can watch live broadcasts in the relative comfort of evening prime time, without having to stay up late. The specific final dates are as follows:
- Mixed doubles final: 30 July at 8:30 p.m
- Women's singles final: August 3 at 20:30 p.m
- Men's singles final: August 4, 20:30 p.m
- Men's Team Final: 9 August at 21:00 p.m
- Women's Team Final: August 10 at 21:00
This is undoubtedly a blessing for table tennis lovers, who can watch the full live broadcast of CCTV on time during prime time.
In addition to the game itself, the audience also has high expectations for the commentators. The table tennis event of this Olympic Games will be narrated by Gao Han and Liu Guozheng. Gao Han is popular for her friendly voice and concise language style, but some viewers have pointed out that she sometimes shows tendencies in the commentary. Liu Guozheng has won a lot of recognition for his professional commentary ability, but sometimes he fails to analyze the details of the game in depth, which makes the audience feel unsatisfied.
Fans generally expect the commentators to be impartial and not overtly emotional. At the same time, many people suggested that commentators should reduce the repetition of score information and provide more behind-the-scenes footage or little-known related knowledge, such as the Chinese coach stories behind the foreign players, so as to increase the knowledge and interest of watching the game.
Looking back at the history of CCTV commentary, although the traditional Song Shixiong-style commentary template is meticulous, it is also considered to be too conservative and lagging behind, and fails to fully adapt to the development trend and technological innovation of modern media. Although Yang Ying's commentary was recognized to a certain extent, she eventually faded out of the screen because she could not meet the expectations of all audiences. This reflects the fact that even a well-rated narrator is not guaranteed to win everyone's affection and support.
Some fans called on CCTV to invite Sun Pengyao to participate in the on-site commentary, which was highly praised for his professional quality and fair interpretation of the event. Sun Pengyao has won the favor of people with his all-round professional quality and deep understanding of sports. He is always objective with the contestants, his comments are precise and insightful, and he is good at controlling the pace of the show.
For the expectations and suggestions of the commentators, some fans want to see a commentary lineup composed of CCTV hosts and professional athletes. For example, Deng Yaping and Liu Guoliang's commentary style is very popular because they are not only professional, but also bring different perspectives and unique insights. Fans expect commentators to be unbiased when commenting on the game, not to take sides, and to provide more interesting behind-the-scenes stories and tidbits.
CCTV's commentary style needs to keep pace with the times, not only to maintain its traditional advantages, but also to adapt to the needs of modern audiences. Commentators should pay attention to audience feedback and provide richer and more diverse commentary content. For example, you can introduce the training routine and psychological state of the players, or interpret the technical details and tactical arrangements of the game to meet the different needs of the audience.
It is worth looking forward to the performance of Gao Han and Liu Guozheng in this Olympic Games. Whether they can show enough professionalism and fairness in their commentary to meet the expectations of the audience is still a topic to be seen. In any case, the road to winning the gold medal in national table tennis at the Paris Olympics and CCTV's commentary performance will surely become a highlight of this Olympic Games.
Do you think Gao Han and Liu Guozheng's commentary can meet the audience's expectations and add luster to the road to gold in national table tennis? What do you think about this?