Coaches

   Masaaki Tajima - U.S. Certified National Coach

Date of Birth: 06/24/1946
Place of Birth: Tokyo, Japan
Now Resides: San Francisco, CA

Titles U.S. Certified National Coach Equipment Blade - Viscaria "Gives good combination of speed and control." F.H. Rubber - Sriver FX G2 "The rubber is designed for speed gluing and compliments my blade." B.H. Rubber - Sriver FX G2 "The rubber is designed for speed gluing and compliments my blade."

Blade & Rubber Help Many players are often intimidated by the wide selection of blade and rubber sheets available to them. Therefore, we have called upon our knowledgeable coaches to help answer the question: "What blade and rubber combination do you recommend for a beginning to intermediate level player?" "Nearly all of my students (Juniors) plays with either Primorac or Primorac 2000 with Sriver FX 2.1. This is the combination I recommend to new players whether they are my students or not because it gives the maximum amount of speed, power and control for the first time user. " Primorac Primorac 2000 Sriver FX

Click here to read our interview with Coach Tajima.

More articles from Coach Masaaki Tajima

Dominate With Serve & Receive:
In this article, I will go over the importance of serves and the receiving of serves as two of the top technical training priorities for future Champions.

In virtually every racket sport, serves and the ability to return them effectively are dominating factors in the outcome of any match. Besides table tennis, tennis is another example of a sport where this is true. Whether it is the men's or women's division, the big serve sets the tone of the match; if you serve well, you play well. On the other side, the player who can receive well can stay in the point until it is his or her turn to serve....(for complete article click here)

Vicarious Parents:
One of the biggest problems and headaches that a coach faces is dealing with vicarious parents. Vicariousness is, living one’s life through another person. These are parents living their life and dreams through their kids. Parents must realize the distinction between living their lives through their kids and living it with them. Parents too often push their kids in order to make up for their own past frustrations and limitations placing tremendous burden and pressure causing embarrassment not only to the child but also, unknowingly, on themselves. It is an insidious disease that is prevalent in all sports causing unrealized damage......(for complete article click here)

Aching Wrist Problems:
A table tennis player asked Coach Tajima the following question:
My wrist hurts occasionally when I play my backhand topspin and sometimes it hurts during the forehand topspin. How can I improve this and also improve my technique?.....(for Masaaki's answer click here)

Playing Against a Long/Short Pips Combo :
A table tennis player asked Coach Tajima the following question:
I would like to know how to play a player with pips on both sides of his racket; short pips for his forehand and long pips on his backhand with no sponge? I'm a all around player with a powerful forehand......(for Masaaki's answer click here)

Mental and Emotional Training:
Virtually every coach and players I know places emphasis on technical and physical aspects of the sport and little if any time to mental training. But all will tell you how mental this sport is. The fact is, most coaches don’t have the education or experience in this area to teach it and players place low priority on it and do not think about paying for mental aspects of coaching even though they admit it is so important. Moreover, players resist mental skills training believing achieving technical skills will cure whatever ills them and attach unwarranted stigma in seeking mental training......(for complete article click here)