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Seemiller – The American: 2020 Trials Feature

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Seemiller: The American

(by Steve Hopkins)

One of the most storied players in American table tennis history, Dan Seemiller.  He first qualified for the US Team in 1972, was the top ranked player in the country by 1974, won five US National Championships, and logged an amazing international record that at one point included completing two consecutive World Team Championships without losing a match.  Later in his career, he became a highly decorated and successful coach, a tournament promoter and director, an author, and he also served as President of USTTA.

The signature grip and style that bears his name is still referred to by many internationally as “the American grip”.  Seemiller is the quintessential “American” player – with emotion and grit and heart.

In February, as Dan was training for the Olympic Trials, he began posting memories to his Facebook page.  Over the next few weeks, we are going to share some of those photos and quotes in this series “Seemiller – The American”:

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Earlier this year CBS News did a feature on my efforts to try and make the 2020 Olympic Team. Unfortunately I did not make it losing 4-3 and 15-13 in the final game in the 2nd qualifying round.
The CBS crew headed by Sean Herbert visited my home, workout gym and club here in South Bend.  They then flew a crew to Ft. Worth for the U.S. Open.  I can’t thank them enough for the professional job they did. This was shown nationwide on December 30th during the CBS Morning Show.
Also thanks to Ron Weber for making the initial contact.

 

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