Exciting future for Southland table tennis prodigy

Whatever happened to Southland table tennis prodigy Michael Zhang? 

Well, the 22-year-old former Academy Southland athlete is about to graduate from the prestigious Duke University in the United States next year, with a job already lined up at American technology behemoth Microsoft. 

Zhang, who is also a keen musician and composer, was a Southland men’s senior champion at 13 and a New Zealand junior representative. 

He will graduate from Duke, a private research university in Durham, North Carolina in May, 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering, along with a minor in Philosophy. 

Duke alumni include former United States president Bill Clinton and Apple chief executive Tim Cook, amongst 15 Nobel laureates and 46 Rhodes scholars. 

“(I’ll) then relocate to Seattle, Washington to work full-time at Microsoft,” Michael said. 

“My role is Program Manager on the Core Operating System and Intelligent Edge, Internet-of-Things team.” 

Zhang graduated from James Hargest College in 2015, initially enrolling at the University of Auckland in the Mechanical Engineering programme before winning one of the highly sought-after Robertson Scholarships for admission into Duke. 

The scholarships are with $100,000 per year for up to four years and cover tuition, accommodation, living and travel costs. 

“Table tennis played a big part in my Duke application - I talked about how much I learnt from the sport and the challenges associated with it,” Michael said. 

“I’ve played for the Duke team every year since I’ve been here and compete nationally. My admission class at Duke brought in a few solid players and we have done well at the National Collegiate Table Tennis Championships each year. We are currently training for the North American Teams Championships.” 

Michael said the support provided by Academy Southland had played a significant role in his development. 

“Academy Southland helped me tremendously,” he said. 

“The support systems put in place by the programme are both thorough and effective. A big hurdle for me in table tennis was excelling in Southland, where resources are few. 

“I first won the Southland Residential Championships when I was 13 and struggled to further refine my game. The Academy helped me excel by tailoring mentorship to exactly meet my needs. I’m very grateful for the Academy and the talented athletes the programme connected me with.”