Deng Yaping, Olympic champion, table tennis grand slam winner, who won eighteen world championships and four Olympic championships during her fourteen years illustrious career. She was the top-ranked woman in the world for eight consecutive years from 1991 (The longest time for continuously top-ranked female table tennis player, the record was kept by her). After her retirement, she obtained her bachelor's degree from Tsinghua University, master's degree from the University of Nottingham and doctorate from the University of Cambridge.

  She stood on the International Olympic Committee’s athletes commission, sports and environment commission and ethics commission during 1997 to 2010. She was the only athlete representative who participated in the bid for Beijing Olympic Games in 1993 and 2001 and became the ambassador for the bid for Beijing Olympic Games.

  During 2003 to 2004, she served as a Level III Project Expert for Marketing Department of Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG), supervising BOCOG partners sales.

  During 2004 to 2007, she served as the assistant to the director of the Sport Equipment Centre of the General Administration of Sport of China, supervising the market development with the Chinese Olympic Committee.

  She held the post of Deputy Minister of the Olympic Village, Deputy Chairman of the Olympic Village Minister’s office of BOCOG, and the spokesman for the Olympic Village and Paralympic Village in 2007.During 2009 to 2010, she served as the deputy secretary of Beijing Committee of the Communist Youth League. During 2010 to 2016, she served as the deputy secretary-general of People's Daily.

  In December 2016, she initiated a ¥5 billion sports industry investment fund with Henan provincial government, which was China’s first sports investment fund named after famous athletes.