At only 16-years old, Southern California native Erica Wu is mature beyond her years when it comes to playing table tennis. There is no better example of this than the fact that she is on the 2012 Olympic national team looking to bring home the gold for the United States of America.
Her dedication is second to none, missing 52 school days when she competed around the world last year, but still maintained a 4.0 GPA. .
"You're by yourself, and you have to take responsibility for every point," Wu said of table tennis. "It trains me to focus, and how not just to win, but to lose."
Wu is a member at the Gao Jun Table Tennis Club in El Monte. She was part of the team that won bronze at the 2011 Pan American Games. She also won the 2011 U.S. doubles championship though lost in the semifinals of the singles event.
As one of six Taiwanese-Americans on this year's olympic team, Wu is proud to represent both her country and her heritage. She told Focus Taiwan that she travels back to Taiwan at least once a year for extra table tennis training which has obviously paid off.
"Sometimes, it just randomly pops into my head when I'm walking down the street -- you're going to the Olympics," Wu said.
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