NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- On a table tennis court filled with young athletes, Nosheen Aslam stood out.
At 55, she was the oldest player in the women's team competition at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, competing alongside athletes decades younger.
Then she picked up her paddle.
Nosheen represented Pakistan in two team matches on the opening day of the women's competition on Sunday. She did not play in Pakistan's final group match the following day, but her presence in Nagoya had already marked a personal milestone.
It was her first Asian Games. It was also her first time traveling abroad for an international competition.
"The Asian Games is my dream," Nosheen said. "It's a great event, very well organized. All the people are very nice, and it's a great experience for me. I'm enjoying it."
The experience was a dream come true for Nosheen, but it also came with plenty of nerves. "I was very nervous, and I didn't perform very well," she said.
The results did not go her way, but after their matches ended, Nosheen and her teammates gathered courtside for photographs, smiling and enjoying a moment that meant far more than the score.
Nosheen is from Lahore, the capital of Punjab and Pakistan's second-largest city. She took up table tennis 12 years ago, when she was already a mother of three boys, and quickly fell in love with the sport.
"It makes me active. It makes me fit, and I enjoy playing table tennis," she said.
Her three sons all play cricket. Many of Nosheen's table tennis partners and opponents, meanwhile, are around the same age as her children. One of her teammates in Nagoya, Aleena Khan, is just 15.
But once Nosheen steps onto the court, the age gap disappears.
"Every time I play, I feel happy and forget the worries of my life," she said. "Age is just a number. I think table tennis is a sport of skill. If your skills are good, then nothing else matters."
Finding time to train has never been easy. As a mother and a working woman, Nosheen has had to juggle table tennis with caring for her children, cooking and work.
She often trains at night, squeezing practice into whatever time she can find after finishing her daily responsibilities, and has kept at it for years.
Nosheen's experience also reflects how table tennis is developing in Pakistan. In Lahore, there are many clubs with good facilities, and both boys and girls regularly play the sport. Nosheen also enjoys helping younger players learn basic techniques.
The sport is also reaching younger players through schools.
A pilot of the International Table Tennis Federation's School Program began in late 2025 and has since expanded to six countries across four continents. In Pakistan, the program introduced table tennis as a regular school sports activity at four schools, involving 80 students.
The initiative aims to make table tennis part of school life and promote skills such as confidence, teamwork and discipline.
For Nosheen, the growth of the sport means more young players are coming through, making competition increasingly challenging.
She spent two to three months preparing for the Asian Games, with her husband and children encouraging her throughout. But in Nagoya, facing younger players competing at a high level, she could see the gap.
Despite the losses, Nosheen left Nagoya with another target in mind. Retirement is not yet on her mind. Her next goal is the South Asian Games, scheduled to be held in Pakistan next April.
"I think my physical condition is still good," she said. "Maybe I can play for another two or three years."
Then she smiled and added: "Maybe next time my performance will be better." ■