Pierre-Luc Hinse also known as "Pete", is a Canadian table tennis player, who is sponsored by DONIC and is, as of May 2012, ranked #311 on the , and #5 in Canada. He is currently training at the Canadian National Training Center in Ottawa, Ontario, while studying at the University of Ottawa majoring in Anthropology. In 2011, Hinse won the National Team Challenge, Canadian National Championships, and the North American Championships. On April 22, 2012, Hinse qualified for the 2012 Olympics in London. Hinse's special moves include backhand topspin and rolling the ball on the table.
Early career
Hinse began playing table tennis in 1997 where his older brother had asked him to play in their basement. Shortly after, he and his brother starting playing at local clubs for fun. In that same year, Hinse played his first tournament and ended up winning the Under 10 event. After this glorious moment, he decided to take table tennis into a whole new level where to push himself to become what he is today.
Olympics
In 2008, Hinse failed to make a spot for the Beijing Olympics after losing to fellow practice partner Pradeeban Peter-Paul in the finals of the trials. Although not making the Canadian team, he did go to Beijing as a substitute. Four years later, Hinse came back stronger than ever to play the Olympic trials in Cary, North Carolina to make a spot for the 2012 London Olympics.
Youtube
Hinse became a Youtube star after performing an amazing shot at the 2011 National Team Challenge where he dove for the ball and returned it around the net making it roll across the table. The video titled "" has hit over 100,000 views. According to Hinse himself, he is better known for this Youtube video than any title he has ever won in his career. The video is extremely popular in Europe. It is said that he is known as 'Youtube Guy' in the European countries. To prove the extent of the fame, while Hinse was at a tournament, :de:Bastian Steger|Bastian Steger went up to him and said "I saw your video. Nice shot."
Popularity
Hinse's popularity has always been on the rise since the beginning of his birth. His fan base really began to increase in 2010. The 24 Hours Ottawa newspaper had featured Hinse on the cover of their newspaper on September 23, 2010. That same day, Hinse had an autograph session outside the Morisset Library at the University of Ottawa. It was noted that due to the length of the autograph session, he was late for class. In 2011, Hinse's fan base skyrocketed after a Youtube video of him making an amazing shot went viral in the table tennis community. See Youtube section. Hinse's popularity does not stay within the realm of regular people. In November 2011, Hinse was training at the Werner Schlager Academy where his Internet had ceased to work. Former world champion Werner Schlager went to his apartment to fix Hinse's Internet himself. Hinse has now retired from his player career, but he still contributes to the sport of Table Tennis by working as a Marketing & Equipment Specialist at Ping-Pong Depot, a distributor of table tennis equipment based in Laval, Canada.
