RIO DE JANIERO — With her wavy hair-do and motherly warmth, 53-year-old Ni Xia Lian would not look out of place behind the counter of her family-run hotel in Luxembourg, where the Shanghai native has lived with her husband and two children for 25 years.

But at this Rio Games, this self-described housewife has found herself in a different role.

Ni, affectionately known as the “grandmother” of table tennis back home, is her country’s sole representative in the sport here in Brazil.

Ranked 66th in the world, Ni is competing in her third Olympics after making her debut in Sydney in 2000 at age 37. The former Chinese paddler, who won team and mixed doubles gold at the 1983 World Championships, had moved to Germany in 1989, before migrating to Luxembourg two years later.

Like many former Chinese players who go on to play for their adopted countries, Ni, who plays with a left-handed, penhold grip, found her second wind with Luxembourg, winning the European title twice in 1998 and 2002.

And the 53-year-old, the oldest female player here at the Olympics but not the oldest female athlete of all (that honour goes to Australia’s equestrian athlete Mary Hanna who is 61), continues to defy age and convention. Up against Spain’s higher-ranked paddler Shen Yanfei (world No 51) — who is 36 — Ni surprised supporters at the Riocentro Pavilion 3 with a 4-3 victory in the second round.

The mother of two — her elder son is 24, while her daughter is 13 — also gave world No 4 Singaporean Feng Tianwei an early scare in their third-round match on Monday (Aug 8), storming to a 2-0 lead before defending bronze medalllist Feng dug in to reclaim the match with a 4-2 victory.

Ni had never represented China in the Olympics despite being at the top of her game, and now she is relishing the opportunity to compete on the world’s biggest stage at the age where many of her peers have long retired.

“I’m happy with how I played today, but not so happy with my age,” she quipped after her match on Monday. “I knew what she (Feng) was doing, but my legs just couldn’t follow. I don’t get enough high-level training, so I am a little bit disappointed in that aspect.”

Ni, along with other former Chinese players like Li Jiao of the Netherlands — who is 43 — stands out among a crop of young paddlers on the international table tennis scene.

But age is no issue for Ni.

“Age is not a problem, and I feel that I’m in shape. The only thing is my legs. I want them to go faster but they don’t work,” she said. “I’m happy when I win, I’m happy when I lose, because these girls train five to six hours a day, which is more than what I do in a week!”

Unlike the younger players, Ni no longer travels on the International Table Tennis Federation World Tour circuit, choosing to train at home in Ettelbruck. She had qualified for the women’s singles in Rio via an unused quota spot.

While her Rio journey may have ended, she has not ruled out a return at the 2020 Tokyo Games. But she also added: “Four years is a long time. But it’s okay, ping pong is only one part of my life ... my focus is on staying healthy and happy.”