BROMLEY Michelle

General
ROBOT TRAINING
She has a table tennis robot that she used for training in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. "I just so happened to have a robot for the last probably five years, as a backup in my garage where I have a table. But it definitely came in handy with the whole coronavirus lockdown. The benefit of having a robot in my shed at home was that it still allowed me to get that feeling of hitting the ball each day, and working on specifics of my game. Although after three and a half months of the same four walls of my garage at home, and not seeing another person at the other end of the table, the monotony of it definitely started setting in. What the robot is great for is that repetition, if you're trying to master a particular shot, speed work, you can set the robot up to fire balls at a much faster rate than how a regular match would play out, making you feel more comfortable and like you have more time when it comes to match-play." (tokyo2020.org, 08 Oct 2020)

FATHER'S INFLUENCE
She says her late father, who also became her first coach when she was age 10, is the main influence on her career. "My dad is my hero. He passed away after a short but aggressive battle with cancer in 2012. His courage, fighting spirit and passion for life is what I admire most and what I draw strength from. He was always my biggest fan and believed that I could achieve my dreams. Growing up in a small country town of only 2000 people and no other hardcore table tennis families like ours, we were very much in the journey together. Dad was my sole training partner, my warm-up partner at every tournament, as well as my coach on the bench. He was my partner in crime, going through all the ups and downs with me, but he was very good at separating himself as coach and dad, and never was I ever pushed into playing. It was always my choice." (commonwealthgames.com.au, 01 Jan 2015; mudgeeguardian.com.au, 06 Apr 2018)