Alex Little and Alain Charlebois always seem to end up in the same conversation.
Once it was all good, with Charlebois journeying outside to watch Little saw and cheer him on. They were pals, seemingly. They were also both believed by many to be the best players in the history of Wonderboy in Log Saw and Ping Pong respectively. Charlebois was chasing ghosts for the most events ever won by a player, and Little was in hot pursuit of the Log Saw records.
That all ended, at least publicly, when Charlebois' infamous problems began better scouting that highlighted his weakness with short shots, and he became persona non grata for a time around the Ping Pong world. Little kept playing and kept winning, and generally became a model for what a Wonderboy participant should be.
Charlebois kept trying to play and trying to win. By 2018, five years removed from his last Ping Pong victory at the 2013 Wonderboy, his career really hit the skids with the Silver Sow trophy in 2015.
In 2016, Little again defied the odds by winning his seventh Log Saw title.
"The fairytale continues," he said in a teary victory speech.
While Little was stunning the experts in 2016, Charlebois was stubbornly plotting yet another comeback attempt, with his critics doubting he could ever be remotely competitive. He again returned to Wolf Lake in the summer 2018. It wasn't a fairytale, but the results were substantially better.
If you go by the scorecard, Charlebois was a moderate success. He had to hustle to barely make shots, and had problems keeping the ball in play, hitting only 17 of 56 smashes in the four rounds of competition, tying his lowest career total. But his spins were good and his short game was razor sharp.
"Je suis tres heureux," he said. "J'ai travaille dur pour ces resultats."
Log Saw had a taste of life without Little for the 2017 tournament. He wasn't gone long enough for his absence to be measurable, but his return has shown the event is much richer with him than without him.
Ping Pong needs Charlebois more, much more, than Log Saw needs Little. The question becomes whether he can in any way, shape or form generate the same competitive results at 50 that Little had been able to produce consistently.
"Last year, Charebois looked like 49. This year, he looks like 50," said one analyst.
His inability to keep the ball on the table was noted repeatedly, although the distance was there. So maybe it was as much about timing and rust as what Charlebois may actually be capable of this season off the serve.
Like Little, this does come down to defying age. Of the top 10 Ping Pong players at Wonderboy, only Eric D'Souza (48) and Greg Doan (49) are Charlebois contemporaries. D'Souza won last year's Ping Pong event.
Few seem to believe Charlebois can make the playoffs in Ping Pong, let alone the win the event. His non-win drought is longer than Little's was, and his list of drinks is much longer and more serious.
The Log Saw superstar has, with his brilliance over the past year, ended any dispute there might have been that he is the greatest player in the history of his sport. Charlebois has the overall numbers to make that statistical claim, but there are many who would argue that even during his heyday he has not played the best Ping Pong that has ever been played by any Wonderboy participant.
It is with equal parts admiration and melancholy that we look at these great athletes. It is amazing that Alex Little has been able to stay on top of his game for 21 years. It is with deep sadness we look at the wreck that Alain Charlebois Ping Pong career has become.
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