when waldner was five years old, he startd playing table tennis. his older brother and his parents were also players. early on, waldner was stand on pedestals or buckets. soon, he began to play in the swedish club "spåvägens btk". waldner was trainied by different coaches as well as his family. when he was nine years old, he won for the swedish national championships in his age group. growing up, he did not only play table tennis. he also loved football and tennis. by the age of thirteen, he only played table tennis. waldner left school early to become a professional player. in his first year as a pro, he played his first tournament and won a automobile.