Other Events | 31 Oct 2013

WCC: Asia prevailed in Otocec

Favourites for gold, Asia justified their top seeded position in the Boys’ Team event at the 2013 ITTF Cadet Challenge in the Slovenian town of Otocec by securing gold and thus emulating the feats of female colleagues earlier in the day. In the final of t

Favourites for gold, Asia justified their top seeded position in the Boys’ Team event at the 2013 ITTF Cadet Challenge in the Slovenian town of Otocec by securing gold and thus emulating the feats of female colleagues earlier in the day.

In the final of the Girls’ Team event, the trio comprising Mima ITO, LI Yiran and KIM Jiho had beaten the European outfit formed by Adina DIACONU, HO Tin Tin and Lisa LUNG by three matches to two.

Similarly, in the final of the Boys’ Team event, it was Europe who confronted Asia; a hard fought win was the order of the day but no deciding fifth match was required as had been the situation with the girls.

Asia won by three matches to one with China’s WANG Chuqin proving the mainstay of success in the final. He beat both Aliaksandr KHANIN of Belarus (11-7, 6-11, 11-6, 12-10) and the Czech Republic’s Tomas POLANSKY (11-7, 11-6, 9-11, 11-7) to pave the way for an Asian victory.

The one further success for Asia came from Korea’s HWANG Minha; in the second match of the fixture he beat Tomas POLANSKY in five games (11-6, 10-12, 2-11, 11-9, 11-6). The one win for Europe was recorded in the third match; Russia’s Maxim CHAPLYGIN overcame Japan’s Takuto IZUMO in a closely fought full distance duel (11-6, 7-11, 7-11, 12-10, 11-7).

Asia Girls beat Europe at the final hurdle. However, they were stretched the full five match distance with Romania’s Adina DIACONU, a member of the World Hopes Team one year ago in Guam, being the player to cause the problems. She beat both LI Yiran (11-9, 2-11, 11-5, 11-9) and in a full distance five games duel, defeated Mima ITO by the very narrowest of margins (11-6, 10-12, 11-6, 6-11, 11-9).

England’s HO Tin Tin suffered defeats at the hands of Mima ITO (11-4, 11-9, 11-9) and in opposition LI Yiran in the vital concluding match of the fixture (11-5, 11-9, 11-4).

The one remaining win for Asia came from Korea’s KIM Jiho; in the third match of the fixture, she recovered from a two games to nil deficit to beat Belgium’s Lisa LUNG in five games (3-11, 9-11, 11-5, 11-6, 11-3).

Gold for Asia, silver for Europe; it was bronze for Latin America and the World Hopes Team.