"Amazing." How can ping pong break down the Great Wall of China! WTT won the runner-up prize. "AG's expectations are growing."

*This content was translated by AI.

Jang Woo-jin (31, Se-ah, 18th in the world), the "signboard of Korean men's table tennis," achieved a valuable runner-up at this year's World Table Tennis (WTT) first competition. In particular, it was a meaningful competition, as it overpowered China's "world No. 2" Lin Zedong in the semifinal match held earlier.

Jang Woo-jin lost 0-4 (7-11, 9-11, 9-11, 9-11, 11-13) to Lin Wen-ru (Taiwan, world No. 13) in the men's singles final of the WTT Champions Doha 2026 in Doha, Qatar on the 12th (Korea time).

I couldn't get over the last hurdle of each game. After losing by four points in the first game, he fell to his knees unfortunately in the second and third games at 9-9. In the last four games, they lost after a close game of deuce, and eventually lost the game score 0-4.

If Jang Woo-jin won this competition, he would be the first Korean men's singles player to win the WTT Championship. In April last year, Lee Sang-soo (Samsung Life Insurance coach) advanced to the men's singles final at the Champions Incheon competition, but he also finished second. South Korea's first WTT victory was achieved by the mixed doubles team Lim Jong-hoon and Shin Yoo-bin last year.

Although he did not cross the last threshold, this tournament meant a lot to Jang. In the round of 32, he beat Alexis LeBrugn (France), who is ranked ninth in the world, 3-2 in the round of 32.

In the round of 16, he met world No. 19 Togami Sonsuke of Japan and overpowered him 3-1. Jang Woo-jin's rise continued. In the quarterfinals, he beat fifth-ranked powerhouse Trouls Moeregor of Sweden 4-1 to secure a complete victory.

And in the semifinals, he made the final stage with a 4-2 victory over world No. 2 Linxung. With the runner-up in this competition, Jang Woo-jin further brightened the prospect of a medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in September.

Meanwhile, the Champions Doha is the second highest-level tournament in the WTT series after the Grand Smash. The total prize money was $500,000 (about KRW 720 million), and only 32 world-class players were invited to the men's and women's singles.

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*This content was translated by AI.