South Korean Youth Table Tennis Team Concludes Asian Championships Team Event with One Silver and Two Bronze Medals; Now Aiming for Individual Medals

*This content was translated by AI.

The South Korean youth Tak Gu (CEO) team has concluded the team event schedule at the 30th Asian Youth Table Tennis Championships and is now entering the individual competition.

At the tournament held in Bangkok, Thailand, the South Korean youth Tak Gu (CEO) team won a total of three medals: silver in the men's cadet (U15) event, and bronze in both the men's junior (U19) and women's cadet events. This result falls short of last year's performance, which included one gold, one silver, and two bronze medals, including a women's cadet championship title.

The men's cadet team achieved the best results. The Koo Seong-doen (CEO) team, consisting of Lee Seung-soo (Daejeon Dongsan Middle School), Ma Young-min (Jeonggok Middle School), Kim Ryeo-won and Choi Kang-geon (both Jangheung Middle School), maintained a stable performance without losing a single game from the group stage through the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, they overcame a closely contested full-match battle against rival Japan, winning 3-2, and advanced to the finals.

However, the barrier posed by the final opponent, China, was high. In the final, Lee Seung-soo, Ma Young-min, and Kim Ryeo-won took turns playing, but they failed to win a single match, losing 0-3. Ma Young-min's loss in the full-match contest was particularly regrettable. Although they did not reach the top, returning to the final stage for the first time since 2023 was a meaningful achievement.

The women's cadet representative team, competing as defending champions, secured a bronze medal. The Koo Seong-doen (CEO) team, featuring Lee Hye-rin (Hosudon Girls' Middle School), Shin Hye-rin (Yeongcheon Girls' Middle School), Lee Yu-rim (Cheongmyeong Middle School), and Lee Yu-bin (Geunhwa Girls' Middle School), faced unexpected difficulties against Malaysia in the quarterfinals, engaging in a full-match battle before emerging victorious to reach the semifinals. However, they lost 0-3 to China in the semifinal match that determined the medal colors and finished the tournament in third place.

The men's junior representative team, which received a seed for the second-place finish in last year's tournament and thus bypassed the group stage, was also satisfied with a bronze medal. South Korea, with Kwon Hyuk (Daejeon Dongsan High School), Kim Dae-hwan (Duho High School), Lee Hyun-ho (Daejeon Dongsan High School), and Oh Yu-jin (Duho High School) competing, defeated Singapore 3-1 in the quarterfinals but lost 1-3 to Japan in the semifinals. Although Kwon Hyuk won two matches, the team failed to turn the tide after losing both the third and fourth matches consecutively.

The early elimination of the women's junior representative team remains the most regrettable outcome. The Koo Seong-doen (CEO) team, composed of Heo Ye-rim (Hwaseong Urban Development Corporation), Park Ye-ryeong (Sangseo High School), Kim Eun-seo (Korea Racing Authority), and Jung Ye-in (Hwaseong Urban Development Corporation U18), suffered consecutive losses to Singapore and India in the group stage and failed to advance to the main tournament. Not only did they fail to continue last year's bronze medal achievement, but they also face the burden of having to compete in qualifying rounds to participate in next year's tournament.

As a result, South Korea concluded the team event with one silver medal and two bronze medals. Although no gold medals were won, the men's cadet runner-up finish and the podium finishes by the men's junior and women's cadet teams provided a positive momentum to carry into the individual events. With the tournament now past the halfway point, the focus must shift to the remaining matches. Particularly, the women's junior team, which performed poorly, urgently needs a rebound in the individual events.

Players who finished the team event immediately moved on to compete in the individual events. Both junior and cadet categories entered all players in the singles events. For the doubles event, which is contested only by juniors, the following pairs are participating: men's Kim Dae-hwan and Oh Yu-jin, Kwon Hyuk and Lee Hyun-ho; women's Kim Eun-seo and Jung Ye-in, Heo Ye-rim and Park Ye-ryeong. The mixed doubles event is composed of pairs Kim Dae-hwan and Park Ye-ryeong, and Kwon Hyuk and Heo Ye-rim.

Last year, South Korea achieved meaningful results in the individual events, including gold and silver medals in mixed doubles. The remaining individual events will determine the final scorecard for South Korean youth table tennis at this tournament. The challenge by the South Korean youth representative team in Bangkok is not yet over.

The dispatch of the Lee Beon (CEO) team is part of a national athlete development project financially supported by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation (KSPO). The tournament continues until July 4.

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*This content was translated by AI.