Xiang Peng retained his boys’ singles title (Photo: ITTF)
Staged in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal from Thursday 2nd to Wednesday 8th December, China and Japan emerged the dominant forces at the 2021 ITTF World Youth Championships.
The interloper was Russia.
In the under 19 age group, China won both the boys’ team and girls’ team events; Xiang Peng retained the boys’ singles title won two years earlier in Korat, Thailand.
Kuai Man emerged the girls’ singles winner and partnered Wu Yangchen to girls’ doubles success.
Two events escaped Chinese hands; Russia’s Maksim Grebnev and Vladimir Sidorenko won the boys’ doubles, Japan’s Hiroto Shinozuka and Miyuu Kihara struck mixed doubles gold.
Meanwhile, in the under 15 age group, Japan’s Miwa Harimoto never lost a match; she completed a clean sweep of titles.
She was a member of the successful girls’ team, before partnering colleague Sora Matsushima to mixed doubles success and Egypt’s Hana Goda to girls’ doubles gold.
Impressively, she concluded play by securing the girls’ singles title.
Sora Matsushima joined forces with Frenchman Felix Lebrun to secure boys’ doubles gold, later claiming the boys’ singles top prize.
Russia won the boys’ team event.
Under 19 Boys’ Team
SF: Russia (Maksim Grebnev/Vladislav Makarov/Vladimir Sidorenko) 3-0 Germany (Hannes Hoermann/ Kay Stumper/Daniel Rinderer)
SF: China Chen Yuanyu/Lin Shidong/Xiang Peng) 3-0 Japan (Kazuki Hamada/ Sora Matsushima/Hiroto Shinozuka)
F: China 3-0 Russia (Xiang Peng v Vladimir Sidorenko 5,2,-7,8; Lin Shidong v Maksim Grebnev 6,4,9; Chen Yuanyu v Damir Akhmetsafin 4,12,3)
Under 19 Girls’ Team
SF: China (Chen Yi, Kuai Man, Wu Yangchen) 3-1 Japan (Miyuu Kihara, Ami Shirayama, Haruna Ojio)
SF: United States (Rachel Sung, Angie Tan, Amy Wang) 3-2 Romania (Luciana Mitrofan/Ioana Singeorzan/Elena Zaharia)
F: China 3-0 United States (Kuai Man v Rachel Sung 4,3,6; Chen Yi v Amy Wang 4,5,11, Wu Yangchen v Joanna Sung 5,3,7)
Under 19 Boys’ Singles
SF: Xiang Peng (CHN) v Payas Jain (IND) 4,-10,4,2,1
SF: Samuel Kulczycki (POL) v Zeng Beixun (CHN) 12,-9,9,4,6
F: Xiang Peng (CHN) v Samuel Kulczycki (POL) 8,9,1,10
Under 19 Girls’ Singles
SF: Kuai Man (CHN) v Haruna Ojio (JPN) -5,6,7,9,5
SF: Miyuu Kihara (JPN) v Wu Yangchen (CHN) 7,-2,9,-8,2,-6,7
F: Kuai Man (CHN) v Miyuu Kihara (JPN) 10,7,-8,5,-10,-7,8
Under 19 Boys’ Doubles
SF: Maksim Grebnev/Vladimir Sidorenko (RUS) v Carlos Fernandez/Taiwo Mati (PER/NGR) 3,-10,9,12
SF: Csaba Andras/Ivor Ban (HUN/CRO) v Darius Movileanu/Eduard Ionescu (ROU) 4,5,-7,7
F: Maksim Grebnev/Vladimir Sidorenko (RUS) v Csaba Andras/Ivor Ban (HUN/CRO) -9,-6,9,7,9
Under 19 Girls’ Doubles
SF: Kuai Man/Wu Yangchen (CHN) v Miyuu Kihara/Haruna Ojio (JPN) 6,-3,7,10
SF: Rachel Sung/Amy Wang (USA) v Cai Fong-En/Hsu Yi-Chen (TPE) -5,9,6,6
F: Kuai Man/Wu Yangchen (CHN) v Rachel Sung/Amy Wang (USA) 3,3,-6,1
Under 19 Mixed Doubles
SF: Xiang Peng/Kuai Man (CHN) v Samuel Kulczycki/Prithika Pavade (POL) 8,3,8
SF: Hiroto Shinozuka/Miyuu Kihara (JPN) v Zeng Beixun/Wu Yangchen (CHN) 9,10,6
F: Hiroto Shinozuka/Miyuu Kihara (JPN) v Xiang Peng/Kuai Man (CHN) -10,7,-12,12,7
Under 15 Boys’ Team
SF: United States (Jensen Feng, Nandan Naresh, Daniel Tran) 3-2 France (Flavien Coton, Nathan Lam, Antoine Noirault)
SF: Russia (Ilia Koniukov, Aleksei Samokhin, Roman Vinogradov) 3-0 Portugal (Tiago Abiodun, Bernardo Pinto, Rafael Silva)
F: Russia (Aleksei Samokhin v Nandan Naresh 7,-10,-8,-8; Ilia Koniukov v Daniel Tran 9,5,4; Roman Vongradov v Jensen Feng 9,5,7, Aleksei Samokhin v Daniel Tran -9,9,7,2)
Under 15 Girls’ Team
SF: Japan (Miwa Harimoto, Yuna Ojio, Misaki Suzuki) 3-1 United States (Faith Hu, Sally Moyland, Emily Tan)
SF: Russia (Anastasiia Ivanova, Kristina Kurilkina, Zlata Terekhova) 3-2 India (Pritha Vartikar, Suhana Saini, Sayali Rajesh Wani)
F: Japan 3-0 Russia (Miwa Harimoto v Zlata Terekhova 6,6,4; Yuna Ojio v Anastasiia Ivanova 9,7,5; Misaki Suzuki v Kristina Kurilkina 7,12,-5,-10,10)
Under 15 Boys’ Singles
SF: Milosz Redzimski (POL) v Felix Lebrun (FRA) 8,-6,-5,12,9,6
SF: Sora Matsushima (JPN) v Izaac Quek Yong (SGP) 8,10,10,8
F: Sora Matsushima (JPN) v Milosz Redzimski (POL) 5,5,-5,5,7
Under 15 Girls’ Singles
SF: Hana Goda (EGY) v Suhana Saini (IND) 10,-9,3,3,8
SF: Miwa Harimoto (JPN) v Ser Lin Qian (SGP) 6,10,4,-7,7
F: Miwa Harimoto (JPN) v Hana Goda (EGY) 8,-8,-7,3,6,5
Under 15 Boys’ Doubles
SF: Felix Lebrun/Sora Matsushima (FRA/JPN) v Chang Yu-An/Izaac Quek Yong (TPE/SGP) 9,12,7
SF: Ilia Koniukov/Roman Vinogradov (RUS) v Dragos Alexandru Bujor/Iulian Chirita (ROU) -10,8,9,-5,6
F: Felix Lebrun/Sora Matsushima (FRA/JPN) v Ilia Koniukov/Roman Vinogradov (RUS) 7,-8,4,3
Under 15 Girls’ Doubles
SF: Hana Goda/Miwa Harimoto (EGY/JPN) v Veronika Matiunina/Suhana Saini (UKR/IND) 6,9,3
SF: Mia Griesel/Annett Kaufmann (GER) v Anna Hursey/Matilde Pinto (WAL/POR) 4,5,5
F: Hana Goda/Miwa Harimoto (EGY/JPN) v Mia Griesel/Annett Kaufmann (GER) 9,5,7
Under 15 Mixed Doubles
SF: Sora Matsushima/Miwa Harimoto (JPN) v Milosz Redzimski/Mia Griesel (GER) 6,6,10
SF: Iulian Chirita/Bianca Mei Rosu (ROU) v Chang Yu-An/Cheng Pu-Syuan (TPE) 6,4,10
F: Sora Matsushima/Miwa Harimoto (JPN) v Iulian Chirita/Bianca Mei Rosu (ROU) -6,6,4,8