SINGAPORE - The Republic will host the region's top youth players for the 23rd South-east Asian Junior & Cadet Table Tennis Championships from next Tuesday (June 13) to Friday (June 16).

The tournament returns to Singapore for the first time since 2002, and will be held at the Toa Payoh Sports Hall. Admission is free.

Singapore's junior paddlers will be looking to retain the 10 gold medals they won in last year's edition in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, which included a sweep of the boys' and girls' team titles in both the Junior (Under 18) and Cadet (U-15) categories.

More is at stake than just pride on home soil though. The champions and runners-up in the team events will qualify for the Asian Junior Table Tennis Championships, which will be held from June 29 to July 4 in Ansan, South Korea.

Among the gold-medal winning paddlers returning from last year are Beh Kun Ting and Ethan Poh for the Junior boys, and Nichole Lew and Zhang Wanling for the Junior girls.

The draws for the team and individual events will take place on June 12 and June 13 respectively.

Members of the public can also catch the tournament live on the Singapore Table Tennis Association's (STTA) YouTube channel.