China’s Wang Chuqin ends 2024 with three-peat at World Table Tennis Finals

FUKUOKA – While 2024 was not all smooth-sailing for China’s Wang Chuqin, the world No. 1 ended the year the way he started it – with a title.

The 24-year-old secured his third consecutive men’s singles crown at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Finals after a 4-0 (11-2, 11-8, 11-7, 11-5) thrashing of local hope Tomokazu Harimoto, 21, at the Kitakyushu General Gymnasium in Fukuoka, Japan on Nov 24. 

Wang had started the year by triumphing at the 2023 WTT Finals, which were staged in Qatar in January 2024.

In the Doha final, he defeated compatriot Fan Zhendong, who had pulled out of the Fukuoka edition along with fellow Paris Olympic champions Chen Meng and Ma Long.

Wang, who pocketed US$40,000 (S$53,900) for winning the season-ending tournament, insisted that he had not expected a three-peat.

He told the WTT website: “Harimoto and I have been long-time opponents since young, we’re familiar with each other’s play and have had our fair share of wins and losses... He’s at his peak whether physically or mentally.

“I didn’t expect today’s outcome either, and I just made the fullest of preparation coming into this match.”

“2024 has been anything but normal for me. There’s the good and the bad, but I’m just glad that at the end of it, I’m able to show the ‘three’ sign to the crowd,” added Wang, who was ousted in the Paris Games round of 32 by Sweden’s Truls Moregard.

His compatriot Wang Manyu won the women’s singles crown, after the world No. 2 edged out compatriot Chen Xingtong in a seven-game thriller (13-11, 9-11, 4-11, 11-5, 5-11, 11-8, 11-5).

The seventh-ranked Chen, who had shocked world No. 1 and three-time defending champion Sun Yingsha in the round of 16, looked set to lift the trophy as she led 5-4 in the decider.

But Manyu then reeled off seven straight points to add to her titles from the WTT Singapore Smash and WTT Champions Frankfurt.

The 25-year-old said she did not set any target for herself, adding: “Rather I hope to bring value to my play each time. Whether victory or defeat, I want to focus more on the process than the outcome.”

In the men’s doubles final on Nov 23, France’s Alexis and Felix Lebrun emerged champions after a 3-2 (12-14, 14-12, 11-6, 7-11, 11-4) win over home favourites Shunsuke Togami and Hiroto Shinozuka, who had defeated Singapore pair Koen Pang and Izaac Quek in the semi-finals.

After clinching their first WTT Finals title and the US$8,000 prize money, the Lebrun brothers have garnered enough points to leapfrog China’s top-ranked Yuan Licen and Xiang Peng to secure the year-end No. 1 spot.

Alexis, 21, expressed delight to have clinched the doubles crown with Felix, 18, after both were knocked out in the singles round of 16.

He told the WTT website: “We know that we are in a very good shape in doubles. We know that we have a little chance... We played so good during this tournament in doubles and it’s just amazing to share this type of moment with Felix.”

The women’s doubles final, which was an all-Japan affair, was won by world No. 9 Hitomi Sato and Honoka Hashimoto. They triumphed 11-5, 12-10, 11-8 over the fifth-ranked Satsuki Odo and Sakura Yokoi, who had knocked out top seeds and world No. 2 Jeon Ji-hee and Shin Yu-bin of South Korea in the opening round.

“To be the champion, I knew that it wasn’t zero per cent. I believed in that 1 per cent, and I think we did really well,” said Hashimoto, after the duo had left it late to qualify as one of the top eight pairs.

“It was only determined last minute that we could compete in this event, so I was really, really happy even to be competing in this competition. Especially since it was held in Japan, it was really special. To be the champion in the end, I’m just really happy,” said Sato.