Singapore table tennis players Izaac Quek, Zeng Jian qualify for Paris 2024 Olympics

SINGAPORE: National table tennis players Izaac Quek and Zeng Jian booked their spots at the 2024 Paris Olympics after winning their respective singles finals at the Southeast Asian Regional Qualification Tournament in Bangkok on Friday (May 10).

For both defending SEA Games singles gold medallists, the Paris Games in July and August will mark their debut in the Olympics.

Quek, who turns 18 in two weeks, beat Thai veteran Phakpoom Sanguasin, 41, in the final 7-11, 12-10, 8-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-5, to become the youngest Singapore table tennis player to qualify for the Olympics, said the Singapore Table Tennis Association in a news release.

He earlier beat Russel Misal of the Philippines 4-3 in the semi-finals.

Despite losing the first set 7-11, Quek won the next three in 11-5, 11-7, 11-7. The Filipino then took the fifth and sixth sets 11-8, to level the tie at 3-3.

But Quek won the deciding set 11-5 to seal his place in the final.

"Of course I am very happy to have qualified for the Olympics. It is something that I told myself would be my goal for this year, and I am glad to have achieved it", said Quek.

"Despite being the current SEA Games champion, I told myself during this competition that everyone is on a level playing field, and I just focused on what I needed to do", he added.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s No 1 female table tennis player Zeng Jian, 27, stormed to an early 3-0 lead against Vietnam’s Nguyen Khanh in the women’s singles final, winning 11-7, 11-6, 11-8, before dropping the fourth set 9-11.

The fifth set saw a close battle between Khanh and Zeng, but the Singaporean held on to win 12-10.

“I am thankful for the support from the team, and with the confidence of having won the SEA Games gold medal, I managed to book my spot,”