With the duel for bronze, the German table tennis players have achieved more than expected. But in the battle for third place, South Korea is too strong. This is something that particularly affects one player.
After the surprise failed to materialize in the unequal duel for Olympic bronze, Xiaona Shan broke down emotionally. At 41, the most experienced German table tennis player sat behind the barrier crying like a miserable heap after the 0:3 defeat against South Korea. She had to be consoled for minutes by her much younger teammates and national coach Tamara Boros.
“We are a team, we win and lose together. And when someone is not feeling well, we try to cheer them up and encourage them and open their eyes. We actually came here with a reserve team,” said Olympic debutant Annett Kaufmann. Tears ran down the 18-year-old’s cheeks. Fourth place at the Olympics was a great success for the women’s team, even if at the moment “the disappointment is of course great.”
Double close to surprise
Shan was hampered by a disc injury, which was noticeable in her hopeless final singles match against Jeon Jihee (0:3). She would have “liked to give more,” Shan explained.
The 2016 team silver medalist had previously shown in the doubles that she is still capable of a strong performance even when injured. Together with Yuan Wan, Shan brought the clear favorites Shin Yubin and Jeon Jihee to the brink of defeat after a two-set deficit, and in the decisive fifth set the German duo were already leading 7:4. In the end they lost the match 2:3 in sets.
Kaufmann’s sensational series stopped
The performance was still “amazing,” said Wan, because she and Shan had “not even trained together” before the tournament. The German team was missing two top players. Nina Mittelham had injured her spinal disc during her second-round exit in the singles in Paris. Ying Han was unable to travel to the tournament due to a torn Achilles tendon.
The absences meant that Kaufmann was able to make it into the squad for Paris. With five wins in her first five matches, the teenager stunned even the world elite, but she had a bad day in the 0:3 defeat against South Korean Lee Eunhye. She admitted that she “didn’t feel very comfortable” in the game and “felt a certain amount of pressure”.
Sports director Richard Prause of the German Table Tennis Association was very satisfied with Kaufmann and the women’s team, but not with the first zero result at the Olympics since 2004. In the men’s competition, the Germans had been the ones “chasing China” for years. In Paris, other nations had taken on this role. “We will now chase them,” Prause announced.
Source: Stern
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