Taiwanese table tennis prodigy Chen Po-yen claimed silver in the men’s singles TT11 category at the Paris Paralympics on Thursday while fighting through cramping in his right leg.
Although Chen expressed disappointment with the defeat, he said he had relished the Paralympic experience and vowed to aim for gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Aged just 17, Chen is the youngest member of Taiwan’s Paralympic delegation.
Photo: CNA
In his debut on the global stage, he impressed fans by defeating Belgium’s Florian van Acker, the 2016 Rio Paralympics gold medalist, and Hungary’s Peter Palos, a two-time Paralympic champion, to secure a spot in the final.
Chen faced South Korea’s Kim Gi-tae in the gold-medal match and quickly won the first game 11-3.
However, his performance was affected after he was hit with a cramp in his right leg and he narrowly lost the subsequent games, 13-15, 7-11 and 9-11, meaning he had to settle for silver.
Photo: CNA
In a post-match interview, Chen described his performance as “not bad,” and that he played with a relaxed mindset in the first game.
However, the cramp threw him off balance, despite his coach Wei Chun-ta massaging his leg to relieve some of the cramping.
Chen said the defeat was unfortunate, but he remained positive, saying, “It’s a bit disappointing, but I thoroughly enjoyed competing here. I’ll aim to win the gold next time.”
Wei, who has been training Chen for more than five years, said that Chen still has room to grow, both mentally and technically.
Wei said he appreciated the support from training partners, medical staff, nutritionists and the enthusiastic fans cheering Chen on.
“Our athletes are incredibly fortunate, and we’ll continue pushing forward,” he said.
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