Near Misses for Hongtao Chen and
Anqi Luo
Junior Boys
The Scotiabank Junior and Cadet Circuit Junior Boys finals
took place on October 6 at CTTA in Markham.
Hongtao Chen was the only Canadian player to reach the
semi-finals. There he faced a difficult
opponent from Chinese Taipei, Cheng-Ting Liao.
Leading up to the match Chen was a favourite, as he had beaten Liao
(3-1) in the team event on Friday, although each game had been close. The semi-final match lasted a full 7 games,
but Chen lost just 3 games to 4.
James Pintea also was playing well, reaching the
quarterfinals after winning against Korean, Jeongmin Lee. However, Chia-Sheng Lee of Chinese Taipei
proved too strong, and knocked Pintea out 4-0.
Canadian’s Jeremy Hazin, Mathieu Theriault, and Max Xia
reached the Round of 16 before being eliminated.
Junior Girls
Anqi Luo performed well in the groups and knock-out stage,
but was upset in the semi-finals. As she
led 10-6 in the 7th game of the semi-final match against Yaeji Lee
of Korea, her road to the finals seemed secure. However, this was as close as Luo would get. For the next 6 points, to the dismay of
Canadian fans, Lee tied the game 10-10, then surpassed and defeated Luo 10-12!
Junior Boys Teams
The final of the Junior Boys Team event was October 5th
at 6pm. It was Canada’s A team against
the team from Chinese Taipei.
James Pintea was outmatched by Chia-Sheng Lee in the first
match. Then, Hongtao Chen caught-up with
a win against Cheng-Ting Liao. Another
point was looking hopeful for the Canadians as they led 2-1 in doubles. However, Chinese Taipei made a strong
comeback, winning 3-2 (12-10; 11-7; 11-13; 11-4; 11-1).
Chia-Sheng Lee then earned one more point with a win against
Chen (3-1). That was enough for first
place for Chinese Taipei. Canada A finishes second.
