[Asian Games] Table Tennis Shin Yubin - Jeon Jihee Compete in 'South-North Showdown' for First Gold Medal in 21 Years

Defeating Japan to Reach the Finals
Final Match Tonight Against North Korea's Cha Su-yeong and Park Su-gyeong

Shin Yubin (Korean Air) and Jeon Jihee (Mirae Asset Securities) pair (ranked 1st) will face off in a South-North Korea showdown for the first Asian Games gold medal in 21 years.

The final match will start at 7:30 PM Korea time on the 2nd. This is the first time in this tournament that South and North Korea have met in a final across all events.

The Shin Yubin-Jeon Jihee pair won 4-1 (9-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-7, 11-7) against Japan’s Harimoto Miwa-Kihara Miyu pair (ranked 33rd) in the women's doubles semifinals at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games held at the Gongshu Canal Sports Park Gymnasium in Hangzhou, China.

In the other semifinal, North Korea’s Cha Suyong-Park Sukyung pair (unranked) defeated Sutirta Mukerjee-Aihika Mukerjee pair (ranked 16th, India) 4-3 (7-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 5-11, 11-2), setting up a South-North final.

This is the first time in 33 years since the 1990 Beijing Games men's team event that South and North Korea have competed in a final in Asian Games table tennis. At that time, South Korea defeated North Korea to win the gold medal.

The Shin Yubin-Jeon Jihee pair has succeeded in reaching the women's individual final at the Asian Games for the first time in 21 years for Korean players since the Seok Eunmi-Lee Eunsil pair won the doubles gold medal at the 2002 Busan Games.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Previously, Shin Yubin, who had settled for bronze medals in the team event, mixed doubles, and singles, has now earned a chance to challenge for gold after 'three attempts and four tries.'

If they win the final, Shin Yubin and Jeon Jihee will claim their second major tournament gold medal in their careers, following their doubles gold at the 2021 Doha Asian Championships.

The Harimoto-Kihara pair had not frequently played together before. They are a newly formed 'teenage pair' that Japan introduced for this tournament.

After causing an upset by defeating the Sun Yingsha-Wang Manyu pair 3-1 in the quarterfinals, the Harimoto-Kihara pair seemed to continue their momentum by taking the first game in the semifinals, but from the second game onward, the Shin Yubin-Jeon Jihee pair took control and maintained the advantage, and the momentum did not shift.

In the final fifth game, although the Harimoto-Kihara pair led 7-3, the persistent Jeon Jihee-Shin Yubin pair caught up and reversed the score to 8-7, signaling their victory.

In men's singles, Jang Woojin (ranked 13th) lost to China’s world number one Fan Zhendong 1-4 (4-11, 14-12, 7-11, 5-11, 7-11), failing to advance to the final.

Jang Woojin, the ace of the men's table tennis team, medaled in all events at this tournament. He finished the competition with one silver medal each in the men's team and men's doubles, and one bronze medal each in mixed doubles and men's singles.