Yang Wang
-18 
Slovak Republic
-18
Slovak Republic
Wang Yang is a professional Slovak table tennis player of Chinese origin. He was born on September 24, 1990, although many sources wrongly assume that he was born on September 24, 1994. The defensive player has a dominant right hand and uses the shakehand grip in matches.
Wang Yang took part in the men’s singles event at the 2016 Summer Olympics but was eliminated in the second round after losing to Quadri Aruna of Nigeria, ranked the number one table tennis player in Africa.
Wang won the ETTU cup in the 2017/2018 season as a member of the Polish club, K.S. Dekorglass Dzialdowo. He also reached the 1/8 finals at the 2019 World Table Tennis Championships.
Quick Facts
Biography
Once in a while, we come across players in different sports competitions with controversial ages. Some players report incorrect ages to gain an unfair advantage in competitions designed for younger players. That is the case with Wang Yang. Slovakia picked him to compete at the 2011 European Youth Championship in Kazan, Russia, where he had competed earlier. Still, the ITTF World Association deemed him ineligible after determining that he was born in 1990 and not 1994, as previously believed.
Slovakia provided a valid passport for Wang Yang, who became a naturalized citizen on 25 May 2011, and it showed 1994 as his birth year. After dismissing official complaints from Belgium and France due to lack of evidence, the tournament jury determined that Wang’s eligibility was a fraud. There was initial confusion because of reports of a player from China who goes by the name Wang Yang; he was born in 1990 and had won the 2007 Open Youth Championships in Taiyuan, China.
Once the ITTF provided additional documents, this was the same player representing Slovakia in Kazan. He was almost 21 years old, and following the decision by the ITTF World Association, the Slovak Table Tennis Association withdrew Wang Yang from the tournament.
Wang Yang has been playing table tennis since 1997. His coach is Jan Skala, whom he brought with him to Slovakia. Slovakia is known to be lenient with naturalizations, even giving Thomas Keinath, the former German national player, a passport without ever visiting Slovakia.
Career
Wang Yang's table tennis equipment during that period was a Matsushita Pro blade, Tenergy 05 forehand rubber, and Globe 889-2 backhand rubber. We have also compiled the best table tennis shoes that professionals also use.
In 2011, Yang Wang won the Slovakian Team Championship as a member of the Stavoimpex Holíč team.
He played for TTC Frickenhausen in the 2012/2013 German Bundesliga seasons before leaving for Poland the following year.
Wang Yang was the first substitute for the 2012 Summer Olympics held in London after his world personal qualification.
In 2014, he reached the semifinals in the men’s singles at the Hungarian Open but lost 3-0 to Habesohn Daniel of Austria. The tournament was part of the ITTF Challenge Series.
Wang Yang was the singles champion of Slovakia in 2014 and 2015. He successfully defended his title by defeating Peter Sereda in the finals of the men’s singles. Wang was also a finalist of the ETTU cup while representing the Polish club ASTS Olimpia-Unia Grudziądz in the 2014/2015 season and a semifinalist as a member of the same club in the 2015/2016 men’s Champions League.
In the first round of the men’s singles, Yang Wang beat Marcos Madrid of Mexico 4-1 at the 2016 Summer Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He competed against Quadri Aruna of Nigeria in the second round, who won 4-1. Aruna then overcame Chuang Chih-yuan of Taiwan 4-0 and Timo Boll of Germany 4-2 to progress to the quarterfinals. Aruna, who was ranked 51st in the world rankings at the time, was defeated 4-0 by Ma Long of China, who was the number one seed in the tournament.
Wang participated in the mixed doubles event at the 2017 World Tour Swedish Open in Stockholm, Sweden.
In 2018, Yang Wang was the champion of Slovakia in the men’s singles category after defeating Peter Shered 4-1 in the final. In July 2018, the International Table Tennis Federation ranked Wang 78th in the world.
Yang Wang played against An Ji Song of North Korea in the men’s single round of 32 at the 2019 Table Tennis World Championships held in Budapest, Hungary. Wang, who was seeded 49, reached the 1/8 finals.
Simon Gauzy beat Wang Yang (11-0, 11-5, 11-4, 11-8) in the round of 16 of the men’s single event and advanced to the quarterfinal at the Liebherr 2019 ITTF World Championships. However, Wang bounced back and won 4-3 the next time he played against Simon Gauzy.
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After he won one of the 4 quotas at the world personal qualifying tournament in Qatar, Yang Wang secured a spot at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo as the first representative of Slovak Table Tennis.
At the 2021 World Table Tennis Championships in Houston, Texas, Yang Wang competed against Timo Boll in the seventh grouping of the round of 16. The former world number one reached the semifinals after defeating Kanak Jha of USA 4-2 in the quarterfinals of the men’s singles and went on to win a bronze medal after losing 3-4 to Truls Moregardh of Sweden.
At the 2022 Men's European Championships, Yang Wang defeated Vladislav Ursu of Moldova 4-0 in the round of 64 and Andrej Gacina of Croatia 4-1 in the round of 32. He lost 0-4 to Timo Boll of Germany in the round of 16.
Playing Style
Before understanding Wang Yang's table tennis equipment and achievements, let us discuss his playing style. Yang is very good at the art of defense. As a defensive player, he heavily uses the chopper style that relies on spin and consistency. It features loops and a heavy underspin. Our review of the best table tennis nets includes budget-friendly recommendations suitable for a chopper.
Simon Gauzy is not fond of opponents who use choppers. So, he starts in full power mode with fast backhand attacks when playing against Yang Wang to deny him a chance to attack first.
Honors and Achievements
In 2017/2018, Yang Wang won gold at the ETTU cup as part of Dekorglass Dzialdowo, and in 2014/2015, he won a silver medal as a member of Olimpia Unia Grudziadz.
The right-handed defense player is currently one of the prominent players. His highest ranking was 32 in March 2020.
Yang Wang Equipment
Videos
Final Thoughts
Wang Yang is considered one of the best defenders in table tennis, and his technique has allowed him to bear multiple stars during his career. More recently, he played against Gacina Andrej of Croatia and Timo Boll of Germany in the quarterfinal stage of the men’s singles event at the China Construction Bank Europe Top 16 Cup tournament. He also competed against Truls Moregard of Sweden, who was excited to be his opponent.
Although an age fraud controversy threatened to beset Yang Wang’s career in the early stages, he has put it behind him. He has established himself as one of the most recognizable table tennis players with dreaded choppers.